(Reuters) – Myanmar’s most powerful Buddhist monk association has asked the junta to end violence against protesters and has accused an “armed minority” of torturing and killing innocent civilians since last month’s coup, the media reported on Wednesday. market.
In its most direct condemnation of the military’s bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations, the government-appointed organization also said in a draft declaration that its members intended to stop activities in apparent protest.
The Sangha Maha Nayaka State Committee planned to issue a final statement after consulting the minister of religious affairs on Thursday, the Myanmar Now news portal said, citing a monk who attended a committee meeting.
Monks have a long history of activism in Myanmar and were at the forefront of a 2007 “Saffron Revolution” against the military regime, a revolt that, although suppressed, helped to initiate democratic reforms.
Committee members could not be reached immediately for comment, but their reported position would signal a significant divide between officials and a group that generally works closely with the government.
Myanmar has been in crisis since the military ousted Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government on February 1, arresting her and members of her party, drawing widespread international condemnation.
Removed members of parliament, the majority from Suu Kyi’s party, lobbied for a united position against the coup in the country with ethnic diversity, saying that the designation of terrorist would be removed from all insurgents in search of autonomy fighting for democracy.
More than 180 protesters were killed as security forces tried to crush a wave of demonstrations, said the activist group Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners.
Protesters in Yangon confronted security forces at a barricade of sandbags on a street in Yangon. Police intermittently opened fire and a man appeared to be shot in the head, according to images on social media.
Reuters was unable to verify the video.
Several hundred people gathered with protest signs in Demoso in the east, Pathein in the Irrawaddy River Delta and Dawei in the south on Wednesday, showed images on social media.
Residents of the second city of Mandalay and the central city of Monywa also reported protests.
The complete shutdown of the mobile internet has made it difficult for protesters to communicate and verify information. Very few people in Myanmar have access to Wi-Fi.
“We need to use old methods of communication,” Chit Chit Win, a member of a women’s protest group, told Dawei’s Reuters.
“We use a guerrilla protest system. We tell people to disperse if security forces come … avoiding confrontation, but doing what we can. “
A team of UN investigators in Myanmar asked people to collect and preserve documentary evidence of crimes ordered by the military in order to build lawsuits against their leaders.
A board spokesman did not respond to calls for comment.
MORTAL PAYMENT DISPUTES
Parts of Yangon were placed under martial law and thousands of residents fled the industrial suburb of Hlaingthaya, where security forces killed 40 people on Sunday and Chinese-funded factories were set on fire.
Workers said a dispute over payment at a Chinese factory in the industrial zone turned violent on Tuesday after the owner called security forces, who killed a union leader and then at least four people.
Myanmar Now said six people were killed.
Chinese state media warned that Beijing could take unspecified measures if there are new attacks on Chinese-owned companies.
Many people in Myanmar believe Beijing is supporting the military. Unlike the Western powers, China did not condemn the coup and, together with Russia, prevented the UN Security Council from denouncing the actions of the military.
France said the European Union would approve sanctions against those responsible for the coup next Monday.
The junta accused the interim leader of a parallel civilian government, Mahn Win Khaing Than, of treason, the Democratic Voice of Burma reported.
Mahn Win Khaing Than, who is on the run, is a senior member of Suu Kyi’s party. He was appointed this month by a panel of deposed lawmakers who were pushing for recognition as the legitimate government.
The board accused the lawmakers’ foreign affairs emissary of treason this week. Deposed members of parliament said they recognized all insurgent groups committed to a “federal democratic union” and thanked them for helping opponents of the coup who fled to their areas.
“Evil must be repelled by our united hands,” said politicians on Twitter.
The Army, which for decades claims to be the only institution capable of guaranteeing national unity, said it took power after its charges of fraud in the Nov. 8 elections won by Suu Kyi’s party were rejected by the electoral commission.
He promised a new election, but did not set a date.
Suu Kyi, 75, has been detained since the coup and faces several charges, including illegal importation of walkie-talkie radios and violation of coronavirus protocols.
Reporting by the Reuters team; Written by Ed Davies, Robert Birsel; Editing by Clarence Fernandez