Military 'Massacre' Leaves More than 100 Adults and Children Dead in Myanmar
Myanmar’s military forces killed more than 100 civilians Saturday in the bloodiest day to date of the coup that began last month.
Protests marked the nation’s Armed Forces Day, resulting in a military crackdown in which dozens of children were reported killed, according to CBS. Before the latest bloodshed, more than 300 of Myanmar’s citizens had been killed by the junta that took power, according to Reuters.
Saturday was a national holiday marking resistance against Japan’s occupation during World War II. Russian deputy defense minister Alexander Fomin joined Myanmar’s ruling junta at the parade, as did representatives from China, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Vietnam, Laos and Thailand, according to the website Myanmar Now.
During the ceremony, coup leader Gen. Min Aung Hlaing said the military would protect Myanmar’s people and work to build democracy.
Then the bullets began to fly.
South Dagon, Yangon:
• Ma Khine Zar Thwe, an AYA bank employee, was shot in the eye by Terrorists (#Myanmar security forces) this afternoon. Died at the hospital.
• At least 5 others were injured today in S. Dagon.#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar #Mar28Coup pic.twitter.com/4GqFGP9wfg
— Ro Nay San Lwin (@nslwin) March 28, 2021
Unconfirmed reports posted by Myanmar Now said a 1-year-old child was shot in the eye with a rubber bullet. In another town, a 13-year-old girl was reportedly killed inside her home.
The BBC reported the following incident:
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“Fourteen-year-old Pan Ei Phyu’s mother says she rushed to close all the doors when she heard the military coming down her street. But she wasn’t fast enough. A moment later, she was holding her daughter’s blood-soaked body.
“‘I saw her collapse and initially thought she just slipped and fell. But then blood spurted out from her chest,’ she told BBC Burmese,” the BBC reported.
“They are killing us like birds or chickens, even in our homes,” one Myanmar resident said, according to The Guardian. “We will keep protesting regardless. We must fight until the junta falls.”
Biden on #Myanmar: Who?
— Glyn Ogwen (@glynogwen88) March 27, 2021
“This is just the latest example of the military authorities’ determination to kill their way out of nationwide resistance to the coup,” said Ming Yu Hah, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for campaigns.
“These abhorrent killings again show the generals’ brazen disregard for the inadequate pressure applied so far by the international community. The cost of international inaction is being counted in bodies.”
11 year old Aye Myat Thu, one of over a hundred people killed yesterday by the Myanmar security forces, was buried today in her hometown of Moulmein, together with her favourite toys, books, and a recent drawing. pic.twitter.com/KHjfF4iAwQ
— Thant Myint-U (@thantmyintu) March 28, 2021
Dozens of houses in Mandalay’s Pyigyidagun township burned down at around 1:00am on Sunday in what residents suspect was an arson attack. Nearly 70 families & 300 people lost their homes in the fire, according to a local charity group. #WhatsHappeningInMyanmar pic.twitter.com/mjd4vsvAO7
— Myanmar Now (@Myanmar_Now_Eng) March 28, 2021
Kyaw Win, director of the Burma Human Rights Network in Britain, said the military had “no limits, no principles,” according to the BBC.
“It’s a massacre, it’s not a crackdown anymore,” he said.
World leaders reacted with condemnations, but were urged to do more than talk.
We are horrified by the bloodshed perpetrated by Burmese security forces, showing that the junta will sacrifice the lives of the people to serve the few. I send my deepest condolences to the victims’ families. The courageous people of Burma reject the military’s reign of terror.
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) March 27, 2021
The military celebrated Armed Forces Day by committing mass murder against the people it should be defending. The Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) is responding with powerful weapons of peace. It’s past time for the world to respond in kind with & for the people of Myanmar. pic.twitter.com/kZCZmpI0jm
— UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews (@RapporteurUn) March 27, 2021
US ‘horrified’ by Myanmar military’s ‘reign of terror’ – US Secretary of State Antony Blinken pic.twitter.com/PtyXvi6MRC
— TRT World Now (@TRTWorldNow) March 27, 2021
After a day of carnage across Myanmar, military leaders celebrated Armed Forces Day with a lavish party.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
