President's Office turns down request for meeting with political prisoners in ...

President's Office turns down request for meeting with political prisoners in Myitkyina

Published on Sunday, 23 March 2014 23:56

The President's Office has verbally replied to a letter sent by the Political Prisoners Scrutinizing Committee by refusing the committee's request to meet with four political prisoners in Myitkyina jail, committee member Ye Aung told the Daily Eleven.

There are four political prisoners who are serving their jail terms in Myitkyina jail, three of whom are jailed under Section 17 (1) after being charged with having links to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). In addition, they are facing trial on last year's bomb blast cases.

"Another prisoner is Moepyar Abbot U Nyanna. This is the third time he is under arrest. We asked for meeting with them so as to know the facts about them," said Ye Aung, adding that—thanks to the government's "burning desire" to cooperate—the committee has been able to do the majority of its work successfully.

However, when the government granted amnesty to political prisoners at the end of December last year, it made a blanket declaration that "no more political prisoners remains in jails." On the contrary, say organizations working on their behalf, political prisoners remain behind bars in Myanmar.

"With respect to this matter, it seems the government has assumed that those who remain in jail are not political prisoners based on the Sections under which they've been arrested," Ye Aung said.

"But we have designated them as political prisoners. In the time of military rule, especially [during the heyday of the National Intelligence Bureau], political prisoners were jailed under the pretext of various sections. It remains a difficult problem. During this year, the committee's meetings have been delayed twice."

http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/presidents-office-turns-down-request-for-meeting-with-political-prisoners-in/