Call to free political prisoners in Burma

A government-appointed human rights body has urged Burma’s new president to release political prisoners or transfer them to prisons close to their families.

The appeal comes as speculation rises about a new amnesty covering some of the country’s estimated 2,000 political prisoners.

Burma’s three state-owned newspapers have published an open letter from National Human Rights Commission chairman Win Mra, calling on president Thein Sein to grant amnesty “as a reflection of magnanimity,” or to transfer political prisoners in remote prisons to facilities with easy access for their family members.

A similar appeal was published in October on the same day the government announced an amnesty of 6,359 prisoners, including about 200 political detainees.