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YANGON: On Thursday (February 11) the United States imposed sanctions on the leaders of Myanmar’s military government, warning that further punishment could come even as generals in Yangon ordered protesters to return to work or face “effective action.”
As Myanmar prepared for a seventh consecutive day of anti-coup demonstrations, the US Treasury Department announced that it was blocking any US assets and transactions with 10 current or former military officials responsible for the February 1 coup.
The demonstrations condemning the removal of civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi have been largely peaceful, although the security forces earlier in the week used tear gas, water cannons and rubber bullets against protesters, with isolated reports of gunfire. real.
In the most significant concrete action, President Joe Biden announced that his administration was cutting off the generals’ access to $ 1 billion in funding in the United States.
The targets of the US sanctions announced Thursday include the army chief, Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, who now has legislative, judicial and executive powers in Myanmar. Min Aung Hlaing was already under US sanctions for campaigning against the Rohingya minority, mostly Muslim.
They also target the military leaders of the new cabinet, such as Defense Minister General Mya Tun Oo, as well as three gem exporting companies controlled by the Myanmar military.
“We are also prepared to take additional action if the Burmese military does not change course,” said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, using the former name Myanmar.
“If there is more violence against peaceful protesters, the Burmese army will find that today’s sanctions are only the first,” he said.
A protester wearing a Burmese Longyi holds up a slogan to show support for protests in Myanmar during a rally in Quezon City, Metro Manila, the Philippines on February 11, 2021 (Photo: AP / Aaron Favila).
Biden had previously called on the Myanmar military to release democratic political leaders and activists, adding that “the military must step down from power.”
In Europe, former colonial power Great Britain welcomed Biden’s footsteps, and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab tweeted that “we will hold those responsible to account.”
The European Union’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell also warned that the bloc could impose new sanctions on the Myanmar military.
BACK TO WORK … OR ANOTHER
General MIin Aung Hlaing on Thursday night called on officials to return to work after days of strikes across the country in support of the protests.
“Due to the incitement of unscrupulous people, some of the public administration personnel have not fulfilled their functions,” he said in a statement.
“Effective action will be taken.”
Since the coup there has been a torrent of anger and defiance, calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi and other detained high-ranking figures from her National League for Democracy party.
Protesters marched peacefully Thursday in Naypyidaw, the capital and military stronghold, as well as in Yangon, the largest city and commercial center, which saw tens of thousands flood into the streets.
“Don’t go to the office,” protesters chanted outside Myanmar’s central bank in Yangon, part of an effort to urge people to boycott the job to pressure the military government.
“We will not do this for a week or a month; we are determined to do it until the end, when (Aung San Suu Kyi) and President U Win Myint are released,” a protesting bank employee told AFP.
The protest was joined by dozens of the Karen, Rakhine and Kachin ethnic communities, drawn from approximately 130 ethnic groups in Myanmar, some of whom have faced intense persecution by the military.
The Entha ethnic community displays banners during a protest against the military coup on Inle Lake, Taunggyi, Myanmar, on February 11, 2021 (Photo: AP / Aung Ko San).
“Our armed ethnic groups and ethnic peoples have to unite to fight against the military dictatorship,” Saw Z Net, a Karen protester, told AFP.
In Shan State, protesters dressed in traditional costumes carried their anti-coup message into the water of Inle Lake, with similar scenes unfolding in the UNESCO-listed ancient city of Bagan as hundreds marched between temples and pagodas.
THE CRACKDOWN IS INCREASED
There were more reports of arrests on Thursday, including the vice speaker of the lower house of parliament and a key aide to Aung San Suu Kyi.
The number of arrests linked to the coup is now more than 200, according to the monitor Association of Assistance for Political Prisoners.
The Yangon-based NLD, which was raided this week, also confirmed the arrest of election officials in the afternoon.
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The military justified the takeover by alleging widespread electoral fraud in the November elections, which saw a landslide for Aung San Suu Kyi’s party.
He quickly moved on to piling up courts and political offices with loyalists as he ended a decade of civilian rule.
It was unclear how long the military government will tolerate the protests.
Live bullets were fired at a rally in Naypyidaw this week, seriously wounding two people, including a woman who was shot in the head.
Images depicting the woman have been widely shared online along with expressions of pain and anger.
The military’s crackdown on information through Internet blackouts, ordering technology companies to cut off communications intermittently, has generated widespread condemnation.
Concerns grew that the junta was planning to impose a much tougher internet crackdown, including enacting measures that would allow the military to order website blackouts and bans.
