More than 100 killed as Myanmar junta unleashes worst day of terror
Saturday was Armed Forces Day in Myanmar, and the ruling generals marked it with the slaughter of over 100 people, including a five-year-old and other children, at pro-democracy protests across the nation.
It was the worst bloodshed since a coup that began on 1 February. State media had issued a warning on Friday evening, saying that the largely peaceful protesters risked being shot “in the head and back”.
Despite that, crowds poured on to the streets of Yangon, Mandalay and other towns, where security forces gunned them down with impunity. A one-year-old was reportedly also hit in the eye with a rubber bullet.
“They are killing us like birds or chickens, even in our homes,” Thu Ya Zaw told Reuters, at a protest in the central town of Myingyan, where at least two people were killed. “We will keep protesting regardless. We must fight until the junta falls.”
More than 400 people have been killed protesting against the military takeover, and condemnations of Saturday’s grotesque display of force poured in from around the world.
“On Myanmar’s Armed Forces Day, security forces are murdering unarmed civilians, including children, the very people they swore to protect. This bloodshed is horrifying. These are not the actions of a professional military or police force,” said Thomas Vajda, the US ambassador.
The EU delegation to Myanmar described it as a “day of terror and dishonour”. Dominic Raab, the foreign secretary, said the country had marked a “new low”.
“We will work with our international partners to end this senseless violence, hold those responsible to account, and secure a path back to democracy,” he said.
In the locked-down capital, Naypyidaw, senior generals gathered for a military parade, with representatives from their few staunch allies, including China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand, Reuters reported.
Moscow sent its deputy defence minister Alexander Fomin, the most senior envoy there, and Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, the junta leader, hailed Russia as a “true friend”.
A brass band played while he took his seat to inspect troops, and then as the security forces violently suppressed demonstrations in other cities, he made a speech promising the military would “safeguard democracy” and hold new elections.
The military claims it seized power because November’s elections, won in a landslide by the party of Aung San Suu Kyi, were fraudulent. The country’s election commission has dismissed that claim.