Myanmar's military government began releasing almost 4,000 prisoners whose detentions were ruled improper, state-run radio and television said Friday. But there were no indications the releases include Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and other political prisoners. The reports said Myanmar's ruling junta ordered the release of prisoners who had been wrongly charged by the former National Intelligence Bureau, an umbrella organization of internal security organizations that was dissolved by the junta last month. The bureau had been headed by former Prime Minister Gen. Khin Nyunt, who was ousted Oct. 19 and subsequently accused of corruption and insubordination. | The newly-emptied cells will be filled with Nyunt's cronies ... |
Khin Nyunt's removal from power was believed to have been orchestrated by hard-line members of the junta opposed to his relative moderation in dealing with the country's pro-democracy movement, led by Suu Kyi. The freedom of political prisoners is a major demand of the United Nations and Western countries, who criticize the military regime for its poor human rights record and failure to hand over power to a democratically elected government. |