Statement by the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan on the Situation in Myanmar

January 13, 2012
Japanese

On Thursday, January 12, the Government of Myanmar announced to grant amnesty for 651 prisoners and prisoners began to be released sequentially from Friday, January 13. It has been confirmed that among those released are more than 100 political prisoners including the leader central to the 1988 movement for democratization Mr. Min Ko Naing. Japan welcomes the amnesty as a concrete step forward toward democratization and national reconciliation in Myanmar.
On Thursday, January 12, a ceasefire agreement was realized between the military forces of the Government of Myanmar and the Karen National Union (KNU). Japan expects the Government of Myanmar to further strengthen measures toward democratization and national reconciliation. Japan intends to continue supporting efforts to further advance democratization and national reconciliation in Myanmar.

(*The foregoing is a provisional translation. The date indicated above denotes the date of issue of the original version in Japanese.)

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