State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint have been moved from their prison cells and placed under house arrest in the capital Naypyidaw.
An anonymous source from the Department of Prisons told DVB that the regime’s Ministry of Home Affairs ordered the transfer of the two jailed leaders – who were arrested on Feb. 1, 2021 during the military coup and have been held at Naypyidaw and Taungoo prisons most recently.
“Since the weather is extremely hot, it is not only for Aung San Suu Kyi…For all those, who need necessary precautions, especially elderly prisoners, we are working to protect them from heatstroke,” said regime spokesperson Zaw Min Tun. The exact location of the home in Naypyidaw where the two leaders have been transferred is unknown.
Kyaw Zaw, the spokesperson for the National Unity Government (NUG), told Reuters that he welcomed the news but called for the immediate release of all political prisoners, especially Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint – as both are the elected leaders of Burma and the NUG.
“Moving them from prisons to houses is good, as houses are better than prisons. However, they must be unconditionally freed. They must take full responsibility for the health and security of Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint,” he added.
The news comes as Burma faces soaring temperatures and power outages nationwide due to a heatwave this month. Win Htein, a National League for Democracy (NLD) Central Executive Committee member sentenced by the regime to 20-years, was transferred from Mandalay’s Obo Prison to Mandalay Hospital this month due to a heat-related illness.
A military court sentenced Aung San Suu Kyi to 33 years and President Win Myint to 12 years in prison. Both had their sentences reduced. Aung San Suu Kyi by six years and Win Myint by four years, which was granted during a regime prison amnesty in 2023.
The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) has documented a total of 26,524 people arrested for political reasons by the regime since it took power after the 2021 coup. At least 20,351 are still being held by them in Burma’s prisons.
