Free Myanmar From Military Rule
Coverage of a demonstration in Washington DC that took place on March 13th to show support for the people of Myanmar (Burma), and to raise awareness for their plight. On February 1st 2021 the military stormed into Parliament after the junta claimed fraud in their election, and took the duly elected representatives of the National League for Democracy (NLD) hostage. President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi are among those who have been taken along with all of their parliamentary representatives who were present on that fateful day. In response to this, the people of Myanmar have risen up in revolution, and the Civil Disobedience Movement (CDM) have been fighting soldiers in the streets ever since. Even though they are their own citizens the soldiers have been using live rounds against them as if they were enemy combatants, and deserting soldiers have confirmed that they have been ordered by their superiors to shoot to kill. As I type this on April 1st there are at least 521 unarmed protesters who have been murdered, and there are more than 2,600 who have been taken captive by the junta and their goons. Despite the horrible atrocities committed against them, the people of Myanmar are not giving up. If anything, they are fighting harder every day than they were the day before, but the harder they fight for democracy the more their military cracks down on dissent.
The demonstration began at the Chinese embassy, as they are a close ally of the junta. In return for money and resources (including arms) the junta allows China to loot Myanmar’s natural resources like timber, minerals, precious gems, metals, and oil & gas. So much so that the deforestation has caused horrific and deadly flooding. The demonstration then moved to the Myanmar military attaché's office in DC where the protesters bombarded the building and its occupants with impassioned speeches through megaphones from the sidewalk. They then silently laid siege to the building for a few hours. Spreading out enough to not block traffic, but remaining present in large numbers around the building before setting off to march once again. This time to the Washington Monument where they performed a ceremony of remembrance of those who have lost their lives by taking up flowers and singing songs.
