[ad_1]
Myanmar police fired tear gas at protesters in Yangon city on March 8, 2021 – Photo: AP
The Reuters news agency quoted witnesses as saying that two people were killed during a March 8 demonstration in the city of Myitkyina, Kachin state.
Witnesses told Reuters that police fired stun grenades and tear gas at the protesters. Then bullets were fired from nearby buildings. It is not yet clear who opened fire on the protesters in the city of Myitkyina.
On the same day, shops, factories and banks in Myanmar’s largest city, Yangon, closed after Myanmar’s top unions called for the shutdown of the economy to protest against the country’s military regime.
At least nine unions covering industries such as construction, agriculture and manufacturing have urged “all the people of Myanmar” to stop working to protest the 1-2 coup and restore their elected government.
Only a few small teahouses opened in Yangon City on March 8. The main shopping centers have been closed and there are no operations in the factories of the city.
Witnesses said Burmese soldiers fired multiple explosions in various parts of Myanmar and searched the car in and out of central Yangon to prevent protesters from gathering.
Still, protesters gathered in Yangon, as well as the second-largest city, Mandalay, and the city of Monywa in western Myanmar. Meanwhile, the Karen National Union, an armed ethnic group, defended protesters in the southern coastal city of Dawei.
The leader of the demonstration, Maung Saungkha, urged the women to vigorously protest against the March 8 coup.
As they marched to protest the coup, the protesters has hung a rope made of feminine sarongs in some places, or hang them across the street to celebrate International Women’s Day 8-3. Walking under a women’s sarong is considered bad luck for men in Myanmar.
Local media said that the security forces maintain a presence in hospitals and universities.
