Myanmar protests: three wounded in firing as supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi clash with police
- Fresh demonstrations erupt across the country in defiance of the junta’s call to halt mass gatherings
- On Friday, the military released over 23,000 prisoners, in a move citizens fear is aimed at freeing up space for protesters
The United Nations human rights office said more than 350 people, including officials, activists and monks, have been arrested in Myanmar since the February 1 military coup, including some who face criminal charges on “dubious grounds”.
The UN rights investigator for Myanmar told a special session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva that there were “growing reports, photographic evidence” that security forces have used live ammunition against protesters, in violation of international law.
The council also voted for a resolution harshly criticising the coup, demanding the restoration of civilian rule and the immediate release of Suu Kyi.
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Three people were wounded when police fired rubber bullets to break up a crowd of tens of thousands of protesters in the southeastern town of Mawlamyine, a Myanmar Red Cross official said.
Footage broadcast by Radio Free Asia showed police charging at protesters, grabbing one of them and smashing him in the head. Stones are then thrown at police before the shots are fired.
“Three got shot – one woman in the womb, one man on his cheek and one man on his arm,” said Myanmar Red Cross official Kyaw Myint, who witnessed the clash.
Several people in Mawlamyine were arrested but later released when a thousands-strong crowd stood outside the police station and demanded they be freed, according to live footage broadcast by Radio Free Asia.
A broadcast by the state-run Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) said police had shot 10 rubber bullets because protesters were “continuing violent acts without dispersing from the area”. The report made no mention of any people being wounded.
Other demonstrations took place in the capital Naypyidaw, the coastal town of Dawei, and in Myitkyina, the capital of northern Kachin state, where young men played rap music and staged a dance-off.
As Washington announced sanctions, European Union lawmakers on Thursday called for action from their countries and Britain said it was considering measures to punish the coup leaders.
In a letter read out to the rights council in Geneva, some 300 elected parliamentarians from Myanmar called on the UN to investigate “gross human rights violations” committed by the military since its coup.
Supporters of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD) welcomed the US sanctions but said tougher action was needed to force the military to release the democracy icon from house arrest and recognise the NLD’s landslide victory in November elections.
“We are hoping for more actions than this as we are suffering every day and night of the military coup here in Myanmar,” Suu Kyi supporter Moe Thal, 29, said.
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Myint Thu, Myanmar’s ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the special council session that his government wanted “better understanding of the prevailing situation in the country, and constructive engagement and cooperation from the international community.”
“We do not want to stall the nascent democratic transition in the country,” he said.
China said on Friday that the coup was an internal manner but it was working to foster a “return to normal” in Myanmar.
“What happened in Myanmar is essentially Myanmar’s internal affairs. China is in contact and communication with relevant parties in Myanmar to promote the relaxation and return to normal of the situation,” Chen Xu, China’s ambassador to the UN, said.
The coup has prompted the biggest demonstrations since a 2007 ‘Saffron Revolution’ that ultimately became a step towards now halted democratic change.
Friday’s protests marked the seventh consecutive day of protests, including one on Thursday outside the Chinese embassy where NLD supporters accused Beijing of backing the junta despite Chinese denials.
Security forces carried out another series of arrests overnight Thursday.
The junta remitted the sentences of more than 23,000 prisoners on Friday, saying the move was consistent with “establishing a new democratic state with peace, development and discipline” and would “please the public”.
Among the prisoners released was ethnic leader Aye Maung from the western state of Rakhine.
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The Frontier Myanmar news magazine reported the prisoners given amnesty included four supporters of a gunman who shot dead a prominent Suu Kyi ally and constitutional lawyer in 2017.
The military seized power after what it said was widespread fraud in the election in November, although the electoral commission has said the vote was free and fair.
The US sanctions target 10 current and former military officials, including Min Aung Hlaing. It also blacklisted three gem and jade companies it said were owned or controlled by the military.
Derek Mitchell, former US ambassador to Myanmar and president of the Washington-based National Democratic Institute, said US sanctions alone would have little impact without “tough messages” from America’s partners such as Japan, Singapore and India.
The generals have promised to stick to the 2008 constitution and hand over power after elections, but on Friday the junta said it would “work for the emergence of a constitution that is in alignment and harmony with the Democratic Federal Union”. No date has yet been set for elections.
