Opponents of the military coup in Myanmar are hunted after criticism on the Internet – Prime Time Zone

In Yangon, thousands of doctors, students and private sector workers marched this Saturday along one of the city’s main avenues

EFE / EPA / LYNN BO BOThe junta that runs the country has suspended privacy laws in order to facilitate arrests; the announcement coincided with the eighth day followed by street demonstrations

Seven supporters of protests against the military junta that carried out a coup in Myanmar earlier this month are being sought. They face accusations for comments on social media that threaten “national stability”, the Army said on Saturday. The board that runs the country has also suspended privacy laws to facilitate arrests. The announcement coincided with the eighth day in a row of street demonstrations. Privacy laws required court orders for people to be detained for more than 24 hours and for searches of private properties and surveillance. “Sections 5, 7 and 8 of the law that protect the privacy and security of citizens are suspended,” said a statement signed by the leader of the military junta, Min Aung Hlaing

Among the persecuted are Min Ko Naing, who was one of the main pro-democracy activists during the decades when a military dictatorship prevailed in Myanmar. Also looking for “Jimmy” Kyaw Min Yu, also a veteran of the 1988 uprising, singer Htwe Lin Ko, analyst Myo Yan Naung Thein, host Maung Maung Aye, and writer Insein Aung Soe. In Yangon, thousands of doctors, students and private sector workers marched this Saturday along one of the city’s main avenues. Disobeying the ban on meeting, many wore the colors of the National League for Democracy (LND), Aung San Suu Kyi’s party, which has been in detention for 12 days. “We will return to work only when the civil government of ‘Mother’ Suu Kyi is restored. The threats matter little, ”said Wai Yan Phyo, a 24-year-old physician.

Residents came together to patrol the streets of Yangon at night, fearing attacks, arrests and common crimes. In different neighborhoods in the city, groups of young people were banging pots and pans to sound the alarm when they encountered someone suspicious. According to Nada al-Nashif, UN deputy commissioner for human rights, more than 350 people, including officials, activists and monks, have been arrested in Myanmar since the coup. Journalist Shwe Yee Win, who had reported opposition to the coup in the city of Pathein, was taken by police on Thursday, according to her news website TimeAyeyar.

* With Estadão Content