Myanmar protests gather pace as protesters call for Aung San Suu Kyi’s weapons to be released

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A witness in the former capital Yangon told CNN the crowd on Sunday was largely attended by young people and appeared to be much larger and better organized than protested on Saturday. Public participation was also looking at growth, according to witnesses. Reuters news service reported tens of thousands on the streets.
Protesters held banners and signs with the image of Suu Kyi, some reading “We want our leader.” Suu Kyi and other democratically elected lawyers were detained by the army in pre-morning attacks. Monday.

Protesters on Sunday have been marching around the Yangon University area, changing directions to avoid roadblocks and any clashes with police. A witness has seen several police trucks in the area.

Initially few people resisted the cup, partly because of widespread communication difficulties, as well as fears of further breakdowns.

NetBlocks’ internet surveillance service said Saturday that the country was in the midst of a second “blackout” of internet blackouts as the military sought to seize power.

According to NetBlocks, real-time network data showed that connections had dropped to 16% of normal levels and users had reported difficulty getting online.

Protesters will march at an anti-military coup demonstration in Yangon on February 7, 2021.

Myanmar’s Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC) ordered the data network to be shut down on Saturday, according to Norwegian telecommunications company Telenor Group, which runs Myanmar’s Telenor.

The group said, writing on Twitter, that the ministry cited “Myanmar telecommunications law, and cited the circulation of false news, the stability of the country and public interest as the basis for the order.”

The drop in connectivity follows moves to block access to social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, as well as several prominent local news outlets.

Communication between protesters Sunday was largely via SMS texts, phone calls, and verbal reporting, according to a witness in Yangon. On Saturday, a large crowd announced where they would meet on Sunday, resulting in better organization, the witness said.

Members of the Students’ Union, Labor Union, and Suu Kyi National Democracy League Party (NLD) were expected to join the protest on Sunday.

Riot police block the street as protesters hold a demonstration against a military coup in Yangon on February 7, 2021.

A couple raise objections

For more than 50 years, Myanmar – also known as Burma – was run by successive lone military governments that impoverished the country and prevented any dissent. Thousands of critics, activists, journalists, academics and artists were constantly imprisoned and tortured during that time.

Recently fired civilian leader Suu Kyi fired into international prominence in her decades-long struggle against military rule. When his party, the National League for Democracy (NLD) won a landslide in elections in 2015 and formed the first civilian government, many pro-democracy supporters hoped it would mark a breakout. from the military rule of the past and offering hope that Myanmar would continue to reform.

It was widely reported that the NLD won another decisive victory in a general election in November 2020, giving another five years in power and a hopeful prospect for some militant figures that an opposition party could send. support for democratic empowerment.

Why the generals restored power in Myanmar

The power came suddenly when the new parliament was to be open and after months of escalation between the civilian government and the powerful army, known as the Tatmadaw, over electoral irregularities that are accused. The country’s Electoral Commission has once again denied that mass fraud took place.

Hundreds of NLD lawyers were detained in the capital Naypyitaw on Monday, where they had arrived to take their seats. Since then the junta has removed 24 ministers and a messenger from the government and named 11 of his own allies as deputies to take up positions in a new administration.

Analysts have said the coup was more likely to be carried out by the armed fighting to reaffirm its power and the personal desire of army chief Min Aung Hlaing, who was due to resign this year , rather than bad claims for voter fraud.
Monday’s coup was widely criticized internationally, with the United States calling on Myanmar’s military leaders to “immediately release the power they seized, the militants and officials they have deployed. continue to release, remove all telecommunications restrictions, and stop violence against civilians. “

Helen Regan of CNN and James Griffiths contributed to this report.

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