Myanmar regime pardons thousands ahead of disputed election

Myanmar’s military will pardon or drop charges against a total of 8,665 people, regime media reported on Thursday, allowing them to vote in an upcoming election that Western countries and human rights groups have dismissed as a sham.

The order includes the reduction of sentences for 3,085 people convicted under section 505A of the penal code, which criminalizes comments that could cause fear or spread fake news.

Charges against another 5,580 people still at large have also been dropped.

It was not immediately clear how many of those covered are political detainees, or when the releases would occur.

Speaking on Wednesday before the amnesty was formally announced, regime spokesperson Zaw Min Tun said the measures were designed to help all eligible voters cast their ballots “freely and fairly” in the upcoming polls.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 military coup overthrew the civilian government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been in detention ever since. Nationwide protests against the coup grew into an armed resistance in alliance with ethnic armed and resistance groups.

According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), a human rights group, more than 30,000 people have been detained on political charges since the 2021 coup.