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Myanmar junta transferred hundreds of political prisoners before execution anniversary

Authorities moved inmates to prisons in other regions en masse, apparently anticipating strikes on July 23 to mark the date of the military regime’s infamous 2022 executions of political prisoners

In a possible bid to prevent protests commemorating political prisoners executed by the junta, authorities moved hundreds of detainees out of Yangon on Sunday, prisoners’ rights advocates said. 

The military council transferred at least 200 male and 60 female prisoners—most of whom were held for political reasons—from Yangon’s Insein Prison to Daik-U Prison in the Bago Region town of the same name that morning, according to Theik Tun Oo, a spokesperson for the advocacy group Political Prisoners Network-Myanmar (PPNM). 

“They transferred hundreds of prisoners and among them, we have received confirmation that 200 male and 60 female political prisoners were transferred to the Daik-U Prison,” Theik Tun Oo said. “We still do not know how many were transferred to Thayarwaddy Prison.” 

The mass transfer was likely intended to thwart potential demonstrations by prisoners to mark the upcoming anniversary of prisoner

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