A 19-yr-old student Kyal Sin has been killed in Myanmar protests. A total of 38 people lost their lives on Thursday, the 'bloodiest' day since the February 1 Myanmar coup. The Army has deployed fighter jets to intimidate protesters. WION's Palki Sharma gets you a report.

Gravitas: Myanmar's 'bloodiest' day of protests

Alphabet Inc's&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;has removed five channels of Myanmar's military-run television networks hosted on its platform in the wake of the coup in the Southeast Asian country.

"We have terminated a number of channels and removed several videos from&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;in accordance with our community guidelines and applicable laws," a&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;spokeswoman said in a statement in response to a Reuters question.

The channels taken down include the state network, MRTV, (Myanma Radio and Television) as well as the military-owned Myawaddy Media, MWD Variety and MWD Myanmar,&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;said.

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Their removal comes during the bloodiest week so far of anti-coup protests, with 38 people killed on Wednesday, according to the United Nations, as security forces tried to crush rallies and used live rounds in some areas.

The army seized power on February&nbsp;1, alleging mass fraud in the November election won by Aung San Suu Kyi's government. The election commission said the vote was fair, but the military has used media to make its case and justify the takeover.

MRTV pages were banned by Facebook in February, while it had previously barred Myawaddy in 2018 when it banned army chief Min Aung Hlaing - now the military ruler - and more than a dozen other senior officers and organisations on the platform.

Facebook has now banned all pages linked to Myanmar’s army and was itself banned by the junta in February.

Other social media platforms are also grappling with how to moderate military content and proliferation of hate speech and misinformation in Myanmar.

Reuters reported on Thursday that Myanmar soldiers and police were using TikTok to deliver death threats to protesters.

Researchers have said that after the Facebook ban the military was trying to build its presence on other platforms.

YouTube&nbsp;had faced criticism from researchers and civil society groups for a comparatively hands-off approach during Myanmar's November&nbsp;8 vote.

A Reuters review found dozens of channels hosted on&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;that had promoted election misinformation while posing either as news outlets or political programmes.

Google said in December it had terminated 34&nbsp;YouTube&nbsp;channels following an investigation into coordinated influence operations linked to Myanmar.

Alphabet Inc's YouTube has removed five channels of Myanmar's military-run television networks hosted on its platform in the wake of the coup in the Southeast Asian country.

Alphabet Inc's YouTube has removed five channels of Myanmar's military-run television networks hosted on its platform in the wake of the coup in the Southeast Asian country. "We have terminated a number of channels and removed several videos from YouTube in accordance with our community guidelines and applicable laws," a YouTube spokeswoman said in a statement in response to a Reuters question. The channels taken down include the state network, MRTV, (Myanma Radio and Television) as well as the military-owned Myawaddy Media, MWD Variety and MWD Myanmar, YouTube said. Their removal comes during the bloodiest week so far of anti-coup protests, with 38 people killed on Wednesday, according to the United Nations, as security forces tried to crush rallies and used live rounds in some areas. The army seized power on February 1, alleging mass fraud in the November election won by Aung San Suu Kyi's government. The election commission said the vote was fair, but the military has used media to make its case and justify the takeover. MRTV pages were banned by Facebook in February, while it had previously barred Myawaddy in 2018 when it banned army chief Min Aung Hlaing - now the military ruler - and more than a dozen other senior officers and organisations on the platform. Facebook has now banned all pages linked to Myanmar’s army and was itself banned by the junta in February. Other social media platforms are also grappling with how to moderate military content and proliferation of hate speech and misinformation in Myanmar. Reuters reported on Thursday that Myanmar soldiers and police were using TikTok to deliver death threats to protesters. Researchers have said that after the Facebook ban the military was trying to build its presence on other platforms. YouTube had faced criticism from researchers and civil society groups for a comparatively hands-off approach during Myanmar's November 8 vote. A Reuters review found dozens of channels hosted on YouTube that had promoted election misinformation while posing either as news outlets or political programmes. Google said in December it had terminated 34 YouTube channels following an investigation into coordinated influence operations linked to Myanmar.

YouTube removes five Myanmar TV channels from platform

Myanmar police fired on protesters around the country on Sunday in the bloodiest day of weeks of demonstrations against a military coup and at least 18 people were killed, the U.N. human rights office said.

At least 18 killed in Myanmar on bloodiest day of protests against coup

Myanmar police fired canisters at protesters in the southeastern city of Dawei who blocked a road on Saturday (February 27) in protest against military rule, enveloping the area in smoke.

Protesters and police face off in Myanmar's Dawei city

Refusal of many Myanmar's civil servants to work for the junta has made matters worse for military due to paralysing of bureaucracy. Public hospitals are deserted. Government offices left dark. And the trains don't leave the stations.

The growing civil disobedience movement is thwarting the generals' plans to control the political situation in the country.

"The military needs to prove that they can manage the country well as a government. But if we... the civil servants don't work, their plan to take power will fail," Thida, a public university lecturer who asked to use a pseudonym, told AFP Monday as cities were brought to a standstill by the largest strike yet.

Thida has refused to teach her online classes. Work stoppage in private sector has hollowed out offices and factories. Even many bank branches are shut.

But it is the civil servants' swelling ranks within the resistance that has the junta particularly rattled.

Without them, it is unable to collect taxes, send out electricity bills, test the population for Covid-19 or simply keep the country running.

The spectre of a financial crisis -- already brewing because of the pandemic downturn and a decline in foreign investment -- looms large.

Cracks starting to show

It remains unclear how many of the roughly one million public sector workers are participating.

One crowdsourced survey found members of all 24 government ministries are now involved, while the UN special rapporteur on&nbsp; 
Myanmar has estimated three-quarters of the civil servants are on strike.

Also Read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/coup-chaos-leaves-employers-fretting-over-paying-staff-in-myanmar-366244">Coup chaos leaves employers fretting over paying staff in Myanmar</a>

Civil servants' absence has begun to show its effect.

Nearly one-third of the nation's hospitals are no longer functioning, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing said this week.

Decrying medical professionals' failure to fulfil their duties, he hinted that working doctors and teachers would soon receive cash rewards, according to remarks reported by state media Tuesday.

One doctor told AFP that staff shortages meant his hospital has had to turn away new patients. Medical "cover teams" have formed to provide emergency treatment to protesters under fire from rubber bullets and live ammunition.

Paper pushing in government departments has all but halted, according to local media reports, and around the country clerks, drivers and administrators have been dismissed over their absence.

"The military didn't anticipate that a large part of the civil service would walk out and leave them without a state apparatus," said an analyst who asked to remain anonymous as the junta has detained more than 700 of its critics.

(With inputs from AFP)

Refusal of many Myanmar's civil servants to work for the junta has made matters worse for military due to paralysing of bureaucracy. Public hospitals are deserted.

Refusal of many Myanmar's civil servants to work for the junta has made matters worse for military due to paralysing of bureaucracy. Public hospitals are deserted. Government offices left dark. And the trains don't leave the stations. The growing civil disobedience movement is thwarting the generals' plans to control the political situation in the country. "The military needs to prove that they can manage the country well as a government. But if we... the civil servants don't work, their plan to take power will fail," Thida, a public university lecturer who asked to use a pseudonym, told AFP Monday as cities were brought to a standstill by the largest strike yet. Thida has refused to teach her online classes. Work stoppage in private sector has hollowed out offices and factories. Even many bank branches are shut. But it is the civil servants' swelling ranks within the resistance that has the junta particularly rattled. Without them, it is unable to collect taxes, send out electricity bills, test the population for Covid-19 or simply keep the country running. The spectre of a financial crisis -- already brewing because of the pandemic downturn and a decline in foreign investment -- looms large. Cracks starting to show It remains unclear how many of the roughly one million public sector workers are participating. One crowdsourced survey found members of all 24 government ministries are now involved, while the UN special rapporteur on Myanmar has estimated three-quarters of the civil servants are on strike. Also Read | Coup chaos leaves employers fretting over paying staff in Myanmar Civil servants' absence has begun to show its effect. Nearly one-third of the nation's hospitals are no longer functioning, coup leader Min Aung Hlaing said this week. Decrying medical professionals' failure to fulfil their duties, he hinted that working doctors and teachers would soon receive cash rewards, according to remarks reported by state media Tuesday. One doctor told AFP that staff shortages meant his hospital has had to turn away new patients. Medical "cover teams" have formed to provide emergency treatment to protesters under fire from rubber bullets and live ammunition. Paper pushing in government departments has all but halted, according to local media reports, and around the country clerks, drivers and administrators have been dismissed over their absence. "The military didn't anticipate that a large part of the civil service would walk out and leave them without a state apparatus," said an analyst who asked to remain anonymous as the junta has detained more than 700 of its critics. (With inputs from AFP)

Myanmar: Civil servants' strike makes it difficult for military

Its been a month since Myanmar military toe down every sense of democracy in the country. Since then people's revolution has taken centre stage but the past month has also seen a rise in Myanmar's citizen journalists. WION brings you a report.

Myanmar protests from the lens of citizen journalists

Two people killed and 20 others injured in a brutal clash with security personnel in Mandalay. Meanwhile, thousands take to the streets in Yangon as demonstrations enter the third week.

Myanmar Protests: Two people killed and 20 others injured in brutal clash with security personnel

In the anti-coup demonstration, Myanmar enters the 3rd consecutive week despite bloodshed and violence protesters have refused to breakdown. A massive civil disobedience movement which is not been seen in recent times has been unfolded in the country.

Anti-coup demonstration enter the third week with massive civil disobedience movement in Myanmar

Most nights since a coup returned Myanmar to military rule on Feb. 1, a spectral symbol of protest has glowed on a mildewed side of a building.

Where the next illumination will appear in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, is a mystery. But, suddenly, a projected image appears in the dark. Three fingers raised in a rebellious pose. A dove of peace. The smiling face of Aung San Suu Kyi, whose government was ousted in the army putsch.

Watch |&nbsp;

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/gravitas-17-days-of-military-rule-in-myanmar-364393/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

The projections are the brainchild of a filmmaker who wishes to remain anonymous as the military hunts down those who dare to defy it.

Armed with paintbrushes, poems and protest anthems, the creative classes are providing Myanmar’s mass uprising with an imaginative verve and rebellious spirit that has caught the military generals off guard.

During daily street rallies in the country’s major cities, the atmosphere often has the feel of a cultural carnival. Graffiti artists have spray-painted messages mocking Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the army chief who staged the coup. Poets have declaimed in angry verse. A cartoonists’ union marched holding hand-drawn figures. Street dancers twirled with abandon.

On Wednesday, in the biggest single rally since street protests began in Yangon, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in a central district, holding up posters and signs designed for the Instagram generation.

“If we look at the history of resistance in Myanmar, we were quite aggressive and confrontational, with this history of bloodshed,” said Ko Kyaw Nanda, a graphic designer whose protest art contrasts green pig heads (the army) with ruby red heels (Suu Kyi). “With this new approach, it can be less risky for people, and more people can join.”

Myanmar’s military, which has ruled the nation for most of the past six decades, has locked up more than 450 people since the coup, according to a group that tracks political prisoners. The new regime has drastically diminished civil liberties, and its long history of violently suppressing dissent lingers. Security forces have shot and beaten anti-coup protesters. On Wednesday evening in the city of Mandalay, soldiers swept through an area housing railway workers who were boycotting work, shooting multiple rounds. At least one person was confirmed injured.

But the weapons of dictatorship have not deterred peaceful demonstrators, who have depended on humorous memes and protest art to carry them through. “If the young people are out on the street then why can’t I be?” said Nu Nu Win, a retired civil servant who at the rally Wednesday carried a laminated sign with the face of Suu Kyi. “I want the whole nation to be out from under dictatorship.”

Online art collectives have made their designs free so that protesters can print them out for signs, stickers or T-shirts. One of the most popular pieces shows a collection of hands arranged in the three-finger salute from “The Hunger Games” films. Each hand was drawn by a different artist, a mosaic of defiance.

As she watched the protests grow, a freelance graphic designer who goes by the artistic name Kuecool decided she wanted to contribute. Although she had illustrated a book on feminism, she had not considered herself overtly political during her years of working at a public relations agency.

The overthrow of the elected government by the military, which she had grown up disliking, shocked her. She began drawing into the night.

One of her images is now used often in the protest movement: a young woman in a traditional sarong brandishing a wok and a spatula. The background is crimson, the signature hue of the National League for Democracy, which was ejected from government despite winning two landslide electoral victories.

Every night at 8 p.m., cities across Myanmar have clanged with the din of people banging pots, pans, woks and anything else that makes a ruckus. The aim is to ward off the devil, and the projection art appears at this time, too, adding visuals to the clamor of discontent.

Myanmar’s military rulers have long seen menace in the arts, imprisoning poets, actors, painters and rappers. Among the dozens of people nabbed alongside Suu Kyi in the coup’s initial pre-dawn raids were a filmmaker, two writers and a reggae singer. A graffiti artist whose protest tags have enlivened Yangon over the past two weeks said he was on the run from the police. So were two poets. On Wednesday, arrest warrants were issued for actors, directors and a singer.

Zayar Thaw was a member of Generation Wave, a hip-hop collective that challenged the former ruling junta through sly lyrics. After serving five years in prison for his activism, he joined the National League for Democracy when it contested a by-election in 2012. Zayar Thaw won a parliamentary seat in a district once thought of as a military stronghold, settled down with reams of parliamentary paperwork and thought he had left his days of artistic protest behind him.

“Hip-hop artists already have a culture of revolution, so in our generation we protested through songs,” he said. “Now all kinds of artists are involved because they don’t want to lose the value of democracy.”

The artistic ferment in Myanmar today has drawn from other regional protest movements. During their months of sustained dissent in Hong Kong, young protesters enlivened their rallies with cute cartoons and colorful walls of sticky notes that evoked the so-called Lennon Wall in Prague, where art and messages of dissent against communism proliferated. Motivated by an earlier incarnation of opposition, the Hong Kong protesters popularized the use of the yellow umbrella against water cannons and turned it into a powerful meme.

In turn, the Hong Kong democracy movement galvanized pro-democracy demonstrators in Thailand, who staged months of mass rallies last year. Encouraged by the power of whimsy in Hong Kong, the Thai protesters, who have been standing up to a prime minister who led a 2014 military coup, deployed inflatable rubber duck rafts to ward off water cannons. They popularized the use of “The Hunger Games” salute, which Thailand’s former junta initially tried to ban with their state of emergency powers. (Nobody really listened.)

A couple days after the putsch in Myanmar, doctors, who launched a civil disobedience movement that has now compelled about 750,000 people to stop going to work, flashed their three fingers in protest. The salute is now the leitmotif of the Myanmar rallies, along with signs in English — all the better to attract international attention — denouncing the military takeover.

“I got inspired by how Hong Kong and Thai protesters used creativity and humor in their protests,” said Kyaw Nanda, the graphic designer.

The crosscurrents of protest are flowing both ways. Last week, a Thai youth group adopted the pots and pans campaign from Myanmar for a protest in Bangkok.

“In the region, there is a fight for democracy, human rights and justice,” said Aye Ko, a painter in Myanmar whose art has long expressed political yearnings. “The movement is beyond one nation’s issue. We have all joined together in the resistance against oppression.”

 
&nbsp;

Most nights since a coup returned Myanmar to military rule on Feb. 1, a spectral symbol of protest has glowed on a mildewed side of a building. Where the next illumination will appear in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, is a mystery.

Most nights since a coup returned Myanmar to military rule on Feb. 1, a spectral symbol of protest has glowed on a mildewed side of a building. Where the next illumination will appear in Yangon, the country’s biggest city, is a mystery. But, suddenly, a projected image appears in the dark. Three fingers raised in a rebellious pose. A dove of peace. The smiling face of Aung San Suu Kyi, whose government was ousted in the army putsch. Watch | The projections are the brainchild of a filmmaker who wishes to remain anonymous as the military hunts down those who dare to defy it. Armed with paintbrushes, poems and protest anthems, the creative classes are providing Myanmar’s mass uprising with an imaginative verve and rebellious spirit that has caught the military generals off guard. During daily street rallies in the country’s major cities, the atmosphere often has the feel of a cultural carnival. Graffiti artists have spray-painted messages mocking Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the army chief who staged the coup. Poets have declaimed in angry verse. A cartoonists’ union marched holding hand-drawn figures. Street dancers twirled with abandon. On Wednesday, in the biggest single rally since street protests began in Yangon, hundreds of thousands of people gathered in a central district, holding up posters and signs designed for the Instagram generation. “If we look at the history of resistance in Myanmar, we were quite aggressive and confrontational, with this history of bloodshed,” said Ko Kyaw Nanda, a graphic designer whose protest art contrasts green pig heads (the army) with ruby red heels (Suu Kyi). “With this new approach, it can be less risky for people, and more people can join.” Myanmar’s military, which has ruled the nation for most of the past six decades, has locked up more than 450 people since the coup, according to a group that tracks political prisoners. The new regime has drastically diminished civil liberties, and its long history of violently suppressing dissent lingers. Security forces have shot and beaten anti-coup protesters. On Wednesday evening in the city of Mandalay, soldiers swept through an area housing railway workers who were boycotting work, shooting multiple rounds. At least one person was confirmed injured. But the weapons of dictatorship have not deterred peaceful demonstrators, who have depended on humorous memes and protest art to carry them through. “If the young people are out on the street then why can’t I be?” said Nu Nu Win, a retired civil servant who at the rally Wednesday carried a laminated sign with the face of Suu Kyi. “I want the whole nation to be out from under dictatorship.” Online art collectives have made their designs free so that protesters can print them out for signs, stickers or T-shirts. One of the most popular pieces shows a collection of hands arranged in the three-finger salute from “The Hunger Games” films. Each hand was drawn by a different artist, a mosaic of defiance. As she watched the protests grow, a freelance graphic designer who goes by the artistic name Kuecool decided she wanted to contribute. Although she had illustrated a book on feminism, she had not considered herself overtly political during her years of working at a public relations agency. The overthrow of the elected government by the military, which she had grown up disliking, shocked her. She began drawing into the night. One of her images is now used often in the protest movement: a young woman in a traditional sarong brandishing a wok and a spatula. The background is crimson, the signature hue of the National League for Democracy, which was ejected from government despite winning two landslide electoral victories. Every night at 8 p.m., cities across Myanmar have clanged with the din of people banging pots, pans, woks and anything else that makes a ruckus. The aim is to ward off the devil, and the projection art appears at this time, too, adding visuals to the clamor of discontent. Myanmar’s military rulers have long seen menace in the arts, imprisoning poets, actors, painters and rappers. Among the dozens of people nabbed alongside Suu Kyi in the coup’s initial pre-dawn raids were a filmmaker, two writers and a reggae singer. A graffiti artist whose protest tags have enlivened Yangon over the past two weeks said he was on the run from the police. So were two poets. On Wednesday, arrest warrants were issued for actors, directors and a singer. Zayar Thaw was a member of Generation Wave, a hip-hop collective that challenged the former ruling junta through sly lyrics. After serving five years in prison for his activism, he joined the National League for Democracy when it contested a by-election in 2012. Zayar Thaw won a parliamentary seat in a district once thought of as a military stronghold, settled down with reams of parliamentary paperwork and thought he had left his days of artistic protest behind him. “Hip-hop artists already have a culture of revolution, so in our generation we protested through songs,” he said. “Now all kinds of artists are involved because they don’t want to lose the value of democracy.” The artistic ferment in Myanmar today has drawn from other regional protest movements. During their months of sustained dissent in Hong Kong, young protesters enlivened their rallies with cute cartoons and colorful walls of sticky notes that evoked the so-called Lennon Wall in Prague, where art and messages of dissent against communism proliferated. Motivated by an earlier incarnation of opposition, the Hong Kong protesters popularized the use of the yellow umbrella against water cannons and turned it into a powerful meme. In turn, the Hong Kong democracy movement galvanized pro-democracy demonstrators in Thailand, who staged months of mass rallies last year. Encouraged by the power of whimsy in Hong Kong, the Thai protesters, who have been standing up to a prime minister who led a 2014 military coup, deployed inflatable rubber duck rafts to ward off water cannons. They popularized the use of “The Hunger Games” salute, which Thailand’s former junta initially tried to ban with their state of emergency powers. (Nobody really listened.) A couple days after the putsch in Myanmar, doctors, who launched a civil disobedience movement that has now compelled about 750,000 people to stop going to work, flashed their three fingers in protest. The salute is now the leitmotif of the Myanmar rallies, along with signs in English — all the better to attract international attention — denouncing the military takeover. “I got inspired by how Hong Kong and Thai protesters used creativity and humor in their protests,” said Kyaw Nanda, the graphic designer. The crosscurrents of protest are flowing both ways. Last week, a Thai youth group adopted the pots and pans campaign from Myanmar for a protest in Bangkok. “In the region, there is a fight for democracy, human rights and justice,” said Aye Ko, a painter in Myanmar whose art has long expressed political yearnings. “The movement is beyond one nation’s issue. We have all joined together in the resistance against oppression.”

Paint, poems and protest anthems: Myanmar's coup inspires the art of defiance

Tank-ing democracy: Myanmar army bans internet to curb protests against military coup

Social Media is a double-edged sword. It can spark revolutions, it can also fuel unrest & anarchy. In Myanmar protesters are using Facebook to demand democracy. WION's Palki asks: Are online platforms becoming more powerful than govts?

Gravitas: Is Social Media more powerful than governments?

Things remain tensed in Myanmar where protesters refused to back down despite the crackdown by the authorities on the demonstrators who are opposing the military coup in their country.

Myanmar Police uses water cannons, fire bullets at protesters

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