Junta horror show
Kids in 114 killed by Myanmar troops
As Myanmar’s military celebrated the annual Armed Forces Day with a parade in the capital Naypyitaw, police and soldiers opened fire on anti-coup protesters in more than 40 cities across the country Saturday, killing a reported 114 people, including children.
It was the bloodiest day of ongoing demonstrations against the military junta, which ousted the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb. 1.
At least 328 people had been killed in the post-coup crackdown through Friday, according to the Association of Political Prisoners.
At the parade, junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing spoke before thousands of soldiers and dignitaries from multiple countries, including Russia. He pledged that the military would protect the people and strive for democracy.
The celebration marked the 76th anniversary of the Burmese revolt against Japanese occupation during World War II.
Demonstrators who filled the multiple city streets to protest the coup referred to the holiday using its original name, Resistance Day.
The brutal crackdown came one day after the junta threatened on state-run TV to “shoot protesters in the head or back,” the Myanmar Now news site reported. Protesters ignored the threats to take to the streets and again demanded the return of democracy.
The wounded included a 1-year-old baby in the Yangon region, where at least 27 people were killed. A 13-year-old girl was among 40 people killed in a town in the Mandalay region. Another 13-year-old was killed in the Sagaing region, among 22 children killed since the protest movement began.
“Dear world, we don’t need Nobel or anything. Just protect our young people and children,” said a tweet from Myanmar’s Civil Disobedience Movement, which has been nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize.
The killings quickly drew international condemnation.
US Ambassador Thomas Vajda in a statement said, “Security forces are murdering unarmed civilians . . . These are not the actions of a professional military or police force. Myanmar’s people have spoken clearly: they do not want to live under military rule.”