Myanmar has the experience of being under military rule for years. However, a lot of blood has been shed in the country during the last one year of junta rule. Since the bloodless military coup on February 1, 2021, anti-junta protests, especially youth protests, have pushed Myanmar to the brink of civil war. Many have taken up arms against the junta government.
Myanmar has the experience of being under military rule for years. However, a lot of blood has been shed in the country during the last one year of junta rule. Since the bloodless military coup on February 1, 2021, anti-junta protests, especially youth protests, have pushed Myanmar to the brink of civil war. Many have taken up arms against the junta government.
UN human rights chief Michelle Bachelet said in an interview with the BBC that the current situation in Myanmar was turning into a civil war. The UN Security Council must take action to restore peace and restore democracy in the conflict-torn country. He warned that the conflict in Myanmar was becoming a threat to regional security.
Liberation armed groups of various ethnic groups in Myanmar are active against the junta. Members of the People's Defense Force (PDF), a national unity government made up of deposed lawmakers, as well as members of various organizations have taken up arms to stop the junta government. Organizations like PDF are growing in popularity among Myanmar's politically-conscious youth. At the same time, the number of guerrilla attacks on the junta is increasing in different parts of the country.
"If we do not take swift action against the junta, the situation in the country could quickly turn into that of Syria," Michelle Bachelet warned.
Anti-junta protesters have staged protests in various cities across Myanmar on the anniversary of the military coup. People in Mandalay and the commercial city of Yangon took part in a "clap" as part of a protest on Tuesday afternoon. A Mandalay resident told AFP on condition of anonymity that "my neighbors have joined the protest against the junta in the same way."
On the anniversary of the coup, the junta administration ordered shops and establishments to remain open across the country. However, most shops in Myanmar's major cities, including Mandalay, were closed on Tuesday. The roads were almost empty. Troops have been seen patrolling the highways. Protesters gathered on the streets of Yangon and Mandalay and carried out anti-junta flashmobs. However, no clashes were reported anywhere in the country on that day.
On the anniversary of the coup, the head of the military government, Min Aung Hlaing, told Global New Light, Myanmar's state-run media, that the 2020 election was not free and fair. Suu Kyi's party won the National League for Democracy (NLD) illegally. For this, the army has taken control of the state power. At that time, he promised to hold free and fair elections to restore peace in the country.
A video footage was released by the Janta's information department on the occasion of the day. Several people were seen marching and chanting slogans on behalf of the junta. It was not immediately clear where or when the video was taken.
Meanwhile, Tom Andrews, the UN special envoy for human rights in Myanmar, on the anniversary of the coup, called on the international community to investigate the source of the junta's money and weapons. He said in a statement that Myanmar's junta had been using lethal weapons against its own people for a year. This is not acceptable. Even then, the UN Security Council failed to impose an arms embargo on the junta. It is important to find out the source of money and weapons of the junta.
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