600 protesters released from Myanmar prison | NOW

Myanmar’s military government released more than 600 protesters on Wednesday, a prison official said. The protesters had been arrested for demonstrating against the military coup. Eyewitnesses saw buses full of people driving away from Insein prison.

Since the military staged a coup on Feb. 1 and detained Gov. Aung San Suu Kyi, it is estimated that between 2,000 and 2,800 protesters have been detained. On Wednesday, the protest is dominated by a silent strike, with the intention that everyone stays at home and everything is closed.

All the more striking must have been the fifteen buses that came from Insein prison. Eyewitnesses, including lawyers and prisoners, confirm this in conversation with the news agency Reuters. A senior official in the Rangoon prison system told the news agency AFP: “Today we released 360 men and 268 women from the prison of Insein.”

APphotographer Thein Zaw, who was arrested last month after taking photos of the protests, has informed his family that he will be released on Wednesday. A total of 40 journalists have been detained since 1 February.

Despite the military’s gesture, the situation in Myanmar is getting grim. In the city of Mandalay, security forces allegedly shot a seven-year-old girl on Tuesday, resulting in great public anger. At least twenty children in the country are said to have died as a result of the military crackdown on demonstrators.

Information on the number of arrests and fatalities in Myanmar comes from the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). The organization says it has yet to independently verify the death of the seven-year-old girl. AAPP has verified 275 deaths since the coup, but warns the actual death toll is likely higher.

A spokesman for the army states that 164 Myanmarese died in the demonstrations. He called them “violent terrorists” at a press conference in the capital, Nay Pyi Taw.

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