Chiefs of Defense condemns use of lethal force against unarmed civilian amid Myanmar coup

Amid the Myanmar military coup Chiefs of Defense on Sunday has released a joint statement where they condemned the Military-sponsored violence and used of use of lethal force against unarmed civilians. Chiefs of defense from Australia, Canada, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Kingdom of Denmark, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea and the United Kingdom has called out the military junta in Burma (Myanmar) to follow international standards of military professionalism.

On February 1, the military launched the coup in Myanmar, arresting top political leaders, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint. The coup occurred a day before the newly-elected members of parliament were scheduled to take the oath. Myanmar military levelled unfounded allegations of ''election-fraud'' and used the reason as an excuse for the coup. 

'Condemn the use of lethal force'

The statement said that the following is a joint statement of the Chiefs of Defense of Australia, Canada, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Kingdom of Denmark, the Kingdom of the Netherlands, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.

"As Chiefs of Defense, we condemn the use of lethal force against unarmed people by the Myanmar Armed Forces and associated security services.  A professional military follows international standards for conduct and is responsible for protecting – not harming – the people it serves. We urge the Myanmar Armed Forces to cease violence and work to restore respect and credibility with the people of Myanmar that it has lost through its actions," the statement read.

114 civilians killed

On Saturday, at least 114 civilians were killed across Myanmar as the junta staged a peaceful protest of might for its annual Armed Forces Day. The killings in 44 towns and cities across the country represented the bloodiest day of protests since a military coup last month. The killings have drawn swift international outrage. 

The United Nations secretary-general Antonio Guterres and the UN office in Myanmar spoke out against the violence. He said that the military crackdown has recorded the highest death toll on Saturday since the demonstration started and it is critical to find an urgent solution to this crisis.

Military coup

The military coup occurred on February 1, a day before the newly-elected members of the parliament were scheduled to take the oath. The army accused the government of rigging the November election in which Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD) party had won an overwhelming majority. International observers, who were in Myanmar to observe the polls, dismissed the military's allegation of "election fraud". Experts suggest that the military feared Suu Kyi's government will try and reduce the number of parliamentary seats reserved for the Army. After the previous military rule ended in Myanmar, the Army helped co-write the constitution, under which it reserved 25% of seats in the parliament. 

(Image Credits: AP)