Nobel laureate's sentence shortened - prisoners pardoned

TT

Published 09.07

 

           

          

         Myanmar's ousted ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi pictured during a protest against Myanmar's junta               rule in Thailand in 2024.1 / 2Photo: Sakchai Lalit/AP/TT

Thousands of prisoners in Myanmar are being granted amnesty and death sentences are being commuted to life imprisonment. The imprisoned ex-leader Aung San Suu Kyi is having her sentence symbolically reduced.

Former President Win Myint, imprisoned since the military coup in 2021, is also being pardoned during Myanmar's ongoing New Year celebrations. Releasing prisoners is seen as a "good deed" during major Buddhist holidays.

The news comes after junta leader Min Aung Hlaing was sworn in as president after a widely criticized election, which critics say was only intended to cement the military's iron grip on power. According to the UN, at least 170 civilians have been killed in connection with the election.

80-year-old Aung San Suu Kyi, the 1991 Peace Prize laureate, has been detained since the junta overthrew her government in a coup in 2021. Her 27-year sentence is now being reduced by 4.5 years.