Win Myint, Myanmar’s ousted president, released by regime

Myanmar’s military junta has released Win Myint, the president of the democratically elected government that it ousted more than five years ago, military-owned media outlets reported on Friday. A leading member of the deposed ruling party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), Win Myint was taken into custody on February 1, 2021, the day the regime seized power, after he refused to resign as president. He was subsequently sentenced to 14 years in prison on multiple charges, including incitement to sedition, corruption, and violations of electoral laws and Covid-19 rules. Military-owned Myawaddy TV announced that he was released on Friday under Section 401(1) of the Myanmar Code of Criminal Procedure, which allows the president to suspend or remit a prison sentence, on the condition that the prisoner can be forced to complete his sentence and face an additional penalty if he commits an offence upon his release. The move comes a week after Min Aung Hlaing, the former armed forces commander-in-chief who led the 2021 coup, assumed his new role as president after being sworn in by a military-stacked parliament in Naypyitaw last Friday. Dr. Myo Nyunt, the NLD’s spokesperson, confirmed that Win Myint was among several prisoners released today and is reportedly in good health. It has also been rumoured that NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi could soon be moved from prison and placed under house arrest as part of a general amnesty announced to mark the start of the Buddhist New Year. However, these rumours could not be confirmed at the time of reporting. Aung San Suu Kyi, 80, has been imprisoned in Naypyitaw since she was sentenced to a total of 33 years in prison on various charges in late 2022. She was serving as state counsellor when she was arrested on the day of the coup. The junta announced that a total of 4,335 people held in various prisons would be released on Friday. However, only 160 political prisoners from 19 prisons have been released so far, according to the Political Prisoners Network Myanmar.

Win Myint, Myanmar’s ousted president, released by regime

There are also unconfirmed rumours that Aung San Suu Kyi could soon be moved from prison and placed under house arrest

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