麻豆社

Last week, generals in Myanmar announced they were granting pardons to about 6,000 prisoners to mark Myanmar's national day.

Many of the prisoners were arrested for opposing the military authorities who seized power in a coup in February of 2021.

Also freed was a small group of foreigners - including Sean Turnell, an Australian academic who used give economic advice to Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of the deposed government.聽

The Australian professor was jailed for three years by the military authorities. He was charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act, which he denied.

Sean Turnell spoke to Newshour about his time in prison:

"Conditions were awful, the physical infrastructure was dreadful...it was a place of disease. Food came round in a bucket you had to dig in with a spoon."

(Photo: Australian economist Sean Turnell is seen during the 2022 Lowy Lecture at Sydney Town Hall in Sydney, Australia, 22 November 2022. Credit: Bianca de Marchi via EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)