Cases against scores of Rohingya Muslims detained after fleeing Myanmar’s restive Rakhine State have been dropped, as fears grow of a potential COVID-19 outbreak in the country’s overcrowded prisons.
A military crackdown in 2017 forced about 750,000 Rohingya to escape to Bangladesh, where they languish in sprawling refugee cities.
Those who have remained in Rakhine live under tight restrictions with little access to healthcare and education, unable to move freely in conditions Amnesty International has branded “apartheid.”
Photo: Reuters
For years, many have taken to boats and buses to escape.
However, in the past few months hundreds have been caught and detained in prisons — charged with breaching immigration laws, offenses that carry up to two years in jail.
On Wednesday, a court suddenly dropped cases against two of the largest groups of arrested Rohingya, totaling 128 people.
“Charges against both adults and children are withdrawn and they are to be released,” Judge Khin Myat Myat Htun told the court in Pathein, Ayeyarwady Region.
A reporter confirmed that four buses carrying the Rohingya and bound for Yangon left Pathein prison early yesterday morning.
Scores more are to be released by other courts and sent back to Rakhine, a Rohingya activist told reporters.
“In total, about 250 Rohingya are likely to be sent back on Saturday,” he said, asking not to be named for security reasons.
It is unclear where the Rohingya would be taken in Rakhine and authorities have not yet given the reason for their sudden liberation.
However, next week is Myanmar’s New Year, when the president often grants amnesties to prisoners.
With coronavirus fears gripping the country, calls have amplified for low-risk inmates to be released from what Human Rights Watch describes as Myanmar’s “horribly overcrowded and unsanitary” jails.
The WHO has warned prison populations are particularly vulnerable to the pandemic.
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