Protesters holding anti-coup signs shouting slogans through megaphones in the court building.
Kaung Zaw Hein | SOPA images | LightRocket | Getty Images
Huge crowds marched in Myanmar on Sunday to denounce a February 1 military coup in a demonstration of defiance after the bloodiest episode of the campaign for democracy the day before, when security forces fired on protesters, killing two.
The military failed to suppress the demonstrations and a campaign of civil disobedience to strike against the coup and the arrest of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and others, even with the promise of new elections and severe warnings against dissidents.
Tens of thousands of people gathered peacefully in the second city of Mandalay, where Saturday’s murders took place, witnesses said.
“They targeted the heads of unarmed civilians. They targeted our future,” a young protester told the crowd.
Military spokesman Zaw Min Tun did not respond to Reuters’ attempts to contact him by phone for comment.
He said at a news conference on Tuesday that the army’s actions were within the constitution and were supported by most people, and he blamed the protesters for instigating the violence.
In the main city of Yangon, thousands of people, mostly young people, gathered in different places to chant slogans and sing.
“We young people have our dreams, but this military coup has created many obstacles,” said Ko Pay in Yangon. “That’s why we went ahead of the protests.”
In Myitkyina, in the north, people placed flowers for the dead protesters. Large crowds marched in the central cities of Monywa and Bagan, in Dawei and Myeik in the south, Myawaddy in the east and Lashio in the northeast, the published photos show.
A protester had her head bandaged after being beaten by security forces during a demonstration against the military coup in Mandalay on February 20, 2021.
STR | AFP | Getty Images
At the Inle Lake tourist spot, people including Buddhist monks took a flotilla of boats holding pictures of Suu Kyi and signs saying “military coup – end”.
The more than two weeks of protests were largely peaceful until Saturday, unlike previous episodes of opposition during almost half a century of direct military rule until 2011.
The violence seemed unlikely to end the unrest.
“The number of people will increase … We will not stop,” said protester Yin Nyein Hmway in Yangon.
‘Aggressive protesters’
The problem in Mandalay started with clashes between security forces and striking shipyard workers.
Video clips on social media showed members of the security forces shooting protesters and witnesses said they found ammunition shells.
The UN Special Rapporteur for Myanmar, Tom Andrews, said he was appalled by the death of the two, one of whom was a teenager.
“From water cannons to rubber bullets and tear gas and now hardened soldiers firing at point-blank range at peaceful demonstrators. This madness must end now, ”he said on Twitter.
State newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar said the strikers sabotaged boats in the city’s river port and attacked the police with sticks, knives and catapults. Eight policemen and several soldiers were wounded, he said.
“Some of the aggressive protesters were also injured due to security measures conducted by the law enforcement force,” the newspaper said, without mentioning the deaths.
Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) condemned the violence of security forces in Mandalay as a crime against humanity.
A young protester, Mya Thwate Thwate Khaing, was the first death among protesters on Friday. She was shot in the head on February 9 in the capital Naypyitaw.
Hundreds of people attended his funeral on Sunday.
The military media said that the bullet that killed her did not come from any weapon used by the police and therefore must have been fired by an “external weapon”.
The army says a police officer died of injuries sustained in a protest.
‘Damage coordination’
The army seized power after alleging fraud in the November 8 elections that the NLD swept, arresting Suu Kyi and others. The electoral commission dismissed allegations of fraud.
Facebook deleted the military’s home page for repeated violations of its standards “which prohibit incitement to violence and coordinate damage” and Western countries that condemned the coup condemned violence.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price said the United States is “deeply concerned”.
France, Singapore, Britain and Germany have also condemned the violence, while UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the lethal force is unacceptable.
The United States, Britain and others have announced limited sanctions, focusing on military leaders, but generals have long rejected foreign pressure.
Suu Kyi faces a charge of violating a Natural Disaster Management Act, as well as illegal importation of six walkie-talkie radios. Your next court hearing will be on March 1.
A human rights group said 569 people were arrested in connection with the coup.