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Burma Coup (I refuse to call it Myanmar)


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Having previously worked and lived in Vietnam for 6 years I saw a lot of change. The Power Plants we were building were not for the Domestic Market but for the Commercial Market. The Highway between Thai Binh and Hai Phong was full of new build mega factories, Samsung, LG, Canon, Yamaha and so on, the companies which are currently in Thailand but relocating to VN. 

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Myanmar protests: Stunning images shatter military government's lie to the world

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A street mural that reads 'We Want Democracy' near the Myanmar Institute of Information, in Yangon. Photo / Maxmar Technologies / Twitter

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/myanmar-protests-stunning-images-shatter-military-governments-lie-to-the-world/4Q6PQSH7GG2DE6WOVOCY2AGSIA/

also https://www.news.com.au/world/asia/myanmar-protests-stunning-images-shatter-military-governments-lie-to-the-world/news-story/4553711e8e614afe369836371559108e

{prolly not on Facebook in Australia}

By: Ben Graham

An unsettling satellite image — alongside incredible pictures of tens of thousands of people packed onto the streets of Myanmar today — have exposed a barefaced lie in the nation's new military government's claim to power.

After a military coup and brutal crackdown that effectively saw the nation cut off from the world, pro-democracy advocates feared that the protests against the nation's new leaders had been crushed and their message silenced.

However, today there was a colossal show of resistance on the troubled Southeast Asian nation's streets.

Awe-inspiring pictures show protesters filling every corner of a major street running through the city of Yangon.

Residents of the city stopped their cars in the streets or at key junctions — their bonnets open in mass "breakdowns" — as a way of stopping any military advance.

"We have to fight until the end," Nilar, a 21-year-old student who asked not to use her real name, told AFP.

"We need to show our unity and strength to end military rule. People need to come out on the streets."

Amid the crackdown on dissent, satellite images from Maxar Technologies showed the incredible numbers of people turning out to protest — and a large "We Want Democracy" mural scrawled out onto a street for the world to see. Local reports on social media say the army moved in quickly to scrub the message away.

The images shatter the army's claim that people backed its February 1 move to seize power from civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and her National League for Democracy (NLD).

A street mural that reads 'We Want Democracy' near the Myanmar Institute of Information, in Yangon. Photo / Maxmar Technologies / Twitter

The NLD was returned to government in a landslide in November's elections, but the army said the polling was rigged.

Despite the resistance, there are grave concerns over what will happen now as the army shows no signs of relinquishing its control.

Tom Andrews, the United Nations' special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said earlier he was "terrified" of an escalation in violence.

He had received reports of troop movements around the country and feared the protesters were facing real danger.

"I fear that Wednesday has the potential for violence on a greater scale in Myanmar than we have seen since the illegal takeover of the government on February 1," Mr Andrews said in a statement.

"I am terrified that given the confluence of these two developments — planned mass protests and troops converging — we could be on the precipice of the military committing even greater crimes against the people of Myanmar."

Rubber bullets, tear gas and even slingshots have been used against protesters so far, and one young woman remains in a critical condition in capital city Naypyidaw after being shot in the head last week.

Internet networks were slashed for the third night in a row today — after increasingly disturbing videos of the army opening fire on protesters emerged earlier in the week.

There are conflicting reports as to whether the army is using real or rubber bullets on demonstrators.

Myanmar's military has a history of crushing its critics with brute strength before the nation transitioned to a democracy began 10 years ago.

Armed forces chief Min Aung Hlaing, who led the coup two weeks ago, also led the 2017 crackdown on the Muslim Rohingya minority in the western state of Rakhine — which human rights groups say was carried out with "genocidal intent".

"The security forces' approach could take an even darker turn fast," the International Crisis Group warned in a briefing released today.

"Soldiers and armoured vehicles have begun to reinforce the police lines and, should the generals become impatient with the status quo, could easily become the sharp end of a bloody crackdown, as has happened in the past."

The group said the coup has undone a decade of political and economic liberalisation in the nation — and Myanmar's people are furious about it.

Protesters make three-fingered salutes and chant slogans during an anti-coup protest at Sule Square on February 17, 2021 in downtown Yangon, Myanmar. Photo / Getty

And it said the army was unlikely to back down. "(The takeover) has prompted almost universal outrage from Myanmar's people, who have taken to streets across the country to demand its reversal," said the group. "The military is unlikely to back down, and the risk of deadly violence against protesters is high."

Myanmar has seen coups before, in 1958, 1962, 1988, and in 1990, when the army refused to accept the result after the NLD — then a new party — won the nation's elections.

It used force against protesters in 1988, and again in 2007, when a rise in fuel prices triggered mass demonstrations led by Buddhist monks.

Ms Suu Kyi has not been seen in public since the latest takeover — with the army saying she is currently under house-arrest.

More than 450 people have been arrested since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners monitoring group.

Western powers and the United Nations have repeatedly condemned the leaders of Myanmar's new military administration, which insists it took power lawfully.

The army has said it will hold new elections without saying when the polls might take place.

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  • 9 months later...

In breaking news: intrepid internet consumer (me) finds looney behaviour in Burma, as reported by the ever reliable Coconut's web thingy, that turns up in my email sometimes...

"Maung Maung Ohn, junta minister of information, may also be guilty of some “magical thinking,” as he plans to resume air travel by the end of next quarter.

“We must ensure that we’re ready to meet the standard operating procedures,” he proclaimed boldly if obtusely in a recent news release. 

He might hold onto that thought until the junta’s health agencies can figure out how to handle travel in a way that makes any sense.

Air travelers are being told to wear full protective kit in the air – but not in the airport – while ministry staff, cops and immigration agents don’t bother with any. 

For the fully vaccinated and freshly tested guests who may want to come to visit? Their bus driver will be hidden underneath a full biohazard burka on their way to seven days of expensive quarantine stays at junta-friendly hotels – and two more PCR tests before they can travel onward. 

A sure bet to lure hordes of cash-flush tourists, especially after Thailand and Cambodia have lifted most requirements, quarantine included, for vaccinated arrivals?"

https://coconuts.co/yangon/news/in-myanmar-everything-is-awesome/?mc_cid=240a8e91fa&mc_eid=503e28128a

 

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  • 2 months later...
  • 1 year later...

UN expert says Myanmar imported $1 billion in arms since coup, much of it from Russia and China

https://news.yahoo.com/un-expert-says-myanmar-imported-123953551.html

 

$ 1 billion / Population 54 million = $18.51 per head.  

How much does a bullet cost? (Ammunition prices range from $0.08 for a 22LR round to $3 for a .50 caliber round.)

Maybe they've got enough killing power now?

 

I'lll admit to not knowing much about Burma, having been there once and not thinking much of it, and seeing bad things happen there in the media.

 

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