Executions in Myanmar
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A couple of days ago, 4 prominent opponents of the military coup in Myanmar were executed. The military coup took place on 1 February 2021 and has been met with large domestic protests and international condemnation.
Executions to keep power
A regime that spares no means in its attempt to keep power is an example of this. How many of the many hundreds who have received death sentences in the aftermath of the coup will be executed remains to be seen. The US is trying to put pressure on China. The coup plotters in Myanmar have a good relationship with China and thus the hope is that China can be the key to saving lives.
Among the 4 who were executed are Phyo Zeya Thaw and Kyaw Min Yu. Both known activists in the protests against the military coup. Phyo Zeya Thaw also sat in the Democratic National Assembly before the military coup. Closed trials were conducted against the activists and legal certainty has been strongly criticized.
After the military coup, a number of people have been imprisoned for their protests against the military coup. Among them the former leader of the National Assembly Aung San Suu Kyi. An execution of the former winner of the Nobel Peace Prize will probably cause such large international protests that the junta has spared Aung San Suu Kyi from the death penalty.
The military coup is supported by China
China has emerged as a supporter of the military junta in Myanmar. I wrote a blog about this earlier. Not unexpected that China supports an anti-democratic regime in China’s immediate area. China sees all democratic thinking as a danger in its immediate areas. The fear that democratic ideas will gain a foothold in China is probably the reason. This combined with the fear that democratic countries are developing a close relationship with the US and the West.
That the people themselves should decide on their own country through democratic elections is an invariable principle for me. A democracy also includes a judiciary that is independent of the government and a free and independent press.
Sources:
The military coup in Myanmar 2021 – Wikipedia
Myanmar executions of 4 activists spur global outrage | AP News