Myanmar Junta re-arrests over 100 political prisoners merely hours after release

Merely three days after the Myanmar Military freed thousands of people arrested for protesting its February coup, it has again arrested around 110 political prisoners on Friday, as per local media. According to a report published in Radio Free Asia [RFA], the prisoners, who were about to get released from the jail, were re-arrested right at the entrance of the prison. Meanwhile, the family members of the prisoners were present near the jail premises to welcome their loved ones. As per the report, they were sent back to home and then were called again by the authorities. This comes as Myanmar Junta recently freed thousands of people arrested for protesting its February coup under strict conditions on 18 October.

According to the experts familiar with the developments in Myanmar, the military announcement came to appease the international community. It is to mention that the military leadership has been facing both global and domestic pressure to step down since they ousted a democratically elected Prime Minister earlier in February this year. According to Radio Free Asia sources, the detainees are now being held in police custody under Myanmar's anti-terrorism law. "We are devastated -- our mother is 84 and her health is deteriorating," RFA quoted a family member of Lay Lay Naing as saying, on condition of anonymity. Naing was arrested on 21 May and sentenced to three years in prison on charges of spreading "false news [or] agitates directly or indirectly a criminal offence against a government employee".

Meanwhile, a family member of one of the prisoners said: "We went to meet her at the prison, hoping that the whole family would be reunited and happy. We saw her from a distance, and she was taken away. We were not allowed to say anything."

 According to RFA, the junta had released 1,316 prisoners from various facilities and 4,320 detainees including, well-known politicians, celebrities, film actors and journalists. Myanmar's military chief, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, had announced a general amnesty and freed nearly 200 detainees from detention earlier in June this year.

More than 1,167 were killed in the deadly clash after Myanmar Junta take over

The military takeover was met with massive public protests that resulted in a lethal crackdown by security forces who routinely fire live ammunition into crowds. According to a tally kept by the independent Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 1,167 people have been killed in the protest. Casualties are also rising among the military and police as armed resistance grows in both urban and rural areas. Apart from the military junta, the country has also been reeling under the worst phase of COVID-19. 

(With inputs from ANI)

(Image: AP/ANI)