Demonstrators in Myanmar took to the streets for the fifth consecutive day on Wednesday to oppose last week’s military coup, despite increasing use of force by authorities.
A day earlier, police fired shots to disperse the protesters and used rubber bullets and water cannons, causing injuries and increasing fear of a tougher crackdown. The United Nations expressed great concern over Tuesday’s police action, saying that the use of disproportionate force was unacceptable, and the United States condemned violence against protesters.
Tens of thousands of people took part in street demonstrations and marches against the seizure of power on February 1. The coup ended a democratic change in the country that began a decade ago and abruptly put Myanmar back in the hands of the military, who have ruled it for the past seven decades, since independence from British colonial rule. In the last years of army domination, security forces relied on prisons, batons, militias and weapons to suppress pro-democracy uprisings.
Protesters demand that the military release the popular civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who they detained when his government was overthrown, and return power. In a speech on Monday night, the coup leader, military chief Min Aung Hlaing, promised to build a “genuine and disciplined democratic system”. New elections would be held, he said, although it is not known what the terms of such a vote would be.
Signs that the authorities may use more force to suppress the protests have been on the rise since Monday. As demonstrations broke out in towns and cities across Myanmar, a sinister message appeared on state television, saying that actions would be taken against those who were disturbing the country’s stability and that offenders should not be tolerated. Subsequently, the authorities effectively banned protests in parts of the country’s two largest cities, Yangon and Mandalay.