Myanmar Begins Most Sweeping Crackdown on Protests
NAYPYITAW (Reuters) -- Police launched their most sweeping crackdown in three weeks of protests against military rule on Saturday in towns and cities across Myanmar, and one woman was shot and wounded and dozens of people were detained.
Three domestic media outlets said earlier that the woman shot in the central town of Monwya had died but an ambulance service official said she was in hospital. The circumstances of the shooting were not clear and police were not available for comment.
The violence came after Myanmar’s UN envoy, saying he was speaking for the ousted civilian government, urged the United Nations to use "any means necessary” to reverse the Feb. 1 coup.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army seized power and detained Aung San Suu Kyi and much of her party leadership, alleging fraud in a November election her party won in a landslide.
The coup, which stalled Myanmar’s progress toward democracy, has brought hundreds of thousands of protesters onto the streets and drawn condemnation from Western countries, with some imposing limited sanctions.
Police were out in force in cities and towns from early on Saturday in their most determined effort yet to stamp out the protests.
In the main city of Yangon, police took up positions at usual protest sites and detained people as they congregated, witnesses said. Several journalists were detained, their media organizations and colleagues said.
Confrontations developed as more people came out despite the police operation.
Crowds chanted and sang then scattered into side streets and buildings as police advanced, firing tear gas, setting off stun grenades and shooting guns into the air, witnesses said.
Some protesters threw up barricades across streets. Crowds eventually thinned but police in Yangon were still chasing groups and firing into the air in the late afternoon, witnesses said. Police detained numerous people through the day and set upon some with clubs.
Similar scenes played out in the second city of Mandalay and other towns, witnesses and media said. Among those detained in Mandalay was Win Mya Mya, one of two Muslim members of parliament for Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), media said.
Aye Aye Tint, a protester in the central town of Monwya said police had fired water cannon as they surrounded a crowd.
Junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing has said authorities have been using minimal force. Nevertheless, at least three protesters have died over the days of turmoil. The army says a policeman was killed in earlier violence.
Three domestic media outlets said earlier that the woman shot in the central town of Monwya had died but an ambulance service official said she was in hospital. The circumstances of the shooting were not clear and police were not available for comment.
The violence came after Myanmar’s UN envoy, saying he was speaking for the ousted civilian government, urged the United Nations to use "any means necessary” to reverse the Feb. 1 coup.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army seized power and detained Aung San Suu Kyi and much of her party leadership, alleging fraud in a November election her party won in a landslide.
The coup, which stalled Myanmar’s progress toward democracy, has brought hundreds of thousands of protesters onto the streets and drawn condemnation from Western countries, with some imposing limited sanctions.
Police were out in force in cities and towns from early on Saturday in their most determined effort yet to stamp out the protests.
In the main city of Yangon, police took up positions at usual protest sites and detained people as they congregated, witnesses said. Several journalists were detained, their media organizations and colleagues said.
Confrontations developed as more people came out despite the police operation.
Crowds chanted and sang then scattered into side streets and buildings as police advanced, firing tear gas, setting off stun grenades and shooting guns into the air, witnesses said.
Some protesters threw up barricades across streets. Crowds eventually thinned but police in Yangon were still chasing groups and firing into the air in the late afternoon, witnesses said. Police detained numerous people through the day and set upon some with clubs.
Similar scenes played out in the second city of Mandalay and other towns, witnesses and media said. Among those detained in Mandalay was Win Mya Mya, one of two Muslim members of parliament for Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD), media said.
Aye Aye Tint, a protester in the central town of Monwya said police had fired water cannon as they surrounded a crowd.
Junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing has said authorities have been using minimal force. Nevertheless, at least three protesters have died over the days of turmoil. The army says a policeman was killed in earlier violence.