Myanmar’s junta cracks down on online critics, death toll edges up to 550

GBNEWS24 DESK//

Attempts by Myanmar’s military to end dissent are turning to the virtual world with internet blocks and arrest warrants for online critics as big rallies become rare in the face of relentless repression by the security forces.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) activist group said on Saturday the security forces have killed 550 people, 46 of them children, since the military overthrew an elected government led by Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb 1. There were two deaths on Friday, reports Reuters.

Despite the repression, opponents of the coup march every day in cities and towns across the country, often holding what they call “guerrilla rallies”, small, quick shows of defiance before security forces can respond.

People also gather at night for candle-lit vigils but the huge rallies that drew tens of thousands in the early days of defiance have largely stopped in big cities.

The authorities, who had already shut down mobile data in a bid to stifle opposition, ordered internet providers from Friday to cut wireless broadband, depriving most customers of access.

Authorities also issued warrants for 18 show business celebrities including social media influencers and two journalists under a law against material intended to cause a member of the armed forces to mutiny or disregard their duty, state media reported late on Friday.

All of them are known to oppose military rule and one, actress Paing Phyoe Thu, said she would not be cowed.

“Whether a warrant has been issued or not, as long as I’m alive I’ll oppose the military dictatorship who are bullying and killing people. The revolution must prevail,” she said on Facebook.

Paing Phyoe Thu regularly attended rallies in the main city of Yangon in the weeks after the coup. Her husband, film director, Na Gyi, has been wanted by the authorities under the same law since February.

Her whereabouts were not immediately known and it was not clear how she was able to post her message. Social media users in Myanmar did not appear to be connected early on Saturday.

The charge can carry a prison term of three years.