Myanmar lifts ban on 2,000 blacklisted citizens abroad
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Yangon - Myanmar lifted a ban on entry for blacklisted nationals living abroad, including "media men," and urged them to return home, state media said Tuesday.
"The ban on 2,082 of 6,165 blacklisted persons has been lifted after scrutinizing them in conformity with the current policies," the state-run Myanmar News Agency reported.
"Green light would be given to those Myanmar citizens who are currently in foreign countries, enabling them to return home." Tuesday's announcement did not release the names of the people removed from the list nor say whether they could face arrest if they return.
Myanmar, also called Burma, has kept a blacklist of political activists and opponents since 1962 when general Ne Win toppled the government and introduced military rule and socialism, prompting many prominent citizens to flee.
Another exodus of thousands of Myanmar refugees occurred after an army crackdown on a pro-democracy movement in 1988, which left an estimated 3,000 people dead.
Many student activists fled to neighbouring Thailand after the 1988 massacre and have been living there since.
"I welcome the lifting of the ban, but what we really want is a general amnesty for everyone," said Soe Aung, spokesman for the Forum for Democracy in Burma, a Thailand-based pro-democracy group.//DPA
