12th March, 2021 #day40

 

South Korea announces that it will suspend military ties with the Myanmar military council, ban military exports, and review development assistance programs to Myanmar. At the same time, South Korea condemns the military council for the violent crackdown and called for the immediate release of those arrested. The BBC reports that South Korean will grand temporary humanitarian visa to Myanmar nationals whose visas are about to expire until the country is stable. It is the first country in Asia to take such actions against the military junta. According to the Korea Economic Institute, South Korea is the sixth largest foreign investor in Burma since 2020, with about $ 4 billion in investment. It had also experienced dictatorship for decades and it finally ended after the June 1987 uprising.

Ten ethnic armed organizations that have signed a Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement with the government have said that the military council fails to adhere to the NCA. Their acting chairman General Yawd Serk said in his closing remark that they will work with the people to end dictatorship and will collaborate with the international community to protect the public, according to their social media page. Since the military coup, there have been frequent clashes between the Restoration Council of Shan State (RCSS) and the Karen National Union (KNU), the largest of the 10 groups. These two groups are gaining significant support among the anti-coup protesters.

According to a leaked letter from the Ministry of Information of the military council, the current civil servants have been instructed to be promoted only after pledging their allegiance to the government. Some argue that this is because some staffs working in the government are probably collaborating with the protesters by leaking confidential information. Since the coup, many internal documents have been leaking to the social media. A few days ago, a deputy director of the Foreign Affairs was arrested by the military council after classified information about a meeting between China and Myanmar on Chinese investment leaked online.

Protesters say street protests in Yangon have dropped significantly as a result of the junta's brutal crackdown and extensive arrests. But in recent days, anti-coup protests have taken place in new ways. Instead of taking to the streets during the day, people are seen gathering at intersections or streets near their homes and protesting peacefully despite the curfew staring at 8 pm every night. Forced evictions of civil servants involved in the CDM are taking place across the country. Today, all doctors and nurses, including patients, were forced to leave their homes after soldiers forced them to leave the staff quarters inside the hospital compound in Chin State. Locals provide housing to them, but hundreds of civil servants are facing hardships due to a lack of available housing, according to Chin State-based media.

In addition, six journalists arrested while covering anti-military protests were arraigned today. They were charged under Section 505 (a) of the Penal Code for violating the stability of the state. Following the coup, the licenses of five media outlets have been revoked and journalists are now being prosecuted. Soldiers also arrested a Polish photojournalist who was covering a protest in Taunggyi yesterday. His whereabout and condition are still unknown.