19th February, 2021 #Day19

 

The death of a young woman who was shot by the police during a protest in Naypyidaw, news of another violent crackdown on protesters in Myitkyina, and the newly formed State Administrative Council's Advisory Board are of great interest to Myanmar social media users. A statement of the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH), the UK and Canada imposing sanctions on military leaders responsible for the coup, news of policemen joining protests in Mandalay, residents of Bahan in Yangon beginning to defy the night curfew have also attracted public attention.

Thwate Thwate Khaing, who was shot in the head during a rally in Naypyidaw last week, has died this afternoon. She has been living with life support since the shooting, and with her family's permission, the life support was removed at 11.15 am Myanmar Standard Time. She was just 19 years old at the time of her death and become the first victim of violence in the current anti-coup protests. Protesters in Yangon and Naypyidaw laid wreaths in mourning for her. There has been reports about another death in a violent crackdown in Kachin State, but the exact details are still unknown. Another unfortunate news is also related to the protest in Myitkyina, the capital of the Kachin State. Many teachers and civilians have been arrested during the crackdown, but all the detainees were released again on the pretext that they would not take part in the further protests. However, the two arrested teachers were beaten by security forces and one of the teachers was heavily injured and broke her arm.

The coup government has formed the Advisory team for the Chairman of the State Administrative Council by Order No. 72/2021. This team has seven members, including two current generals, one retired military officer, and four civilians. Among them, Dr Andrew Ngun Cung Lian, a Chin-American, and Yin Yin Oo, received heavy criticism on social media. Ngun Cung Lian is a lawyer and a former member of the Chin ethnic armed group. He was an adviser to peace process under the Thein Sein’s administration, and now he becomes an adviser to the coup’s leader, General Min Aung Hlaing. He has known for his pro-military political stance and his outspoken criticism of the NLD civilian government. Yin Yin Oo is a former English lecturer and the daughter of Dr Maung Maung, a lawyer who was the seventh president of Myanmar for just one month in 1988.

The 378 elected members of parliament in the 2020 election formed the 15-member CRPH last week, urging the international community to recognize and connect with them alone. Today, the committee has formed for sub-committee: the Legal Affairs Committee, Information and Public Affairs Committee, Ethnic Affairs Committee, and International Affairs Committee. Protesters have been posting on their social media pages in support of the CRPH and against the SAC.

After the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada imposed targeted sanctions on about 20 coup leaders. Sanctions include property control and travel restrictions. Officials in those countries say that the number of targeted sanctions could increase. In Mandalay, nine more police officers joined the protest, and in Mandalay Region alone, more than 100 policemen have joined the CDM, according to their community support group. At the time of writing, residents in Bahan Township, Yangon, are standing outside of their houses at night in defiance of Section 144 of the night curfew.