Burma’s opposition says an official announcement granting limited amnesty to prisoners serving jail time has doused expectations that the new government will release political prisoners to underline its reform commitment.
Human rights groups also called the decision a blow to U.N. efforts meant to ensure the Burmese government implements comprehensive reforms.
“The Burmese government’s decision to grant a one-year sentence reduction to all prisoners is a slap in the face to a senior United Nations envoy who had just called for the release of all political prisoners in Burma,” the New-York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement Monday.
In a message aired on state television on Monday, Burma’s recently installed President Thein Sein said that those who face the death penalty would have their sentences commuted to life imprisonment.
All current prisoners will also have their sentences reduced by one year.
"Prisoners will get amnesty on humanitarian grounds and through sympathy for their families," Thein Sein said in the announcement.
The news of a limited amnesty has frustrated members of the opposition who have been calling for the unconditional release of an estimated 2,200 political prisoners in Burma, many of whom face double-digit jail sentences for participating in peaceful political activism.
Ohn Kyaing, a spokesman for Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), said that the announcement had done nothing to address concerns about the government’s willingness to address its poor human rights record.
"[Prison terms] were reduced by one year only, as I have heard it. And the death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. That's all," he said.
Western criticism
Aung San Suu Kyi was released from house arrest in November, following elections that saw the transfer of power from Burma’s military to a nominally civilian government in March.
But despite her release, Burma continues to face heavy criticism from Western powers who have pledged to keep sanctions against the nation in place until the new government demonstrates a capacity for change.
Vijay Nambiar, the top aide to U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, concluded a three-day visit to Burma on Friday, saying that members of the new government had pledged to take “concrete steps” towards reform.
His visit had raised expectations of an amnesty for political prisoners.
During the visit, which marked the first for a top U.N. representative since the new government came to power, Nambiar met separately with a number of government officials, members of the opposition, and leaders in the civil society community.
“In all my meetings I stressed that this must include the release of all political prisoners and inclusive dialogue with all segments of society, as well as greater outreach to the international community to ensure that the proposed reforms enjoyed broad buy-in,” he said.
Low expectations
But despite the talks, which Nambiar described as “encouraging,” human rights watchdogs have continued to express doubt that the new government would honor its commitments.
In a statement released Monday, Executive Director of the U.S. Campaign for Burma Aung Din said the latest announcement shows that little has changed in the governance of the country.
"Thein Sein’s government has shown its true colors. What we witness today is a reminder for those who believe that there is a new civilian government in Burma and reforms are on the way that it is merely a continuation of military rule and military mindset under a veneer of civilian guise.”
Burma Campaign UK said in a separate statement Monday that President Thein Sein’s policy towards political prisoners is just as bad, if not worse, than that of former junta dictator General Than Shwe.
“This is a mechanism designed to avoid releasing senior opposition leaders, many of whom were given sentences of 65 years or more after the pro-democracy uprising in 2007,” the statement said, referring to a monk-led movement known as the Saffron Rebellion that was ultimately crushed by the military.
Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, said he was unsurprised that Thein Sein had decided to keep the country’s democracy activists in jail.
“It is yet more evidence that no real change has happened in Burma. It also shows that even now, with a new constitution designed to maintain dictatorship, this is a regime that is still afraid of the democracy movement, and does not feel confident about its grip on power.”
Reported by Tin Aung Khine RFA’s Burmese service. Translated by Khin May Zaw. Written in English by Joshua Lipes.
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