Myanmar crisis: police raid hospitals and universities to arrest protesters

Myanmar sank deeper into crisis on Sunday, when police seized hospitals and universities and reportedly arrested hundreds of people involved in protests over the military’s takeover of power last month, while a coalition of unions called a strike for Monday.

Tensions were high in the country’s largest city, Yangon, where random shots were heard on the streets of various neighborhoods for the second night after the curfew began at 8 p.m. The sounds of what were evidently stun grenades could also be heard in videos posted on social media.

Read more
• Myanmar security forces open fire on protesters, killing 18
• Myanmar protesters return to the streets in defiance of the military
• New Zealand Sanctions on Myanmar: Will They Work?
• Reports that Myanmar security forces kill at least 33 protesters

The exact purpose of the use of such weapons by security forces when protesters have left the streets could not be directly determined, but it appeared to be part of a strategy to instill fear in anyone who might think of defying authorities. Similarly, there were many filmed incidents of police and soldiers in plain sight savagely beating the protesters they had detained.

Some of the shots were heard near hospitals, where reports said neighborhood residents tried to block the entrance of police and soldiers.

Security forces have often attacked medical personnel and facilities, targeting ambulances and their crews. Members of the medical profession launched the Civil Disobedience Movement, which is the nominal coordinator of the protests, frequently acclaimed on protesters’ posters with their initials CDM. Taking control of hospitals would allow authorities to easily arrest injured people who are presumed to be protesters.

Large protests have occurred daily in many cities and towns in Myanmar, and the security forces have responded with increasing use of deadly force and mass arrests. At least 18 protesters were shot dead on February 28 and 38 on Wednesday, according to the UN Human Rights Office. More than 1,500 have been arrested, the independent Political Prisoner Assistance Association said.

The protests in several cities and towns were met again on Sunday by police who fired warning shots and used tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades.

In a single Yangon neighborhood, Shwepyitha, at least 100 students were reportedly arrested, and many protesters were said to have also been detained in other cities, especially universities.

Meanwhile, Myanmar’s unions issued a joint call for an extended nationwide work stoppage starting Monday, aiming for a “complete and prolonged shutdown of Myanmar’s economy.”

“Continuing with business and economic activities as usual, and delaying a general work stoppage, will only benefit the military as they stifle the energy of the Myanmar people,” said the appeal issued Sunday night.

The statement called for the strike to continue “until we recover our democracy.”
Workers from various industries joined the protest movement a few weeks ago, mostly from the state railroad and the banking sector.

Factory workers, mainly in the Yangon area, are heavily involved in the garment industry, which generates significant expert earnings for Myanmar. Workers have occasionally participated in the campaign against the junta, but are unable to do so on a daily basis for fear of losing their modest income.

Proponents of sanctions against the junta have deliberately avoided calling for comprehensive trade sanctions for fear they will harm the general population. Instead, they have called for and enacted targeted sanctions aimed at damaging the leadership of the military and companies linked to the military.

Early Sunday, police in Myanmar’s former capital Bagan opened fire on protesters protesting the February 1 coup, injuring several people, according to eyewitness accounts and videos on social media.

At least five people were reportedly injured when police tried to break up the Bagan protest, and the photos showed a young man with bloody wounds on his chin and neck, believed to have been caused by a rubber bullet. Bullet casings collected at the scene indicated that actual rounds were also fired.

The city, located in the central region of Mandalay, is a UNESCO World Heritage site in recognition of the more than 2,000 pagodas or their remains that still stand there, dating from the 9th to 13th centuries, when it was the capital. from a kingdom that later became known as Burma and is now Myanmar.

Bagan is best known for being one of the main tourist attractions in the country, but it has also been the scene of large protest marches against the junta.

Protests in other places on Sunday, including the two largest cities of Yangon and Mandalay, were also met with the use of force by police, firing warning shots and using tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades.

Multiple reports from Yangon said there were police raids on Saturday night to capture organizers and supporters of the protest movement. A district chairman of the Aung San Suu Kyi National League for Democracy party, who was ousted from power in the coup, was found dead in a military hospital Sunday morning by other residents of his Pabedan neighborhood, according to a publication. on Facebook of the legislator of the NLD Sithu. Maung.

Suspicions on social media were rampant that 58-year-old Khin Maung Latt died of a beating in custody after being removed from his residence, but the official cause of death was not immediately announced.

In Yangon and elsewhere, police and soldiers carry out raids every night after the 8pm curfew. Arrests are often carried out at gunpoint, without a warrant.

The escalation of violence has put pressure on the world community to act to contain the junta. The coup reversed years of slow progress toward democracy in Myanmar, which for five decades had languished under a strict military regime that led to isolation and international sanctions.

Suu Kyi’s party led the return to civilian rule with a landslide electoral victory in 2015, and with an even greater margin of votes last year. He was reportedly installed for a second five-year term last month, but instead Suu Kyi, President Win Myint and other members of the government were placed in military detention.

– AP