Burma's Junta freed 3,937 prisoners
(Nov. 20, 2004)(Boxun recieved News of SHAN-EU published by Burma's Chinese)
(boxun.com)
Myanmar's military junta has freed prominent political prisoners during a mass release of 4,000 people arrested
Burma's second most prominent political prisoner after Aung San Suu Kyi, a student leader named Min Ko Naing, has been released too. He just arrived at his home two hours ago and is with his family now in Rangoon!
Below is a list of those that have released. "MP" next to their name denotes that they were a member of parliament elected in Burma's 1990 national
election.
MIN KO NAING
(1) U Kyaw San (MP) released from Insein prison.
(2) U Ohn Maung (MP)released from Insein prison.
(3) U Aung Zin (lawyer)released from Insein prison.
(4) U Toe Po (MP)released from Insein prison.
(5) Dr.Soe Than of DPNS released from Mandaly prison.
(6) Yar Kyaw of DPNS released from Mandalay prison.
(7) Tin Mar Ni (Female) of DPNS
(8) Ohnmar (Female) of DPNS
(9) Zaw Zaw Linn of DPNS
(10) Thet Naing
(11) U Nyan Hla
(12) Min Zaw Thein
(13) Ko Khun Sai
"inappropriately" by the dismantled intelligence organisation of purged prime minister Khin Nyunt.
Win Tin, a high-profile aide to opposition leader and democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi, who remains under house arrest, was among those released.
A member of the opposition National League for Democracy's (NLD) central executive committee, Win Tin was jailed in 1989, the year before Suu Kyi and the NLD won a landslide election victory only to be denied power by the ruling generals.
"It was a pleasant surprise for all of us," said 77-year-old Ohn Maung, a NLD official who was among the first prisoners to reach home on
Friday.
"I went to prison on February 26, 1998 and got back home about ten minutes ago," he told Reuters after the abrupt end to more than six
years of incarceration.
"I did not have to sign any undertaking and I expect most of the NLD members will also be released like me," he said.
Three NLD members were on a specially arranged Prison Department bus which left his detention centre, Ohn Maung said.
State-run media announced the release on Thursday evening, saying 3,937 prisoners would be set free because "it is considered that they were inappropriately arrested by the National Intelligence Bureau that was dissolved on October 22".
General Khin Nyunt, purged in mid-October by junta strongman Than Shwe, was also head of the feared NIB, which was abolished just days after he was arrested and accused of corruption, a charge derided by foreign analysts who view the army as corrupt.
"TOUGH QUESTIONS"
It is not known how many of the 3,937 are NLD members or political prisoners.
Dissidents say there were around 1,300 prisoners of conscience in detention centres in the former Burma, which has been under various forms of army rule since a 1962 coup.Around a dozen were thought to be senior officials of the NLD.
Nobel Peace Laureate Suu Kyi and her deputy Tin Oo have been in jail or under house arrest since May 30, 2003.
NLD spokesman U Lwin welcomed the military government's move, which came a week before a summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations, whose leaders who are expected to give the reclusive and recalcitrant generals a rough ride.
"I haven't heard anything about the released prisoners. Anyway, we are very glad no matter who is released," U Lwin said.
。
ASEAN Secretary General Ong Keng said on Thursday -- before news of the prisoner release broke -- the 10-member group would have tough questions about the fate of a "roadmap to democracy" Khin Nyunt announced after taking office in August last year.
"Given the way in which the change of prime minister has taken place and the greater speculation on the future of this national reconciliation process, there will be a lot of hard questions by the other ASEAN leaders,"
he told Reuters.
ASEAN is one of the few international groupings willing to have Myanmar as a member and follows a policy of constructive engagement with the country in hopes that talking and close contact will bring about a profound political change.
Nevertheless, the junta's ruthlessness and lack of progress on political reform -- particularly its failure to free Suu Kyi from house arrest -- has often been a source of embarrassment to the organisation.
But one Yangon-based observer dismissed the gesture as a ploy to ease widespread international condemnation of last month's dismissal of Prime Minister Khin Nyunt and his replacement by a hardline general.
"These are damage-control measures taken by the military hierarchy to negate some of the negative developments here," the observer said.
(boxun.com)
Click here to leave your comments on BBS
|
|
|
|
