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YANGON: The ousted leader of Myanmar, Aung San Suu Kyi, will be detained until Wednesday (February 17) for a court hearing and will not appear on Monday as initially expected, her lawyer told reporters in the capital, Naypyidaw.
“We came here to present our power of attorney and we discussed it with the district judge. According to him, the remand is until the 17th and not today,” Khin Maung Zaw told reporters, adding that he was still trying to see her in the row. with the law.
READ: Myanmar troops fire at protesters in signs of feared crackdown
Protesters near the central bank in Yangon on February 15, 2021 (Photo: Naung Kham)
When asked about the fairness of the process, the lawyer said: “If it is fair or not, you can decide yourself.”
The Naypyidaw judge had spoken with Suu Kyi via video conference and she had asked if she could hire a lawyer, Khin Maung Zaw told Reuters.
The government and military could not be reached for comment.
The prolonged detention of Aung San Suu Kyi is likely to further inflame tensions among the military, which took power in a coup on February 1. Protesters have taken to the streets of cities across the country seeking the return of their elected government.
READ: Myanmar citizens in Japan march in protest of military coup
DEMONSTRATORS WITHOUT DOUBT
The unrest has revived memories of bloody outbreaks of opposition to nearly half a century of direct military rule over the Southeast Asian nation, which ended in 2011, when the military began a process of retreating from civilian politics.
This time the violence has been limited, but on Sunday police opened fire to disperse protesters at a power plant in northern Myanmar, although it was unclear whether they were using rubber bullets or actual rounds and there was no news on the victims.
Protesters continued to gather across Myanmar on Monday after a night in which authorities cut off the country’s internet access and increased the security presence in major cities, seeking to restrict demonstrations.
More than a dozen police trucks with four water cannon vehicles were deployed Monday near Sule Pagoda in central Yangon, which has been one of the main demonstration sites in the commercial capital, as groups of protesters they met in front of the central bank and the Chinese embassy. .
Protesters near the Central Bank in Yangon, Myanmar, on February 15, 2021 (Photo: Naung Kham)
At the bank, several hundred protesters were silently holding up posters calling on their colleagues to join the CDM, the civil disobedience movement.
An armored vehicle and about six trucks with soldiers were parked nearby, a witness said.
Armored vehicles were also deployed Sunday in the northern city of Myitkyina and Sittwe in the west, the first large-scale use of such vehicles since the coup.
More soldiers have also been seen on the streets to assist police who have been largely overseeing crowd control, including members of the 77th Light Infantry Division, a mobile force known for its brutal campaigns against minority insurgents. ethnic and counter-protests in the past.
Naypyidaw police detained about 20 high school students protesting along a road. Images posted on social media by one of the students showed them chanting defiance slogans as they were taken away on a police bus.
Soldiers inside an army tank near the Central Bank in Yangon, Myanmar on February 15, 2021. (Photo: Naung Kham)
“Remember, we do not swear to the police and we do not sign anything at the police station,” a student can be heard saying.
The media also showed orderly lines of protesters marching in Naypyidaw with photos of Aung San Suu Kyi with the message: “we want our leader.”
READ: Myanmar experiences ‘near total internet shutdown’
Western embassies, of the European Union, Great Britain, Canada and 11 other nations, issued a statement Sunday night calling on security forces to “refrain from violence against protesters and civilians, protesting the overthrow of their legitimate government. “
The army has been carrying out nightly arrests and has been granted extensive search and arrest powers. At least 400 people have been detained since the coup, said the monitoring group Association for Assistance to Political Prisoners.
On Sunday, the military released amendments to the penal code aimed at quelling dissent and residents reported an internet outage after midnight Sunday that lasted until about 9 a.m.
Amendments to the penal code establish a prison sentence of 20 years for inciting hatred of the government or the army or for obstructing the security forces dedicated to preserving the stability of the state.
READ: Myanmar junta warns the public not to hide fugitive protesters
Stopping security forces from performing their duties is punishable by seven years in prison, while spreading fear, fake news or agitating against government employees takes three years, according to amendments posted on a military website.
The board has ordered public officials to go back to work, threatening to take action.
In the latest sign of worker disruption, the Civil Aviation Department said in a statement that many employees had stopped going to work since Feb. 8, causing flight delays.
Some trains have also stopped running, media reported.
