Myanmar frees Win Myint, cuts Aung San Suu Kyi’s prison term in broad-ranging amnesty deal
Newly elected president Min Aung Hlaing also commuted all death sentences and released 4,300 prisoners to mark the Thingyan new year
Win Myint, an ally of Suu Kyi, served as president from 2018 and 2021 but was ousted by a military coup and had been detained since.
Suu Kyi’s 27-year sentence had been cut by one-sixth, but it remained unclear whether the Nobel Peace Prize winner would be allowed to serve the rest of her sentence under house arrest, her lawyer said.
Min Aung Hlaing also commuted all death sentences in a blanket order, one of his first official acts since the coup leader was installed as the country’s civilian president.
The military junta snatched power in Myanmar in a February 2021 putsch and resumed executions after decades of not carrying them out, targeting dissidents opposed to the coup, rights group said.