Bangladeshis Jailed for illegal entry
33 granted Myanmar presidents clemency
UNB
Thirty-three Bangladesh nationals have secured Myanmar Presidents clemency as they were jailed in Myanmar for their illegal entry into the neighbouring country, reports UNB. The Myanmar President in an executive order on May 25 pardoned the Bangladeshis following persistent requests by Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon, a diplomat told UNB on Friday.
This clemency followed another clemency granted by Bangladesh to 92 Myanmar fishermen who had entered Bangladesh waters and were repatriated in December 2016.
The 33 people have started returning home in phases upon their release from Myanmar jail. A batch of five people, released from jails in Tanintharyi close to Thailand, returned to Dhaka from Yangon by Biman flight on June 7, said the Bangladesh Embassy in Yangon.
The next batch of nine fishermen whose boat had drifted into Myanmar waters in January this year due to engine failure and who were subsequently jailed, is being transferred from Thandwe to Yangon for repatriation by air on June 12, said the Embassy. The remaining 19 people are scheduled to be repatriated through Taungbro border point on June 15 after Bangladesh Consulate in Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine state, makes necessary coordination with Myanmar Border Guard Police and BGB. Bangladesh said it expects that the two sides to release the people who unintentionally cross borders and territorial waters in such a spirit of good neighborliness and in accordance with the 1980 Border Agreement.
