For 2nd Day in Row, Thousands Protest in Myanmar’s Biggest City

On Sunday, about 2,000 protesters rallied against the military takeover in Myanmar’s biggest city, calling for the release of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Labor union and student activists, as well as members of the public chanted “Long live Mother Suu” and “Down with military dictatorship” at a major intersection near Yangon University.

Police in riot gear blocked the main entrance to the university. Two water cannon trucks were parked nearby.

The protesters held placards calling for freedom for Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, who were put under house arrest and charged with minor offenses. Many have considered this as providing a legal veneer for their detention.

New military authorities have cut most access to the internet, making Twitter and Instagram inaccessible, but this shutdown failed to quell their anger.

Facebook had already been blocked earlier in the week; however, it was not completely effectively.

The U.S. Embassy called on the military to give up power and restore the democratically elected government, release those detained, lift all telecommunications restrictions, and refrain from violence.

“We support the right of the people of Myanmar to protest in support of the democratically elected government and their right to freely access information,” it said in a tweet.

In the same vein, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres urged the world community to make sure Monday’s coup fails, asserting that the reversal of elections is “unacceptable.”

“We’ll do everything we can to mobilize all the key actors of the international community to put enough pressure on Myanmar to make sure that this coup fails,” Guterres said.

“It’s absolutely unacceptable to reverse the result of the elections and the will of the people,” he affirmed. “I hope that it’ll be possible to make the military in Myanmar understand that this is not the way to rule the country and this is not the way to move forward.”