Human rights groups in India are celebrating the unconditional release of two Myanmese pro-democracy activists accused of hijacking a plane to Calcutta in 1990.
Soe Myint and Htin Kyaw Oo were honourably acquitted on Thursday by a judge in Barasat, on the outskirts of Calcutta, after a long trial which acquired political overtones because of India's growing ties with Myanmar's military junta.
'Theirs was an act of defiance. The charges against them should have been dropped long ago. But all's well that ends well,' said noted civil rights campaigner and leading lawyer, Nandita Haksar.
On November 11, 1990, the two diverted a Thai Airways Bangkok-Yangon flight to Calcutta to draw attention to the plight of Myanmar.
Soe Myint threatened to blow up the plane with a grenade which was actually a Buddha statue wrapped in tissue paper. After landing in Calcutta, they gave themselves up without any resistance. The case was almost forgotten. But in March, Soe Myint was rearrested and put on trial.
