YANGON, Myanmar (AP) – Protesters gathered again across Myanmar on Sunday, a day after security forces shot dead two people at a rally in the country’s second-largest city. A funeral was also held for a young woman previously murdered by police.
Mya Thwet Thwet Khine was the first confirmed death among the thousands who have taken to the streets to protest the February 1 coup that overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The woman was shot on February 9, two days before her twentieth birthday, in a protest in the capital Nayptitaw, and died on Friday.
About 1,000 people with cars and bicycles gathered Sunday morning at the hospital where his body was being held in the middle of close security, including the victim’s grandparents who had traveled from Yangon, five. hours away, they were denied entry. When his body was released, a long motorized procession began to drive to the cemetery.
In Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, about 1,000 protesters honored the woman under an elevated road.
“I want to say through the media to the dictator and his associates that we are peaceful protesters,” protester Min Htet Naing said. “Stop the genocide! Stop using lethal weapons! ”
Another large protest took place in Mandalay, where police shot dead two people on Saturday near a strait as security forces tried to force workers to load a boat. Workers, such as railroaders and truckers and many officials, have taken part in a civil disobedience campaign against the board.
The gunfire erupted after neighborhood residents rushed to Yadanabon Pier to try to help workers with their resistance. One of the victims, described as a teenager, was shot in the head and died immediately, while another was shot in the chest and died on the way to a hospital.
Several serious injuries were also reported. Witness accounts and photographs of bullet casings indicated that security forces used live ammunition, in addition to rubber bullets, water cannons and handguns.
The new deaths provoked a rapid and strong reaction from the international community.
“The shooting of peaceful protesters is unclear,” British Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said on Twitter. “We will consider additional actions, with our international partners, against those who crush democracy and stifle dissent.”
Last week, Britain froze assets and imposed travel bans on three top Myanmar generals, in addition to existing sanctions.
Singapore, which along with Myanmar is part of the ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations, issued a statement condemning the use of lethal force as “inexcusable.”
Urging “maximum restraint” by security forces, he warned that “if the situation continues to escalate, there will be serious adverse consequences for Myanmar and the region.”
Another shooting death occurred Saturday night in Yangon in unclear circumstances. According to various accounts on social media, including a live broadcast showing the body, the victim was a man who acted as a volunteer guard for a neighborhood watch group. These groups were set up because of fears that authorities were using criminals released from prison to spread panic and fear by setting fire and committing violent acts.
Another live broadcast on Facebook showed actor Lu Min’s wife describing to neighbors how her husband was arrested and taken from her home shortly after midnight. He was one of six high-profile people in the entertainment industry accused last week of inciting public officials to stop working and join the protest movement, which he and others have publicly defended.
On Sunday, Facebook announced it was removing the page run by Myanmar’s military intelligence unit “for repeated violations of EU rules prohibiting incitement to violence and coordinating damage.” He had already deleted other military-related accounts.
The Board took power after arresting Suu Kyi and preventing the convening of Parliament, saying last November’s elections were tainted by voting irregularities. The election result, in which Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party won by defeat, was affirmed by an election commission that has since been replaced by the army. The board says it will hold new elections within a year.
The coup marked a major setback in Myanmar’s transition to democracy after 50 years of army rule that began with a 1962 coup. Suu Kyi came to power after his coup. party won the 2015 elections, but the generals maintained substantial power under the constitution, which was adopted under a military regime.