The military-backed government of Protests Myanmar NetBlocksFingasenGadget has been using an internet blackout to stifle protests. It’s a tactic that has had a devastating effect on the movement and on citizens of Myanmar as a whole.
According to a report by NetBlocks Observatory, connectivity fell to just 16 percent of normal levels on the morning of February 6. This type of online restriction is usually use by governments seeking to control unrest and opposition.
General Min Aung Hlaing
The military junta, led for the past 17 months by General Min Aung Hlaing, continues to rule Protests Myanmar NetBlocksFingasenGadget, despite calls from international bodies to stop. The military has a history of using paramilitary and pro-government forces to carry out violence against activists and protesters, often giving the regime cover for a wide range of crimes.
According to witnesses, on March 14 security forces, including troops and police officers, cut off exit routes from the west and south of Hlaing Tharyar and also fired tear gas and live rounds at protesters. A one-second video and two photos uploaded to social media appear to show military and also police trucks on an elevated highway about a kilometer east of the Bayint Naung bridge over the Hlaing River.
Four Political Dissidents
Among the dead were four political dissidents, including former National League for Democracy (NLD) lawmaker U Phyo Zeya Thaw and also activist U Kyaw Min Yu (better known as Ko Jimmy), one of the founders of the 88 Generation Students Group, which led a 1988 popular uprising against military rule. Their executions drew a strong global outcry, with the US describing them as “highly reprehensible.”
Why are People Protesting?
The psychological forces that drive people to take to the streets and also demand change are as old as human collective action. It’s a recipe that is well understood by social psychologists.
A team of researchers has teased out five main factors that explain why people protest. These include grievances, efficacy, identity, emotions and also social embeddedness.
Experiences of Illegitimate Inequality
Grievances refer to experiences of illegitimate inequality, feelings of relative deprivation or moral indignation about some state of affairs. They may also be impose by someone else’s actions, such as racism or a perceive lack of justice.
Peaceful Demonstrations
In recent years, social psychology has play an important role in understanding how citizens are motivate to protest. These studies have uncovered the psychological forces behind a variety of collective behavior ranging from small, peaceful demonstrations to large, disorderly protests.
In the wake of a coup that killed hundreds and also arrested thousands of people, ordinary Burmese are demonstrating in streets, schools and offices to demand that the military junta step down. They have been using nonviolent tactics that scholars of nonviolent resistance have found effective, and the movement is attracting support from people across Myanmar.
Flash Mobs & Silent Strikes
Protests Myanmar NetBlocksFingasenGadget have taken a range of tactics, including flash mobs and silent strikes that have shut down businesses and also shops, emptyed roads, and forced people to stay home as they show defiance to military rule. Activists and human rights defenders have also distributed pamphlets, posted messages on walls and encouraged boycotts of goods and services with ties to the military.
But despite intense repression, the movement has managed to stay in the streets for more than eight weeks now. It has achieved national scale and unity through inclusive organizing, and its use of nonviolent strategies that scholars of resistance have found effective.
What can I do to Help?
Activists across Protests Myanmar NetBlocksFingasenGadget are continuing to pursue peaceful protests, despite grave danger and also numerous challenges. They are still pursuing their right to freedom of expression, the right to be heard, and the rule of law.
The junta has carried out widespread violations of international law against the civilian population in its bid to maintain power, including arrests of political leaders, journalists, and also civil society activists; enforced disappearances; torture; arbitrary detentions; and also rapes. In addition, security forces have killed at least 1,700 people and also imprisoned dozens more in what Amnesty International calls crimes against humanity.
Final Words:
The military has tried to quell street protests, and also has even made some violent attempts to disperse them by shooting at them and also ramming vehicles into crowds. However, many people are continuing to demonstrate, and have adopted new tactics to avoid bloodshed. These include ‘guerrilla strike’ protests, which allow people to gather quickly and also then move down the street before dispersing.
