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During Myanmar’s new year celebration, 4,893 prisoners and 13 foreign prisoners granted amnesty

April 17, 2025/in News

Mizzima Marking the Myanmar New Year on 17 April, the Myanmar junta has announced a conditional amnesty for 4,893 prisoners across the country. Those released under this pardon will face reinstatement of their previous sentences if they reoffend. Additionally, one-sixth of the sentences of other inmates will be remitted. The release was made under Section […]

11 killed as Myanmar junta bombs Buddhist monasteries during new year festivities

April 17, 2025/in News

The airstrikes come despite a ceasefire and as people gather at religious sites during Thingyan celebrations. UPDATED April 15, 2025, at 2:50 p.m. ET Myanmar junta forces have unleashed a series of Burmese New Year airstrikes on Buddhist monasteries, killing 11 people during festive days when people traditionally visit religious sites to make merit. The […]

During Myanmar’s new year celebration, 4,893 prisoners and 13 foreign prisoners granted amnesty

April 17, 2025/in News

11 killed as Myanmar junta bombs Buddhist monasteries during new year festivities

April 17, 2025/in News

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During Myanmar’s new year celebration, 4,893 prisoners and 13 foreign prisoners granted amnesty

April 17, 2025/in News

Mizzima

Marking the Myanmar New Year on 17 April, the Myanmar junta has announced a conditional amnesty for 4,893 prisoners across the country. Those released under this pardon will face reinstatement of their previous sentences if they reoffend. Additionally, one-sixth of the sentences of other inmates will be remitted.

The release was made under Section 401(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code, which allows conditional pardons. As part of the gesture, 13 foreign nationals are also being granted clemency and will be deported.

The move is seen by some observers as a political strategy ahead of junta leader Min Aung Hlaing’s scheduled meeting with ASEAN leaders. It is speculated that the release of certain political prisoners may be intended to curry favour and legitimacy at the regional summit.

Prisoners are set to be released starting this afternoon from various prisons and detention centres nationwide.

In a related development, several high-profile businessmen who were arrested in 2022 have been released ahead of the official amnesty announcement. Among them is Chit Khaing, chairman of Eden Group of Companies, who was released from Mandalay’s Obo Prison at around on 12 April. He had been serving a sentence related to alleged tax corruption involving the Tigyit coal power project.

He was detained in April 2022 along with former Union Ministers Ohn Win and Ohn Khaing, and Deputy Minister Dr. Tun Naing, all of whom had served under the previous National League for Democracy (NLD) government.

Also released is Zay Thiha on 12 April, son of Zaykabar Group owner Khin Shwe, from Insein Prison in Yangon. Several edible oil business owners were reportedly freed as well, though full details are yet to emerge.

11 killed as Myanmar junta bombs Buddhist monasteries during new year festivities

April 17, 2025/in News

The airstrikes come despite a ceasefire and as people gather at religious sites during Thingyan celebrations.

UPDATED April 15, 2025, at 2:50 p.m. ET

Myanmar junta forces have unleashed a series of Burmese New Year airstrikes on Buddhist monasteries, killing 11 people during festive days when people traditionally visit religious sites to make merit.

The latest and deadliest attack came Tuesday, when six civilians were killed and at least 25 others, including 10 monks, were wounded at Kanni village monastery in Kawkareik Township, Kayin (Karen) State, residents of the village told RFA Burmese.

The wounded are being treated at Mawlamyine General Hospital, said one resident, who like other sources in this article did not want to be named for safety reasons. Mawlamyine is the capital of neighboring Mon State.

The resident added that casualties would have been higher if the bombing had happened earlier in the day when more people were congregating at the monastery. He said there has been fighting in the vicinity since Monday evening between junta forces and the Karen National Liberation Army, which controls Kanni village.

According to reporting by RFA, airstrikes from Saturday – the eve of Thingyan, as the Burmese New Year is known – until Tuesday have killed a total of 11 people, and injured 51 others in Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Karen State and Rakhine State.

The attacks come despite a ceasefire declared by anti-junta and junta forces in the wake of a devastating March 28 earthquake in central Myanmar that killed more than 3,700 people.

During the pause, rebel forces have claimed gains in new territories, prompting retaliatory airstrikes from the military, often resulting in heavy civilian casualties. As well as being sites for religious homage, Buddhist monasteries often also serve as shelters for displaced people.

On Monday, in Sagaing region’s Kani township, a junta aerial attack around Monday 8 a.m hit a monastery where people were due to arrive for the holiday, one resident said.

“Of the novice monks in Tha Min Chan village, two died and two were critically injured,” the resident said.

“Because the bomb fell a bit early, it was only the monks in the monastery – those who came to make merit and perform duties for the monks had not arrived yet.”

Another woman was critically injured when bombs fell on a nearby village, the Kani resident added.

Separately, Indaw township, which was captured in part by the shadow National Unity Government’s militia, faced additional attacks around 11 a.m. on Monday, residents said. The attack injured two people.

On Sunday, junta attacks also hit monasteries in three townships in Sagaing region – Taze, Wuntho and Kawlin – killing one woman and injuring seven people, including a monk, according to the residents.

In a separate attack in Kyauktaw township, Rakhine state, three civilians were wounded: 10-year-old Chit Hnin Wai, 27-year-old Kyi Kyi Win and 34-year-old Oo Than May, the residents added.

In Mandalay region’s Natogyi township, airstrikes Monday targeting another monastery injured three more monks, including a child, residents told RFA.

In Thabeikkyin township, attacks on Sunday killed a man and a woman and injured eight others, said a member of the Pyinoolwin People’s Defense Force, one of the rebel groups.

“Around 10:21 p.m., they dropped four bombs on Chaung Gyi village that were around 200 or 300 pounds each,” he said.

RFA contacted Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Htun, the spokesman for the military council, about the airstrikes, but he did not answer his phone.

RFA News

Spring Revolution

Civil Society Position Paper on ASEAN’s Goal of a Myanmar-Owned and -Led SolutionDecember 18, 2024 - 12:11 pm
Recommendations to ASEAN and Its Member States (1) Move beyond the 5PC to achieve a Myanmar people-led and people-centered solution to the crisis in Myanmar. ASEAN’s “Myanmar-owned and -led” approach must be backed by genuine political will that aligns with and supports the collective aspirations of the people of Myanmar. (2) Cease all pressure on […]
The Airstrikes after the journey to the China of the Junta Military LeaderDecember 10, 2024 - 1:28 pm
Operation 1027 was a coordinated military attack against the junta on October 27th, 2023. It was carried out by the Northern Brotherhood, which includes the Arakan Army, Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army. Several months later, the Three Brotherhood Alliance held three meetings to negotiate with China on January 11 […]
Human Rights Situation weekly update (September 15 to 21, 2024)September 27, 2024 - 8:26 am
Human Rights Violations took place in States and Regions from Sep 15 to 21, 2024 Military Junta Troop launched airstrikes and dropped bombs in Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region, Shan State, Chin State, Rakhine State, and Kachin State from September 15th to 21st. The Military Junta committed arresting, occupying the properties, threatening by using power, and […]

Multimedia

GenocideSeptember 2, 2025 - 9:42 am
Crimes Against HumanityJune 16, 2025 - 7:55 am
International Humanitarian Law Cartoon AnimatonApril 29, 2025 - 8:37 am
အတိတ်မှ ဆိုးရွားသည့် အကြီးအကျယ် လူ့အခွင့်အရေးချိုးဖောက်မှုများ ထပ်မံမဖြစ်ပွားစေရေးအ တွက် အာမခံခြင်း (Guarantees of non-recurrence)February 10, 2025 - 9:58 am

ND Burma

ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.

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