Widespread backlash after bloodiest day of Myanmar crackdown

The latest use of lethal force by Myanmar’s junta against unarmed civilians has drawn widespread backlash, with military chiefs of a dozen countries joining together to condemn the bloodbath on Saturday, when more than 100 people lost their lives in the deadliest day of protests since the military coup early last month.

The defense ministers of 12 countries including Britain, Japan, Australia and the United States on Sunday censured Myanmar's deadly crackdown on anti-coup demonstrators, a day after security forces killed 114 people across the country.

“A professional military follows international standards for conduct and is responsible for protecting — not harming — the people it serves,” the ministers said in a joint statement.

“We urge the Myanmar Armed Forces to cease violence and work to restore respect and credibility with the people of Myanmar that it has lost through its actions.”

The other countries that backed the statement were Australia, Canada, Germany, Greece, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, and New Zealand.

The Saturday bloodbath, which was described by a United Nations investigator as “mass murder,” took place on the same day that Myanmar’s military was celebrating its annual Armed Forces Day, with the security personnel staging a parade of troops and military vehicles and junta leader General Min Aung Hlaing delivering a speech.

‘Day of shame’ in Myanmar: Over 90 people are killed by police

The military had warned that protesters risked being shot in the head or back if the public display of rage was not to end.

The local monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said violence erupted across the country as the military used live rounds in more than 40 townships across nine regions, including the largest city Yangon.

“Junta forces shot machine-guns into residential areas, resulting in many civilians, including six children between ten and sixteen-years old, killed,” the AAPP said. “The fact [that] the illegitimate military regime is targeting children is a grave act of inhumanity.”

The AAPP said at least 90 people had been killed but the Myanmar Now news portal said 114 people had lost their lives across the country in crackdown on the protests.

At least 40 people lost their lives in Myanmar’s second largest city of Mandalay, including a 13-year-old girl. At least 27 people were killed in the commercial hub, Yangon, Myanmar Now said. Another 13-year-old was among the dead in the central Sagaing region.

Deaths were also recorded from the Kachin region in the mountainous north, taking the overall number of civilians reported killed since the February 1 coup to more than 440.

“This bloodshed is horrifying,” US Ambassador Thomas Vajda said on social media, adding, “Myanmar’s people have spoken clearly; they do not want to live under military rule.”

The EU delegation to Myanmar said that Saturday would “forever stay engraved as a day of terror and dishonor.”

Moreover, UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews said it was time for the world to take action - if not through the UN Security Council then through an international emergency summit. He said Myanmar’s junta should be deprived of any funding, such as oil and gas revenues, and of access to weapons.

“Words of condemnation or concern are frankly ringing hollow to the people of Myanmar while the military junta commits mass murder against them,” Andrews said in a statement.

“The people of Myanmar need the world’s support. Words are not enough. It is past time for robust, coordinated action,” he added.

Myanmarese forces kill 9 more protesters, world increasingly concerned

Security forces in Myanmar open fire on anti-coup demonstrators, killing at least nine people in different parts of the country, as countries grow increasingly concerned about the Myanmarese crisis.

Myanmar has been convulsed by mass protests since the military ousted de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, and arrested her and several other political leaders over election fraud allegations.

Suu Kyi faces several criminal charges, including violating coronavirus restrictions by staging a campaign event in 2020. She is also being investigated for corruption allegations. If convicted, she could be permanently barred from political office.

The international community has repeatedly called for the restoration of civilian rule in the country. 

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