Thousands take to streets in northern Myanmar as unrest spreads to near Chinese border
- Up to 10,000 people marched in Lashio on Monday the day after a smaller protest
- Earlier attempts to organise a mass rally had been frustrated by a lack of internet access but the service was restored on Sunday evening
Participants estimated that close to 10,000 people took to the streets on Monday afternoon in Lashio, the largest town in northern Shan state, after internet access was restored the previous day.
Protesters began their two-hour march at noon outside the front gate of Lashio University, before making a circuit of the town and finishing back at the start point.
“I strongly oppose this military coup,” said Say Nay Nay Win, president of the Burmese-Chinese Youth Association in Lashio. “If we don’t come out to resist, then we won’t be able to topple the military government.”
The demonstration followed a much smaller one involving around 500 people on Sunday in the town, which is home to a mixture of Bamar, Shan and ethnic Chinese inhabitants.
The 22-year-old student said efforts to organise the protests had been frustrated by intermittent internet blackouts over the weekend, which meant they had resorted to a chain of phone calls and text messages. “It was a pain, everyone was sending each other texts and it slowly got bigger,” he said.
“Yangon is the first place that starts the protests and after that Lashio is the second. So I really hope that I can see more protests all around the country.”