Two more people shot dead at Myanmar anti-coup protests
Two more people have been shot dead and 20 others injured in Myanmar’s anti-coup protests, a day after a young woman succumbed to her gunshot wounds and became the first known casualty of the public display of grievance in the country.
Police opened fire on protesters in the city of Mandalay on Saturday.
“Twenty people were injured and two are dead,” said Ko Aung, a leader of the Parahita Darhi volunteer emergency service agency in the city.
“One shot in the head died at the spot. Another one died later with a bullet wound to the chest,” said a volunteer doctor. Police targeted protesters with live rounds and rubber bullets, he added.
Social media users were also posting photos allegedly taken on the site of the protest, showing people with gunshot wounds.
The young woman, identified as Mya Thwate Thwate Khaing, died of bullet wounds to her head on Friday.
People held a memorial ceremony for her in the main city of Yangon and in the capital, Naypyitaw, on Saturday.
“The sadness from her death is one thing, but we’ve also got courage to continue for her sake,” said student protester Khin Maw Maw Oo in the capital.
Her death has sparked outrage against police.
The military had previously said it only used anti-riot weapons at a protest near the Thabyegone Roundabout, where the woman was shot.
Amnesty International, however, said it had analyzed footage from days before and after the incident and verified a locally made variant of an Uzi sub-machine gun in the hands of an officer.
People have been protesting for two weeks against the military, which ousted the government of de facto leader Aung Sun Suu Kyi and arrested her in a coup d'état on February 1.
Protesters demand the restoration of the elected government and the release of Suu Kyi and other political leaders.
The junta has also come under pressure by the international community to hand over power to civilians and release the officials.
But the military deployed armored vehicles and soldiers in some major cities to crack down on protests at the weekend.
Over 520 people had been detained as of Thursday across Myanmar, according to the country’s Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.
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