Myanmar doctors targeted by military for providing aid to protesters: Reports

Over two months of the Myanmar military overthrowing the elected civilian government and pushing the entire nation into chaos, the doctors are under fire for providing aid to the wounded anti-coup protesters as the junta sets ‘traps.’ As per The Guardian report, it is a grimly familiar story for medics to discover an injured demonstrator but as they proceed to help, residents warn of them of soldiers waiting nearby.

As per the report, for instance, when Htet Htet Win and her husband returned home late on Sunday night in Mandalay, the security forces opened fire. While the husband managed to get away, a grainy photograph was taken at the scene reportedly showed Win lying face down on the concrete.

Doctors reportedly believed that she was alive but couldn’t save her as residents warned the medics against reaching out to Win as one of the rescuers said that it "felt like they were ambushing us" before noting that they would have saved Win "if we were able to pick het up as soon as it happened". However, they waited for the soldiers to disperse and till then it was too late. 

Several doctors also told Observer that they were often targeted with violence by the junta who has now intensified its crackdown on nationwide protesters. Reportedly, medics are routinely stopped from treating the victims of the violent attacks of security forces while recounting the attacks in which security forces raided their facilities, searched and even fired at their ambulances while detaining, beating and killing their colleagues. 

19 Sentenced To Death For Killing Of Associate

Meanwhile, the Myanmar military has sentenced at least 19 people to death in the Southeast Asian country for killing an associate of an army captain, said a junta-owned Myawaddy TV station on April 9 marking the first such sentences since the coup on February 1 and continued crackdown on protesters. The report further said that the killing took place on March 27 in the North Okkalapa district of Yangon, Myanmar’s biggest city. Reportedly, Martial law has also been declared in the district that allows the courts martial to pronounce the sentences. 

Myanmar military that overthrew the civilian elected government, said on April 9 that a protest campaign against its rule was dwindling because people ultimately wanted peace. The junta also said that it would hold elections within two years which is also the first time frame it has given for a return to democracy. The remarks regarding elections came as Myanmar’s own ambassador to the United Nations (UN) pressed on April 9 for a no-fly zone along with sanctions to mount global pressure on the junta to restore democracy in the country which is rocked with unrest for over two months. 

Image credits: AP