Read more about Protestors demonstrate at G7 summit to save Myanmar s democracy on Business Standard. Several hundred Myanmar residents in Britain gathered at the site of the Group of Seven summit in Cornwall, calling for action to save democracy in Myanmar on Saturday
Japan s government said on Monday it is asking Myanmar to release a Japanese journalist who was arrested by security forces in its largest city of Yangon the previous day. Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato told reporters Monday that his government is asking Myanmar authorities to explain the arrest and provide other details while asking for his release as soon as possible. He did not identify the detainee, but Japanese media identified him as Yuki Kitazumi, a former Nikkei business newspaper reporter currently based in Yangon as a freelance journalist. We will continue asking the Myanmar side for his early release, while doing our utmost for the protection of the Japanese citizens in that country, Kato said.
The civilian death toll in the crackdown by the Myanmar junta has reached 550 since the Feb. 1 coup, a human rights group said Saturday. Of those, 46 were children, according to Myanmar s Assistance Association for Political Prisoners. Some 2,751 people have been detained or sentenced, the group said. Threats of lethal violence and arrests of protesters have failed to suppress daily demonstrations across Myanmar demanding the military step down and reinstate the democratically elected government. Late Friday, armed plainclothes police took five people into custody after they spoke with a CNN reporter in a Yangon market, local media reported, citing witnesses. The arrests occurred in three separate incidents.
People in Myanmar have been pouring on to the streets in protests against the coup by the Myanmarese army - the Tatmadaw. Myanmar s big towns are witnessing daily rallies and protests asking for democratically elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be released. Exclusive photographs and video obtained by IndiaNarrative show that anti-coup demonstrators have effectively mobilised tens of thousands of people in Mandalay against the army. Photographs show a flood of people marching to Myanmar s downtown areas despite the army s crackdown on pro-democracy protests. The video obtained by India Narrative shows how the military is trying to scare citizens by firing randomly. A posse of soldiers are seen marching along railway tracks in Mandalay and firing in the dark.
Following the use of violence against pro-democracy protesters in Myanmar by the military, Facebook has deleted the main page of the Tatmadaw, another name for the country s military. Al Jazeera quoted a representative for Facebook as saying on Sunday that the page of the military s True News Information Team Page was taken down for repeated violations of our community standards prohibiting incitement of violence and coordinating harm . This comes following the worldwide condemnation by leaders including United Nations Security General Antonio Guterres. I condemn the use of deadly violence in Myanmar. The use of lethal force, intimidation and harassment against peaceful demonstrators is unacceptable. Everyone has a right to peaceful assembly. I call on all parties to respect election results and return to civilian rule, Guterres said in a tweet.