UN envoy arrive in Burma
There were signs that pro-democracy protests could be weakening in Burma after soldiers and police took control of the streets, firing warning shots to scatter the few demonstrators who ventured out and sealing off Buddhist monasteries.
The internet was also cut.
The streets were quiet early today and monks, who have provided the backbone of recent rallies calling for an end to 45 years of military rule, were penned in behind locked gates in the two largest cities, Rangoon and Mandalay.
Additional troops arrived overnight, consolidating control of urban areas.
“I don’t think that we have any more hope to win,” said a young woman who took part in a massive demonstration on Thursday that was broken up when troops opened fire into a crowd.
She was separated from her boyfriend and has not seen him since. “The monks are the ones who give us courage.”
Daily protests drawing tens of thousands of people had grown into the stiffest challenge to the ruling junta in two decades, a crisis that began more than a month ago when people in the desperately poor nation of 54 million started rallying against a massive fuel price increase.
Security forces started to crack down on the demonstrators on Wednesday, when the first of at least 10 deaths was reported, and then let loose on Thursday.
Small groups of die-hard activists and angry residents have turned out since then, some taunting troops and then scattering into alleyways, soldiers in pursuit.
“Bloodbath again! Bloodbath again!” a Rangoon resident yelled yesterday while watching troops break up one march by shooting into the air, firing tear gas and beating people with clubs.
Participants in the protests asked that their names not be used, fearing retribution.
Today, soldiers and police were stationed on almost every street corner in Rangoon. Shopping centres, supermarkets and public parks were closed, and only a handful of residents ventured out.
“People are living in a state of fear and hate,” said one onlooker. “A few days ago, everyone was friendly. Now no one wants to talk to strangers.”
Hundreds of people have been arrested, including Win Mya Mya, an outspoken member of the country’s main opposition group, the National League for Democracy, who was taken overnight, according to family members.
Images of bloodied protesters and fleeing crowds have riveted world attention on the escalating crisis, prompting many governments to urge the junta to end the violence. A video broadcast by Japan’s Fuji Television Network showed a soldier directly shooting a Japanese cameraman during the crackdown on Thursday.
The United Nations’ special envoy to Burma, Ibrahim Gambari, is due to arrive in the country today to promote a political solution to the crisis, and the United States urged “all civilised nations” to urge Burma’s leaders to end the crackdown.
“They don’t want the world to see what is going on there,” White House spokesman Scott Stanzel said, as soldiers searched hotels for foreign journalists, who have been largely barred from entering the country.
But analysts said it was unlikely that countries with major investments in Burma, such as China and India, would agree to take any punitive measures. They also noted the junta has long ignored criticism of its tough handling of dissidents.
Although the crackdown raised fears of a repeat of a 1988 democracy uprising that saw an estimated 3,000 protesters slain, the junta appeared relatively restrained so far.
The arrival of additional troops in Rangoon strengthened the government’s hand, said an Asian diplomat.
The corralling of monks was also a serious blow. The maroon-robed clergymen carry high moral authority in the predominantly Buddhist nation, and the protests had mushroomed when they joined in.
The government has said police and soldiers killed 10 people, including the Japanese journalist, in the first two days of the crackdown, but diplomats and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown the toll was probably greatly understated.
They provided no estimates of their own and cautioned that witness reports had not been verified.
Authorities also shut off the country’s two internet service providers, although big companies and embassies hooked up to the web by satellite remained online.
The internet has played a crucial role in getting news and images of the democracy protests to the outside world.
