March, 9th 2021 – Dozens of Myanmar protesters who were trapped overnight by security forces have now fled the premises.
Around 200 people in a district of Yangon had yesterday been blocked from leaving a four-street area in the Sanchaung area of the city. Of this, at least 40 were arrested and taken away overnight. Others managed to escape in the quiet hours of the night as police numbers dwindled.
Since the military seized power on the 1st of February in a coup, mass protests have been seen across the South-east Asian nation. At least 54 people have died in the protests, which are calling for an end to military rule and the release of the country’s elected government leaders.
According to chief Antonio Guterres of the United Nations (UN), many of the people trapped were women who were marching in support of International Women’s Day. The UN had appealed for their release.
According to one protester, he was able to leave early in the morning after security forces had left the area.
Similarly, police in Myanmar had yesterday raided houses in the areas looking for people who were from the outside district. According to local news and residents, at lease 20 people had been arrested in the raids.
Reports later stated that explosions were heard from the area as security forces had surrounded a group of young people in the Sanchaung neighbourhood.
Many of the protesters were taken in by local residents, others were trapped.