Released prisoners, in a bus, are welcomed by family members and colleagues after they left Insein Prison, in Yangon, Myanmar, on January 4, 2026.
| Photo Credit: AP
Myanmar’s junta granted amnesty to more than 6,100 prisoners and reduced other inmates’ sentences on Sunday (January 4, 2026) to mark the 78th anniversary of the country’s independence from Britain.
It was not immediately clear whether those released include the thousands of political detainees imprisoned for opposing military rule.
The amnesty comes as the military government proceeds with a month-long, three-stage election process that critics say is designed to add a facade of legitimacy to the status quo.
State-run MRTV television reported that Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of the military government, pardoned 6,134 prisoners. A separate statement said 52 foreigners will also be released and deported from Myanmar. No comprehensive list of those freed is available.
Other prisoners received reduced sentences, except for those convicted of serious charges such as murder and rape or those jailed on charges under various other security acts.
The release terms warn that if the freed detainees violate the law again, they will have to serve the remainder of their original sentences in addition to any new sentence.
The prisoner releases, common on holidays and other significant occasions in Myanmar, began Sunday (January 4, 2026) and are expected to take several days to complete.
Buses took prisoners out of Yangon’s Insein Prison after 11 a.m., where friends and families of detainees had waited since morning for the announced releases.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a statement Sunday (January 4, 2026) called for the military to cease violence, allow unhindered humanitarian access, release those unjustly detained and engage in dialogue to pursue a peaceful and long-term end to the crisis.
Myanmar became a British colony in the late 19th century and regained its independence on January 4, 1948.
The anniversary was marked in the capital, Naypyitaw, with a flag-raising ceremony at City Hall on Sunday (January 4, 2026).
Published – January 04, 2026 10:24 am IST
