Junta accused of ‘killing lives and democratic hopes’ in bloody crackdown since the February coup
Myanmar’s security forces have killed more than 1,000 civilians since the military ousted Aung San Suu Kyi from power six months ago, according to an advocacy group.
The country has been in turmoil since 1 February, when the armed forces seized power in a lightning coup, triggering dissent as protesters demanded a return to democracy.
Continue reading...Human Rights Watch says army’s suppression of protests has included torture and murder, as small protests mark milestone
Human Rights Watch has accused Myanmar’s military junta of crimes against humanity as small groups of protesters marked six months since the armed forces seized power.
Bands of university students rode motorbikes around the country’s second-largest city Mandalay on Saturday waving red and green flags, saying they rejected any possibility of talks with the military to negotiate a return to civilian rule.
Continue reading...Posts ranging from wanted posters to death threats remain online for months, breaching platform’s own standards
Facebook is promoting content that incites violence against Myanmar’s anti-coup protesters and amplifies junta misinformation, despite promising to clamp down on the misuse of its platform, according to a study.
An investigation by the rights group Global Witness found that Facebook’s recommendation algorithm continues to invite users to view content that breaches its own policies. After liking a Myanmar military fan page, which did not contain recent posts violating Facebook’s policies, the rights group found that Facebook suggested several pro-military pages that contained abusive content.
Continue reading...State hospitals are barely functioning as humanitarian crisis unfolds across the country
Myanmar has reported what is believed to be its highest daily increase in Covid cases since the February coup, as concerns grow over the country’s collapsed health system and the junta’s continued crackdown on medics.
Myanmar’s Covid response was plunged into chaos when the military seized power on 1 February, detaining the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.
Continue reading...National team lost 10-0 in Japan after mainstays including an experienced goalkeeper refused the head coach’s call
Second-division games in Malaysia don’t make many international headlines but that changed in March when the Myanmar under-23 winger Hein Htet Aung gave a three-fingered salute after scoring for Selangor II. Popularised by The Hunger Games film franchise, this gesture of resistance was adopted by pro-democracy protesters in Thailand and Hong Kong in 2014 and then by Myanmar, after the military took back power in a coup on 1 February.
Before Myanmar’s 2022 World Cup qualifier against Japan last Friday, the goalkeeper Kyaw Zin Htet had called for players to copy Hein’s handiwork. “It would be good if some of them came out and gave the three-fingered salute to an international audience,” the 31-year-old told AFP.
Continue reading...Dozens of grassroots people’s defence forces have emerged to take on brutal military
Myanmar is on the verge of a new civil war, a spokesperson for the country’s parallel government has warned, as communities increasingly take up arms to protect themselves from a relentless campaign of military violence.
Conflict has raged for decades in Myanmar’s borderlands, where myriad ethnic armed groups are fighting with the military for greater autonomy. Since February’s coup, however, dozens of new, grassroots people’s defence forces have emerged to oppose the junta, with battles occurring in areas of the country that were previously peaceful.
Continue reading...Coup leaders ban opposition national unity government, and contact with them, as they seek to quell ongoing protests
Myanmar’s military rulers have branded a national unity government formed by MPs forced to flee in the wake of the coup a terrorist group and blamed it for bombings, arson and killings as part of a propaganda campaign in state-controlled media on Saturday.
Myanmar’s army overthrew the elected government on 1 February and detained elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, sparking months of protests during which hundreds of people have been killed by security forces. In response, local militias have been formed to confront the army while anti-junta protests have continued across the south-east Asian country and strikes have paralysed the economy.
Continue reading...Anyone who installs satellite dishes could face a one-year prison sentence or $320 fine, military-controlled media reported
Myanmar’s military junta has banned satellite dishes, threatening prison sentences for anyone who violates the measure, as it intensifies its crackdown on access to independent news outlets.
The junta, which faces unanimous opposition from the public and has struggled to maintain order, has imposed increasingly tough restrictions on communication since seizing power on 1 February.
Continue reading...Three months after the coup, four brothers tell how they joined protesters fighting the junta before fleeing for the border
The young men only had a moment to study the river before rushing into the waist-deep water. The brothers – ranging in age from 15 to 21 – were unfamiliar with the border area and afraid of being seen. On the run from Myanmar’s military, they pushed on into the Thaunggin River.
After just a few minutes of wading, they stumbled into no man’s land. Moments after crossing the river, three smugglers dressed in military fatigues met them. After handing over 6,000 Thai baht (US$200) and exchanging a few words, the smugglers led them deeper into the woods and then to safety in Thailand.
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Indonesian president’s remarks come after crisis talks with junta chief and south-east Asian leaders
Myanmar’s military must restore democracy and stop the violence against citizens, the Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, said after crisis talks with junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and south-east Asian leaders on Saturday.
The strongly worded comments followed a meeting in Jakarta of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), which was the senior Myanmar general’s first foreign trip since security forces staged a coup that ousted civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi in early February.
Continue reading...Daw Myo Aye, labour organiser and a leader of civil disobedience protests, dragged from office by army
One of Myanmar’s leading trade union leaders has been arrested as part of escalating attacks on pro-democracy figures by the military junta.
Daw Myo Aye, director of Solidarity Trade Union of Myanmar (STUM), one of Myanmar’s largest independent unions, is a central figure in the movement for workers’ rights.
Continue reading...Medics tell of attacks on staff and ambulances to stop treatment of patients and punish those who took part in national strike
Htet Htet Win and her husband were late returning home on Sunday night. It was past the junta-imposed 8pm curfew when their motorbike passed through the streets of eastern Mandalay. The security forces reportedly shouted for them to stop, and then opened fire when they did not do so. Her husband was hit but managed to get away. She was knocked to the ground.
A grainy photograph, taken by an onlooker, shows her lying face down on the concrete, her arms reaching above her head, her purple top and bottoms marked with dark patches.
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Continue reading...As ethnic militias back the popular uprising and refugees flee the country, the similarities with Syria are deeply disturbing
In August 2011, Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey’s then foreign minister, made a “mercy dash” to Damascus. He appealed in person to Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, to stop killing his people and talk to his opponents after five months of anti-regime protests.
Davutoglu spoke for Turkey but also, indirectly, for the US and the west. He had conferred with Hillary Clinton, then secretary of state, before making the trip. His message: it’s not too late to call a halt; the alternative is civil war. But Assad turned him down flat.
Continue reading...Refugees fleeing Myanmar are attempting to reach Thailand by boat following airstrikes by Myanmar’s military on parts of the country predominantly populated by ethnic Karen people.
Thailand's prime minister, Prayuth Chan-ocha, said ‘we don't want to have an exodus and evacuations into our territory but we will observe human rights too'
Protesters returned to the streets of Yangon and Dawei as small-scale rallies were held following the bloodiest crackdown since the military takeover on 1 February. At least 114 people were killed by security forces on Saturday, including at least six children, in scenes described as 'mass murder' by the UN
Demonstrators defy threats from the military to turn out on Saturday as the country’s generals mark Armed Forces Day
Myanmar’s security forces have shot and killed at least 50 people across the country, local media reported, as the leader of the ruling junta said the military would protect the people and strive for democracy.
Protesters against the 1 February military coup came out on the streets of Yangon, Mandalay and other towns on Saturday, defying a warning that they could be shot “in the head and back” as the country’s generals celebrated Armed Forces Day.
Continue reading...Girl was shot in her home and is youngest victim so far in crackdown against opposition to military coup
A seven-year-old girl was killed in her home when security forces opened fire in Myanmar’s second city Mandalay, becoming the youngest victim so far in a crackdown against opposition to last month’s military coup.
The ruling junta accused pro-democracy protesters of arson and violence during the weeks of unrest, and said it would use the least force possible to quell the daily demonstrations.
Continue reading...Deaths would bring the total to 220 since 1 February coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi
Myanmar security forces opened fire on demonstrators against a military coup in the central town of Aungban on Friday, killing eight people, according to a local news outlet.
Seven people were killed in the town and one wounded person died after being taken to hospital in the nearby town of Kalaw, the Myanmar Now news portal said, citing Aungban’s funerary service.
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