Myanmar protesters pressure Singapore to ‘stand for justice’ and compel Min Aung Hlaing to cede power

Singapore’s foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Thursday told the military leaders behind Myanmar’s coup that the use of live rounds against unarmed civilians protesting the seizure of power was unacceptable “under any circumstances”.

Diplomatic observers said the language in a foreign ministry press statement, released after Balakrishnan’s meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi, signified a toughened stance from the city state as it came under pressure from protesters over its purported cosy relationship with the generals who had seized power from a democratically elected government.

In recent days, Singapore has been put in the spotlight by protesters from Myanmar who are demanding that the island republic use its economic clout to compel the coup’s architect, army chief Min Aung Hlaing, to end the crackdown on protesters, swiftly restore democratic rule, and release detainees.

Singapore is the top source of foreign direct investment in Myanmar.

Social media posts on Thursday showed protesters gathered outside Singapore’s embassy in Yangon, chanting “please be a good neighbour” and “stand for justice”.

Similar demonstrations had taken place outside the embassy over the weekend.

Online, some Myanmar citizens urged compatriots to boycott Singaporean businesses such as restaurant chains Ya Kun Kaya Toast and Crystal Jade Kitchen over the republic’s allegedly friendly ties with the generals.

“Singapore is not very supportive [of the anti-coup protests] … that means they are spitting on their customers [the Myanmar people],” one social media post read. “As long as it doesn’t harm its own interests, I don’t think a ‘broker’ like Singapore would care about us.”