Hundreds of young people turned out in cities across Myanmar on Wednesday to mark the anniversary of a 1962 student uprising against a military coup, calling on citizens to continue the decades-long struggle against the army, which again overthrew civilian rule in February.<\/p>\n
The July 7, 1962 protest in Myanmar\u2019s then-capital Yangon led to the massacre by the army of more than 100 students, providing a model of sacrifice and resistance to this year\u2019s Feb. 1 coup that ousted the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi\u2019s National League for Democracy, marchers said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Military forces overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi\u2019s elected government based on accusations that November 2020 landslide elections won by Aung San Suu Kyi\u2019s National League for Democracy (NLD) were marred by voter fraud.<\/p>\n
The junta, which has not produced evidence of fraudulent elections, has led a violent crackdown on protesters opposed to its rule that has killed 900 people.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, July 7, is the day when students started the first uprising against the military dictatorship in Myanmar when Ne Win took power in 1962,\u201d Maung Seint, one of Wednesday\u2019s protesters, said in Yangon, where around 100 young people marched holding banners calling for the return of civilian rule.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt can be said that today\u2019s situation is very similar to the situation then. They had student protests following a military coup, and today we students are taking to the streets against a coup,\u201d Maung Seint said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the spirit of July 7, 1962, we are taking to the streets to continue the fight,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Security was tight in Yangon, with soldiers and police checking roads in the early morning, and the protest lasted only a few minutes. No one was arrested, Maung Seint said, contradicting reports from other sources that several people had been taken into custody.<\/p>\n
In Myanmar\u2019s second-largest city Mandalay, more than 100 students took part in a march. And in Sagaing region\u2019s Monywa city\u2014where many young people were arrested or shot, and others killed, by soldiers and police in recent protests\u2014marchers also held a protest to commemorate the July 7, 1962 massacre.<\/p>\n
As in Yangon, soldiers and police patrolled the city\u2019s streets, but the march proceeded peacefully.<\/p>\n
‘We are determined to oppose the coup’<\/p>\n
Khant Wai Phyo, a Monywa student who took part in the rally, said the young people of Myanmar reject military rule and will continue to fight against it.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor generations, young people in our country have never bowed down to injustice, and we rebel against it in any way that we can. In the same spirit, we cannot accept a coup d\u2019etat in this country for any reason at all,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe, the youth, are determined to oppose the coup till the very end,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Writing on social media from an undisclosed location on July 7, Myanmar\u2019s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) praised the spirit of the country\u2019s young who had fought in 1962 for \u201ctruth and justice\u201d and are continuing the struggle in the present day, the opposition group said.<\/p>\n
In Yangon, Min Han Htet\u2014president of the city\u2019s Dagon University Students\u2019 Union\u2014said strong efforts must now be made to overthrow the military junta that took power in Myanmar on Feb. 1.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to make a strong commitment this July,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we don\u2019t eradicate this 60-year-old dictatorship now, we can\u2019t imagine how many more years it may remain in our land. We don\u2019t want future generations to suffer like we have,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The U.S. Embassy in Myanmar writing in a statement Wednesday said, \u201cThe people of Myanmar have long strived for freedom, democracy, and peace. We honor all those who died on July 7, 1962, as well as the hundreds killed since February 1 who sought a return to democracy and the right to exercise their basic fundamental freedoms.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, called for an \u201cEmergency Coalition for the People of Myanmar\u201c to be swiftly set up to stop what he described as the military junta\u2019s \u201creign of terror\u201d in the country of 54 million people.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe international community is failing the people of Myanmar,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Andrews\u2019 proposed coalition would include \u201cnations willing to stand with the people of Myanmar through meaningful, coordinated action,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt could reduce the junta\u2019s ability to attack its citizens, save the lives of those in acute crisis, and gain political leverage so that the crisis in Myanmar might come to a just and permanent conclusion.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Radio Free Asia –Copyright \u00a9 1998-2016, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036Radio Free Europe–Copyright (c) 2015. RFE\/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe\/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036. <\/p>\n<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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