'Tatmadaw' gives in, to release 5,600 jailed protestors

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Published : Oct 18, 2021, 10:14 PM IST

Bowing down to international pressure and to ward off the spectre of an ugly civil war in Myanmar, the ruling junta has announced that it will release 5,600 of the about 7,300 pro-democracy protesters put in jail after the February 1 coup, reports senior journalist Sanjib Kr Baruah

New Delhi: In an unmistakable sign that the stubborn position of the ruling Myanmarese junta maybe finally giving in to pressures exerted by global opinion, the Senior General Min Aung Hlaing-led ‘Tatamadaw’ (Myanmarese military junta) regime has announced on state TV that it will release 5,600 pro-democracy protesters who were put in jails for participating in pro-democracy protests.

By late evening, an initial batch of prisoners had already been released according to media reports.

The development followed the decision by the 10-nation ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) to exclude General Min Aung Hlaing from its upcoming annual summit later this month.

The ASEAN position is a rare departure from its policy of non-interference in internal affairs of its members.

Also Read: Know Myanmar Army General who triggered the coup

An ASEAN mediation effort by sending Brunei’s junior foreign minister to Naypyitaw was rebuffed by the military junta which refused to give permission to the minister to meet detained leader Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

Ever since the February 1 coup, at least 1,178 have been killed in the military clampdown on pro-democracy protesters while at least 7,300 protestors including leaders, activists, professionals and others had been put in jail after the ‘Tatamadaw’ seized power in a sudden coup on February 1, 2021, effectively ending a decade year-old experiment with democracy.

The coup followed an electoral verdict in November 2020 that overwhelmingly favoured the Daw Aung San Suu Kyi-led National Democratic League (NLD) which bagged 396 seats of the total 476, while the junta-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) got just 33.

The situation in the country had descended into a civil-war-lie scenario with a number of ethnic armed organisations declaring war against the junta, adding more volatility to the incessant insurgencies led by rebel ethnic groups including the Kachin Independence Army (KIA), Karen National Union (KNU), Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), Shan State Army-North, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the Arakan Army.

However media reports indicate that the public mood is unforgiving of the ‘Tatmadaw’ and insists on the immediate unconditional release and re-installment of Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint and other political prisoners.

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