KACHIN STATE – It has been reported that over 70 prisoners from Myitkyina Prison were released on junta council’s amnesty on Tuesday (August 1) at 2 p.m.
A source close to the prison said that there were no political prisoners nor prisoners charged with narcotic crimes among the released people.
“They said they would release more than 100 prisoners earlier but they only released over 70 prisoners,” said the source.
A woman who was released said there were six women among those released and that only those with petty crimes were released. “They only released those charged for petty crimes. Only prisoners with less than six months left to serve were released,” she said.
Although there were rumours that the former president of Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC), Reverend Dr Hkalam Samson, would be released, he wasn’t.
Junta released 7,749 prisoners on amnesty nationwide on the full moon day of Warso.