Thousands gather for second day of street protests in Myanmar, witnesses say
YANGON (AFP, REUTERS) – Thousands of people marched for a second day in Myanmar’s biggest city on Sunday (Feb 7) to protest against the military junta’s overthrow and detention of elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi last week.
Protesters in Yangon carried red balloons – the colour representing Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy Party (NLD) – and chanted, “We don’t want military dictatorship! We want democracy!”
By mid-morning about 100 people had also gathered in the coastal town of Mawlamine in the south-east and students and doctors were gathering in the city of Mandalay.
The fresh rally followed the largest protests to date on Saturday (Feb 6), when tens of thousands came out in cities across the country to condemn Feb 1 coup that brought a 10-year experiment with democracy to a crashing halt.
“We will move forward and keep demanding until we get democracy. Down with the military dictatorship,” said protester Myo Win, 37.
Some flashed the three-finger salute inspired by the “Hunger Games” films and used as a symbol of resistance by pro-democracy protesters in Thailand last year.
Despite the large-scale deployment of riot police – backed by water cannon – there have been no major clashes reported so far.
“Myanmar’s military and police must ensure the right to peaceful assembly is fully respected and demonstrators are not subjected to reprisals,” the United Nations Human Rights office tweeted after Saturday’s protests.
The surge in popular dissent over the weekend overrode a nationwide blockade of the internet, similar in magnitude to an earlier shutdown that coincided with the arrest of Suu Kyi and other senior leaders last Monday.
Online calls to protest the army takeover have prompted bold displays of defiance, including the nightly deafening clamour of people around the country banging pots and pans – a practice traditionally associated with driving out evil spirits.
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