POLICE IN MYANMAR FIRED ON PROTESTERS SUNDAY, KILLING AT LEAST 18 PEOPLE IN THE BLOODIEST DAY IN WEEKS OF DEMONSTRATIONS AGAINST A MILITARY COUP, ACCORDING TO THE U.N. HUMAN RIGHTS OFFICE.
PLEA FROM UN
Myanmar police fired on protesters around the country on Sunday and at least 18 people were killed in the worst violence since a Feb. 1 military coup, the United Nations said, calling on the international community to act to stop the repression.
Crowds of demonstrators came under fire in various parts of the biggest city of Yangon after stun grenades, tear gas and shots in the air failed to break up their protests.
Across the country, protesters wearing plastic work helmets and with makeshift shields faced off against police and soldiers in battle gear, including some from units notorious for tough crackdowns on ethnic rebel groups in Myanmar's border regions.
Several wounded people were hauled away in Yangon by fellow protesters, leaving bloody smears on pavements, media images showed. One man died after arriving at a hospital with a bullet in the chest, said a doctor who asked not to be identified.
“Police and military forces have confronted peaceful demonstrations, using lethal force and less-than-lethal force that — according to credible information received by the UN Human Rights Office — has left at least 18 people dead and over 30 wounded,” the UN human rights office said.
Myanmar has been in chaos since the army seized power and detained elected government leader Aung San Suu Kyi and much of her party leadership on Feb. 1, alleging fraud in a November election her party won in a landslide.
The coup, which brought a halt to tentative steps toward democracy after nearly 50 years of military rule, has drawn hundreds of thousands onto the streets and the condemnation of Western
MILITARY ... MUST RESPECT THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE OF MYANMAR.
countries.
Among at least five killed in Yangon was internet network engineer Nyi Nyi Aung Htet Naing, medics said. A day earlier he had asked on Facebook how many dead bodies it would take for the United Nations to take action.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on its members to do more.
“The Secretary-General urges the international community to come together and send a clear signal to the military that it must respect the will of the people of Myanmar as expressed through the election and stop the repression,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.
“We are heartbroken to see the loss of so many lives in Myanmar,” the U.S. embassy said. The Canadian Embassy said it was appalled. Indonesia also expressed deep concern.
The next hearing in Suu Kyi's case is on Monday.