[ad_1]
But behind the business facade as always, anxiety grows among many about what will come next. Memories of living under the brutal military rule of the past are etched in the minds and bodies of many Burmese. Critics, activists, journalists, academics and artists were routinely imprisoned and tortured during nearly 50 years of isolationist rule.
Now there are fears that Monday’s actions could be the prelude to a broader crackdown. In all, the new ruling junta removed 24 government ministers and deputies on allegations of electoral fraud and appointed 11 of its own allies as replacements who will assume their functions in a new administration.
In a statement Tuesday, the NLD called for the immediate release of those detained, including recently deposed President Win Myint and Suu Kyi, and allowing the country’s third parliament to rule.
He also called for recognition of the results of the November general elections, saying the coup was “a defamatory act against the history” of Myanmar and its government.
In Naypyidaw on Tuesday, although most businesses had reopened, a more intense security presence remained. Tanks were seen at the gates of parliament and soldiers were standing guard outside a government guest house where some politicians who were detained in the coup said they were being detained.
While communications across the country remained spotty with intermittent phone and data connections, the banks had reopened, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper. In Yangon, residents could be seen queuing to get cash at ATMs.
NLD spokesperson Kyi Toe said on his personal Facebook page on Monday that Suu Kyi was being detained at her official residence, where she “felt good” and “walked frequently around the compound.”
A statement allegedly by the de facto leader was posted on his party’s official Facebook account on Monday, asking people to protest the coup, although there were doubts about the authenticity of the statement.
“The actions of the military are actions to put the country back under a dictatorship,” the statement said.
Suu Kyi has not been seen since she was arrested early Monday morning. The statement ends with her name but it is not signed, and it was unclear how Suu Kyi would issue a statement while in detention.
Analysts warned that social media accounts could have been hacked or taken over by bad actors to encourage actions that could provide a pretext for increased military force.
The only demonstrations seen so far have been on a small scale and by pro-military sympathizers. Suu Kyi, however, remains hugely popular, especially among the country’s majority Bamar ethnic group.
Although his supporters have yet to take to the streets, many in Yangon have privately expressed their anger at the military’s actions. which, they said, ignored the will of the people in what was seen as a generally fair election.
Some have also questioned why the military would take over when they benefited from the previous legislative arrangement. The military, or Tatmadaw, as they are officially known, had constitutionally guaranteed 25% of seats in parliament and control of powerful ministries.
A Yangon-based reporter said he spent a sleepless night worrying about a knock on the door and feared journalists would be the next target.
“All people now realize what the military are capable of. This is how they are and this is how they rule. It cannot be underestimated. All Burmese now understand that, okay, this is the real situation: the last five years, the freedom we got is nothing, ”said the reporter, who did not give his name because of the potential dangers.
The disastrous economic and socialist policies under dictator General Ne Win had plunged the country into poverty and a massive popular uprising against his regime in 1988 was brutally suppressed by the military. Another coup in September of that year installed the State Law and Order Restoration Council (SLORC), and during his rule, thousands of people, including democratic leaders, activists, and journalists, were jailed for decades.
Others fled into exile abroad or went to the jungles and took up arms against the military government as part of a student army (ABSDF).
“We have a trauma. Nobody wants to be shot, flee the country, join the jungle like the ABSDF did before. Nobody wants that situation again,” said the Yangon reporter.
The news of the coup, he said, was like history repeating itself. He remembers listening to the radio when his father was arrested and spent 10 years in jail on political charges when he was 3 years old.
“All things happened during those 36 years, history repeats itself. The cycle repeats itself. Nothing is new, nothing is strange. It is the same,” he said.
The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to hold an emergency meeting on Tuesday, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the events were a “severe blow to democratic reforms.”
The UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, on Monday called for the imposition of sanctions and an arms embargo on the country.
“Now, more than ever, we must act,” he said on his official Twitter account.
The United States removed sanctions against Myanmar over the past decade based on progress toward democracy. “Reversing that progress will require an immediate review of our laws and sanctions authorities, followed by appropriate action,” Biden said in a statement.
There is evidence that the uncertainty about what will come immediately after the coup is having an impact on international business.
On Tuesday, Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corporation announced that it had halted production at its two factories in Myanmar to ensure the safety of its workers after the coup. About 400 people work in the factories and the company’s public relations officer, Mitsuru Mizutani, said they will restart when the safety of their workers is guaranteed, although they do not know when.
Additional information from journalist Chie Kobayashi in Tokyo. CNN’s Kocha Olarn reported from Bangkok.
[ad_2]