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This is VOA News. Reporting by remote, I'm David Byrd. Myanmar's military government said Saturday it had released more than 23,000 prisoners in observance of the country's traditional New Year holiday and that the new junta chief would make his first foreign trip since seizing power. Reuters Emer McCarthy reports. Some activists called the cancellation of the festivity this year and, instead, for people to focus on a campaign to restore democracy. Pro-democracy politicians, including ousted members of parliament, announced the formation of a national unity government on Friday, including ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi and leaders of the anti-coup protests and ethnic minorities. Meantime, Myanmar's junta chief is set to attend an Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Indonesia on April 24, according to a Thai Foreign Ministry spokesman. It will be his first known foreign trip since the coup. That's Reuters Emer McCarthy.
Jailed Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny is apparently in critical condition after more than two weeks on a hunger strike. The Doctors Alliance trade union claims Navalny's lawyers have made medical tests showing him in poor health and say his kidneys might soon fail leading to fears of cardiac arrest. The 44-year-old, Russian President Vladimir Putin's chief critic, started refusing food March 31st in protest after he said prison authorities failed to treat him properly for back and leg pain. Russia jailed Navalny for two and a half years in February for alleged parole violations. He was arrested when he returned to Russia after being in Germany for treatment for nerve agent poisoning, which he blames on the Kremlin. Russia has denied that charge. For more on these stories and the rest of the day's news, visit our website. This is VOA News.
