Sharp criticism after violence escalates in Myanmar

Countries across the world have been looking for ways to respond to the brutal military crackdown in Myanmar that has resulted in the deaths of hundreds of anti-coup protesters.

Thailand was preparing for a surge in refugees from neighbouring Myanmar: “We are aware of our neighbour’s issues and are making considerations, but let’s keep it internal for now,” Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha said on Monday.

“We don’t want an exodus into our territory, but at the same time we also have to consider human rights,” he said.

Prayuth said authorities will prepare areas to accommodate refugees, but he declined to elaborate on the details. “Where will they go, how many will there be – we’ll talk about that later,” he said.

Sittichai Jindaluang, governor of Mae Hong Sorn province in Thailand’s north, said on Sunday that his province has already seen around 2,200 refugees from Myanmar, and more are expected.

As of Sunday, 459 people have been killed in Myanmar for protesting a February 1 military takeover, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners monitoring group.

Many of the dead are youths and students.

On Saturday alone, more than 100 people were reported to have been killed. The United Nations said it was the “bloodiest day” since the February 1 coup. The nationwide protests coincided with Armed Forces Day, which saw the military hold a large parade in the capital.

Thousands again protested on Monday against the military. According to local reports, the forces used rifles and grenades against protesters.

The UN Security Council was planning to again discuss the crackdown, after a condemnation it issued earlier in March seemed to have little effect, according to sources from within the UN body on Monday.

A meeting on the topic behind closed doors was requested for Wednesday. The council had strongly condemned the violence on March 11 and called for all those arrested to be released immediately.

A spokesman for the German government on Monday said that Berlin was demanding that military rulers immediately renounce the use of force and release prisoners at once.

Russia, on the other hand, was among a small handful of countries to send representatives to the military celebration on Saturday, dispatching Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin to the event.

Fomin’s presence however meant “absolutely no endorsement of these tragic events,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Monday in Moscow, according to the Interfax news agency.

“We have long-standing and quite constructive relations with Myanmar. One has to look at it from this point of view,” he said.

Fomin said during his visit that Moscow wants to expand military cooperation with Myanmar. The South-East Asian country already depends on Russia as a major arms supplier.

Representatives from China, India and Pakistan also reportedly took part in the parade.

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