- ALLEN V. DEL CARMEN
“Please tell the world what is happening in our country.”
This is the plea of pro-democracy citizens of Myanmar as they turn to the social media to rally a global cause opposing the recent coup staged by the military against the democratically-elected officials of the country.
For most activists, they rely on Facebook as their platform for popularizing their cause. Developments, however, have shown that the military has been disrupting internet connections, thus, slowing down the global pro-democracy campaign by mostly young Myanmar residents.
Facebook is most important to their cause, a Negrense working in Myanmar said, because for them “Facebook is their internet connection”.
On Feb. 1, the Myanmar military television said that the military is taking control of the country for one year under a state of emergency.
At the same time, they detained Myanmar’s de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and other elected officials from her National League of Democracy party.
The military claimed the party committed electoral fraud in the November 2020 election, which NLD handily won. The party victory was even wider than in 2015 when NLD won over candidates of the military junta. NLD has denied the military claims.
“We want the world to know that the people of Myanmar are rejecting the coup by the military and that it must honor the outcome of the election,” a young Myanmar professional told NEGROS NOW DAILY as part of the concerted “silent protest” they are mounting.
He echoed the activists’ plea: “We are begging world leaders to please help us,” they said.
“Whether you are from Myanmar or not please speak up… Do not allow Myanmar to go down its dark path again. We’ve endured so much already. Help save Myanmar,” they added.
The country was ruled by a military junta until the openly-held election in 2015.
“The military is telling the international community that the country is in peace,” he said, by, among others, flashing videos of people exercising in the park.
The truth is, he further said, people are against the seizure of power. That’s why we engage in our silent protest, they continued.
People choose to hold the silent protest in their homes. They don’t want to go out because that is what the military want them to do, so they can be arrested in their mass assembly, he said.
If ever, silent protest has become audible as people have staged noise barrage from their homes to express their protest against the military.
They clang kitchen utensils, blow car horns and express their disgust over what is happening, he said. Civil disobedience, as part of the silent protest, is also ongoing with people wearing red ribbons as a symbol of solidarity.
Thankfully, so far, he said, there has been no show of force from the military. At the same time, more government workers have stopped reporting to work, a sign that more people are realizing the need to support a democratic way of life.
The protests are going on a bigger scale, especially in the key cities of Yangon and Mandalay, as well as the capital, Nay Pyi Taw.
Student leaders, he added, are campaigning people in the towns and countrysides to launch protests “in a non-violent way.”
“We need the world to know and understand that we want to live in a democratic country, that’s why we need your help,” he reiterated. – AVDC
