A "silent strike" was held by Myanmar's citizens on February 1 to mark the first anniversary of the military junta taking over the government on allegations of election fraud.
NPR reported that opponents of the military rule held the nationwide strike out of concern for "an increasingly violent contention for power." The "silent strike" involved emptying the streets of Myanmar by closing businesses and having people stay indoors.
Photos posted in social media of Yangon City's empty streets showed that the "silent strike" was in progress.
"People in Myanmar rushed before the start of Tuesday's strike to buy essentials, and in Yangon appeared to have done their shopping on Monday. Pro-democracy flash mob marches were held in several places before the start of the strike in the early morning hours, when clashes with police and soldiers are less likely," NPR said.
On February 1, 2021, the military abducted the 75-year-old Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi for allegedly fraudulently winning the November general elections. Opponents to the coup held mass protests in various cities of Myanmar but were met with violence from the military such that hundreds have died in the first month the junta took place.
The military particularly targeted Christians whose institutions and establishments they attacked and churches they burned. Last December, villages burned down on Christmas Eve by the military led to dozens of Christians being killed.
Around 1,500 civilians have been killed by the military government, which included armed protesters in a now "civil war." United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Gutierres raised the need for an urgent response on the "intensification in violence, a deepening of the human rights and humanitarian crises and a rapid rise of poverty in Myanmar."
"Local media reported ongoing violence on Monday, with at least six bombings believed to have been carried out by resistance forces in Yangon, and another at a police station in Myitkyina in northern Kachin state. The opposition carries out daily guerrilla actions, while the military engages in larger-scale assaults in rural areas, including air strikes, which are blamed for many civilian casualties," NPR continued.
The military government is said to be aware of the nationwide "silent strike" and has warned individuals who wish to take part in it with penalties such as life imprisonment and confiscation of property as dictated in the country's Counter-Terrorism Law.
As such, owners of businesses from various areas of Myanmar who announced plans to be involved with the strike were arrested. Those arrested included restaurant owners, shopkeepers, and mobile phone repair shop owners, among others. While city administrators held special events set during the time of the strike to draw people into the street.
The military government's leader, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing gave a speech on Tuesday in line with the anniversary, saying the people should cooperate with them "so as to achieve a better future for the country and people." Hlaing also pledged that his government will provide "genuine and disciplined multiparty democratic system."
Hlaing in October freed 5,600 people involved in the mass protests against the military government. Accordingly, Hlaing freed the prisoners that included Christian pastors "out of respect for humanitarian cause" in celebration of their Lightning Festival, which is traditionally held every full moon of Thadingyut in October.
The amnesty granted to the prisoners was criticized as a "humanitarian" act but as a "distraction for the foreign governments" in the face of the military government being sanctioned for its violent measures.
In the face of these increasing violence and citizen unrest, the United States Department of State placed increasing pressure on Myanmar's military government and their supporters by imposing sanctions on them. The State Department identified several top officers such as the Directorate of Procurement of the Commander-in-Chief of Defense Services, Supreme Court Chief Justice Tun Tun Oo, Union Attorney General Thida Oo, and Anti-Corruption Commission Chair Tin Oo. Some prominent business supporters of the regime such as Tay Za and Jonathan Myo Kyaw Thaung were included in the sanctions.
"We are coordinating these actions with the United Kingdom and Canada to demonstrate the international community's strong support for the people of Burma and to further promote accountability for the coup and the violence perpetrated by the regime, including the killing of at least 35 people including children and humanitarian workers in Kayah State on Christmas Eve last year," Department of State Secretary Antony Blinken said.
"The United States will continue to work with our international partners to address human rights abuses and press the regime to cease the violence, release all those unjustly detained, allow unhindered humanitarian access, and restore Burma's path to democracy," he emphasized.
