A protester holds the shirt of a fallen comrade during a crackdown by security forces against demonstrations against the military coup, in Hlaing Tharyar Municipality in Yangon on March 14, 2021.
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According to local media, security forces killed at least 14 protesters in a poor industrial suburb of Myanmar’s main city and at least three people in other parts of the country on Sunday.
State television said a police officer had also died during one of the bloodiest days of protests against the Feb. 1 coup.
The Chinese Embassy called on Myanmar to protect its properties and citizens after it said two China-funded garment factories had been set on fire by unknown attackers.
Smoke rises as protests against the military coup and the detention of elected government members continue on March 14, 2021 in Hlaing Thar Yar Township, Yangon, Myanmar.
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The protests are now in the sixth week since the coup toppled elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and shook the Southeast Asian country, paralyzing the economy by strikes from opponents of the army takeover.
The violence came a day after Mahn Win Khaing Than, who is on the run with most of the senior officials of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy, said the civilian government would try to give people the legal right to defend themselves. .
Security forces opened fire on protesters in the city’s Hlaingthaya district, a poor suburb home to migrants from all over the country, according to domestic media. Black plumes of smoke rose above the area.
Myanmar Now said at least 14 protesters had been killed, according to the local hospital and a rescue worker.
“An official at Hlaingthaya Hospital said the death toll and injuries are still coming,” the report said. Other media in Myanmar took an even higher toll in the area.
Security forces stand guard during a demonstration by protesters against the military coup in Hlaing Tharyar Municipality in Yangon on March 14, 2021.
STR | AFP | Getty images
State television MRTV said martial law had been imposed in the district. A spokesperson for the junta has not answered calls requesting comment.
Dr. Sasa, a representative of elected lawmakers from the army expelled assembly, showed solidarity with the people of the district.
“The perpetrators, attackers, enemies of the people of Myanmar, the evil State Administrative Council (SAC) will be held responsible for every drop of blood spilled,” he said in a message.
Stringer | Reuters
Protesters use fire extinguishers during a protest against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, March 14, 2021.
China says factories burned down
Myanmar Now quoted residents as saying three factories in Hlaingthaya had been set on fire. It was unclear if this included two China-funded garment factories that the Chinese state news agency CGTN said had been set on fire.
CGTN quoted the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar as a relief worker.
“China urges Myanmar to take further effective measures to stop all acts of violence, punish the perpetrators in accordance with the law and ensure the safety of life and property of Chinese companies and personnel in Myanmar,” the statement said.
It said the perpetrators had not been identified.
Opponents of the coup have criticized China for not speaking more strongly against the army takeover, as Western countries have. China has said that stability is the priority and that it is Myanmar’s internal affair.
A man uses a slingshot during the security force crackdown on protesters against the coup in Mandalay, Myanmar, on March 14, 2021.
REUTERS | Stringer
At least three deaths were reported elsewhere in Myanmar on Sunday, including in the second city of Mandalay and Bago, where state TV MRTV said a police officer had died of a chest wound after a confrontation with protesters.
He is the second police officer reported dead in the protests.
The latest deaths would bring the toll of the protests to nearly 100, while the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners advocacy had said more than 2,100 had also been arrested on Saturday.
Suu Kyi will return to court on Monday. She is facing at least four charges, including illegal use of walkie-talkies and breach of coronavirus protocols.
The military said it took power after allegations of fraud in a Nov. 8 election won by Suu Kyi’s party were rejected by the electoral commission. It has promised to hold new elections but has not set a date.
Reporting by Reuters personnel; Written by Raju Gopalakrishnan; Edited by William Mallard, Tom Hogue and David Clarke