More than 3,000 prisoners were pardoned by the Myanmar government on Tuesday, a month before the country hosts a Southeast Asia political summit which will be attended by international and regional leaders including President Barack Obama, Voice of America reported. Despite President Thein Sein's pledge to free all political prisoners, only one was allegedly included in Tuesday's pardon, advocacy groups said.
The amnesty, held before an auspicious full moon festival in the predominately Buddhist country, included prisoners of minor crimes and at least eight former military intelligence officers jailed a decade ago as part of a political purge, including associates of former Prime Minister Khin Nyunt, who was freed from house arrest under a similar amnesty in 2012.
Myanmar, also known as Burma, imposed harsh sentences to stifle dissent in the country until 2011, after which the army introduced sweeping reforms and led a transition to civilian democracy.
The prisoners were being freed "on humanitarian grounds," the Ministry of Information in Yangon announced Tuesday.
"The president issued a pardon for over 3, 073," Information minister and presidential spokesman U Ye Htut told VOA. "And according to our information there are 3,015 Myanmar citizens and 58 foreigners. The president made this pardon for the sake of peace and stability based on national reconciliation and rule of law."
Most notable among those freed was former brigadier-general Thein Swe, a former military intelligence official, who was sentenced to 152 years in prison following the 2004 ouster of an ex-intelligence chief.
"Having a top day with great news. I'm heading to Myingyan (prison) to pick up my dad," his son, Sonny Swe, announced on social media.
The president, a former general who took power in 2011 after five decades of military rule, has released more than 1,000 political prisoners and had pledged to release all of them by last year, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. But under his military-backed government, people continue to be locked up for political offenses.
"According to the independent Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, there were 80 political activists incarcerated in Myanmar at the end of September, and 130 others were awaiting trial for political actions," the Associated Press reported.
With more than 70 civilians imprisoned for political offenses, only one named Mar La was apparently freed on Tuesday, former political prisoner and founder of AAPP Bo Kyi said.
Ye Aung, a former political detainee and a member of the official Political Prisoner Scrutiny Committee, initially said 13 political prisoners would be freed, but later stated it to be incorrect.
"According to the list we are given, there are no political prisoners among those freed today," he said.
Meanwhile, Myanmar's government was criticized by Rights group Amnesty International for failing to keep its pledge.
"The President's failure to follow through on his promise to release all prisoners of conscience by the end of 2013 is extremely disappointing," said Olof Blomqvist, Amnesty International's Asia-Pacific press officer.
"The Myanmar authorities have, since the transition started, consistently spun the line that the country has turned a corner on human rights - but the ground reality is very different," he said. "The authorities continue to rely on draconian laws to silence and imprison those peacefully expressing their opinions. As long as these laws are in place, peaceful activists will continue to be locked up, and any amnesties will in the long run not have much effect."
