Armoured vehicles deployed to major Myanmar cities after mass protests

[webfact]

Armoured vehicles deployed to major Myanmar cities after mass protests

 

 

A Buddhist monk holding a sign stands next to an armoured vehicle during a protest against the military coup, in Yangon, Myanmar, February 14, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer

 

(Reuters) - Security forces in Myanmar opened fire to disperse protesters at a power plant on Sunday and armoured vehicles rolled into major cities as the new army rulers faced a ninth day of anti-coup demonstrations that saw hundreds of thousands on the streets.

 

As well as mass protests around the country, the military rulers were facing a strike by government workers, part of a civil disobedience movement against the Feb. 1 coup that deposed the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.

 

Soldiers were deployed to power plants in the northern state of Kachin, leading to a confrontation with demonstrators, some of whom said they believed the army intended to cut off the electricity.

 

The security forces fired to disperse protesters outside one plant in Kachin's state capital Myitkyina, footage broadcast live on Facebook showed, although it was not clear if they were using rubber bullets or live fire.

 

Two journalists from The 74 Media, which was broadcasting live from the site of the confrontation, were arrested along with three other journalists, the news outlet said in a Facebook post.

 

Residents in Yangon patrolled the the city in groups overnight, fearful of police arrest raids and criminals they say have been released by the military to stoke unrest. David Doyle reports.

 

As evening fell, armoured vehicles appeared in the commercial capital of Yangon, Myitkyina and Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine state, live footage broadcast online by local media showed, the first large-scale rollout of such vehicles across the country since the coup.

 

The government and army could not be reached for comment.

 

Shortly after midnight, residents in Myanmar reported an internet outage. All four telecommunications networks were inaccessible from about 1 a.m. on Monday (1830GMT), they said. In the early days after the coup, the internet was cut across the country.

 

Western embassies - from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and 11 other nations - issued a statement late on Sunday calling on security forces to "refrain from violence against demonstrators and civilians, who are protesting the overthrow of their legitimate government".

 

The U.S embassy in Myanmar earlier urged American citizens to "shelter in place", citing reports of the military movements in Yangon. It also warned there was a possibility of a telecoms interruptions overnight between 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.

 

"Internet shutdown in #Myanmar now in effect again across all major operators, reportedly until 09:00," Alex Warofka, product policy manager for human rights and freedom of expression at Facebook, said in a post on Twitter after the internet went down.

 

"Hope that everyone stays safe tonight amidst very concerning reports of military activity. #KeepItOn".

 

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

In the latest sign of disruption by workers, the Department of Civil Aviation said in a statement many staff had stopped coming to work since Feb. 8, causing delays to international flights. It added that on Thursday four air traffic controllers had been detained, and had not been heard from since.

 

A pilot, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, said hundreds of staff from the department were striking. Soldiers were surrounding the international airport in Yangon late on Sunday night, he said.

 

Trains in parts of the country also stopped running after staff refused to go to work, local media reported, while the military deployed soldiers to power plants where they were confronted by angry crowds.

 

The junta has ordered civil servants to go back to work, threatening action. The army has been carrying out nightly mass arrests and on Saturday gave itself sweeping powers to detain people and search private property.

 

But hundreds of railway workers joined demonstrations in Yangon on Sunday, even as police went to their housing compound on the outskirts of the city to order them back to work. The police were forced to leave after angry crowds gathered, according to a live broadcast by Myanmar Now.

 

Richard Horsey, a Myanmar-based analyst with the International Crisis Group, said the work of many government departments had effectively ground to a halt.

 

"This has the potential to also affect vital functions – the military can replace engineers and doctors, but not power grid controllers and central bankers," he said.

 

PROTESTS ACROSS NATION

Hundreds of thousands of people protested across the nation on Sunday.

 

Engineering students marched through downtown Yangon, the biggest city, wearing white and carrying placards demanding the release of ousted leader Suu Kyi, who has been in detention since the coup and charged with importing walkie-talkies.

 

A fleet of highway buses rolled slowly through the city with horns blaring, part of the biggest street protests in more than a decade.

 

A convoy of motorbikes and cars drove through the capital Naypyitaw. In the southeastern coastal town of Dawei, a band played drums as crowds marched under the hot sun. In Waimaw, in Kachin state, crowds carried flags and sang revolutionary songs.

 

Suu Kyi's detention is due to expire on Monday. Her lawyer, Khin Maung Zaw, could not be reached for comment on what was set to happen.

 

More than 384 people have been detained since the coup, the monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said, in a wave of mostly nightly arrests.

 

Late on Saturday, the army reinstated a law requiring people to report overnight visitors to their homes, allowed security forces to detain suspects and search private property without court approval, and ordered the arrest of well-known backers of mass protests.

 

(Writing by Poppy McPherson; Editing by Pravin Char and Frances Kerry)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-02-15

 

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[RichardColeman]

Wonder if this happened after 'the phonecall' 

[TKDfella]

A sad situation and it seems that it will get worse. The coup leaders won't take any notice of international condemnation and the country will slide down hill. It is likely to have an effect on the Covid 19 situation as well so Thailand needs to be aware of this.

[Pique Dard]

only china can make the coup leaders to give up. that won't happen

[Jimbo2014]

5 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Wonder if this happened after 'the phonecall' 

I suspect it was to negotiate consultant fees.  The playbook seems the same as 2014.

[Surelynot]

Uncle Tu must be watching this very closely and thinking.....damn...should have bought APC's instead of those damn submarines.

[harada]

Pull a coup in the middle of a pandemic, a fair indication of their mentality. 

[Burma Bill]

1 hour ago, Surelynot said:

should have bought APC's instead of those damn submarines.

Already has (quote):

 

(2019) China will deliver US$76 million worth of military vehicles to Thailand next week, one of three orders to be filled over the next few years as the two countries forge closer military ties.

The delivery would comprise 34 VN-1 armoured personnel vehicles, 10 VT-4 tanks
 and five other supporting vehicles, the Bangkok Business News reported on Monday.

The second batch of 34 vehicles and third batch of 39 would be delivered in the next two to three years, the report said.

And (quote):-

Thailand's military plans to acquire 120 American-made armoured vehicles by 2020, with the first batch of 10 arriving next month, a Thai defence ministry source told Reuters on Wednesday. (Strykers)

Edited February 15, 2021 by Burma Bill
additional information

[Surelynot]

Just now, Burma Bill said:

Already has (quote):

 

(2019) China will deliver US$76 million worth of military vehicles to Thailand next week, one of three orders to be filled over the next few years as the two countries forge closer military ties.

The delivery would comprise 34 VN-1 armoured personnel vehicles, 

10 VT-4 tanks

 and five other supporting vehicles, the Bangkok Business News reported on Monday.

The second batch of 34 vehicles and third batch of 39 would be delivered in the next two to three years, the report said.

And (quote):-

Thailand's military plans to acquire 120 American-made armoured vehicles by 2020, with the first batch of 10 arriving next month, a Thai defence ministry source told Reuters on Wednesday. (Strykers)

Pathetic in the extreme.....8 million unemployed, suicide rate rocketing and they are renovating Army golf courses, buying this equipment plus submarines AND allowing CP to form cartels and monopolies....criminal.

[tanner]

China will be keeping its hungry eyes on this situation. 

14 hours ago, webfact said:

Armoured vehicles deployed to major Myanmar cities after mass protests

 

 

A Buddhist monk holding a sign stands next to an armoured vehicle during a protest against the military coup, in Yangon, Myanmar, February 14, 2021. REUTERS/Stringer

 

(Reuters) - Security forces in Myanmar opened fire to disperse protesters at a power plant on Sunday and armoured vehicles rolled into major cities as the new army rulers faced a ninth day of anti-coup demonstrations that saw hundreds of thousands on the streets.

 

As well as mass protests around the country, the military rulers were facing a strike by government workers, part of a civil disobedience movement against the Feb. 1 coup that deposed the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi.

 

Soldiers were deployed to power plants in the northern state of Kachin, leading to a confrontation with demonstrators, some of whom said they believed the army intended to cut off the electricity.

 

The security forces fired to disperse protesters outside one plant in Kachin's state capital Myitkyina, footage broadcast live on Facebook showed, although it was not clear if they were using rubber bullets or live fire.

 

Two journalists from The 74 Media, which was broadcasting live from the site of the confrontation, were arrested along with three other journalists, the news outlet said in a Facebook post.

 

Residents in Yangon patrolled the the city in groups overnight, fearful of police arrest raids and criminals they say have been released by the military to stoke unrest. David Doyle reports.

 

As evening fell, armoured vehicles appeared in the commercial capital of Yangon, Myitkyina and Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine state, live footage broadcast online by local media showed, the first large-scale rollout of such vehicles across the country since the coup.

 

The government and army could not be reached for comment.

 

Shortly after midnight, residents in Myanmar reported an internet outage. All four telecommunications networks were inaccessible from about 1 a.m. on Monday (1830GMT), they said. In the early days after the coup, the internet was cut across the country.

 

Western embassies - from the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and 11 other nations - issued a statement late on Sunday calling on security forces to "refrain from violence against demonstrators and civilians, who are protesting the overthrow of their legitimate government".

 

The U.S embassy in Myanmar earlier urged American citizens to "shelter in place", citing reports of the military movements in Yangon. It also warned there was a possibility of a telecoms interruptions overnight between 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.

 

"Internet shutdown in #Myanmar now in effect again across all major operators, reportedly until 09:00," Alex Warofka, product policy manager for human rights and freedom of expression at Facebook, said in a post on Twitter after the internet went down.

 

"Hope that everyone stays safe tonight amidst very concerning reports of military activity. #KeepItOn".

 

CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE

In the latest sign of disruption by workers, the Department of Civil Aviation said in a statement many staff had stopped coming to work since Feb. 8, causing delays to international flights. It added that on Thursday four air traffic controllers had been detained, and had not been heard from since.

 

A pilot, who asked not to be named for fear of retribution, said hundreds of staff from the department were striking. Soldiers were surrounding the international airport in Yangon late on Sunday night, he said.

 

Trains in parts of the country also stopped running after staff refused to go to work, local media reported, while the military deployed soldiers to power plants where they were confronted by angry crowds.

 

The junta has ordered civil servants to go back to work, threatening action. The army has been carrying out nightly mass arrests and on Saturday gave itself sweeping powers to detain people and search private property.

 

But hundreds of railway workers joined demonstrations in Yangon on Sunday, even as police went to their housing compound on the outskirts of the city to order them back to work. The police were forced to leave after angry crowds gathered, according to a live broadcast by Myanmar Now.

 

Richard Horsey, a Myanmar-based analyst with the International Crisis Group, said the work of many government departments had effectively ground to a halt.

 

"This has the potential to also affect vital functions – the military can replace engineers and doctors, but not power grid controllers and central bankers," he said.

 

PROTESTS ACROSS NATION

Hundreds of thousands of people protested across the nation on Sunday.

 

Engineering students marched through downtown Yangon, the biggest city, wearing white and carrying placards demanding the release of ousted leader Suu Kyi, who has been in detention since the coup and charged with importing walkie-talkies.

 

A fleet of highway buses rolled slowly through the city with horns blaring, part of the biggest street protests in more than a decade.

 

A convoy of motorbikes and cars drove through the capital Naypyitaw. In the southeastern coastal town of Dawei, a band played drums as crowds marched under the hot sun. In Waimaw, in Kachin state, crowds carried flags and sang revolutionary songs.

 

Suu Kyi's detention is due to expire on Monday. Her lawyer, Khin Maung Zaw, could not be reached for comment on what was set to happen.

 

More than 384 people have been detained since the coup, the monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said, in a wave of mostly nightly arrests.

 

Late on Saturday, the army reinstated a law requiring people to report overnight visitors to their homes, allowed security forces to detain suspects and search private property without court approval, and ordered the arrest of well-known backers of mass protests.

 

(Writing by Poppy McPherson; Editing by Pravin Char and Frances Kerry)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2021-02-15

 

- Whatever you're going through, the Samaritans are here for you

- Follow Thaivisa on LINE for breaking COVID-19 updates