Myanmar’s coup junta rejects G7’s ‘skewed’ condemnation

Bangkok, Jun 16 (EFE).- Myanmar’s military junta rejected the condemnation issued by G7 countries against the Feb. 1 coup, calling it “biased” and saying it “is based on fabricated information,” official press reported Wednesday.

The G7 political leaders, meeting in London, “strongly condemned” Sunday the Myanmar army power grab and the subsequent violence by security forces against civilians, calling for the “immediate release” of all detainees, including ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

The Myanmar Ministry of Foreign Affairs, for its part said “the aforementioned internal political events in Myanmar are based on” fabricated and biased information from unverified sources,” state newspaper The Global New Light of Myanmar reported.

The military junta said it is “a mistake” to speak of a military coup, when, according to their point of view, the army “assumed the responsibilities of the state” through a local mechanism found in the 2008 Constitution, which they themselves enacted.

“The army and the personnel in charge of upholding the law strictly fulfill their functions within the framework of the laws and regulations in force. On occasions when the use of force is necessary, the security forces exercise the minimum and maximum use of moderation to guarantee public safety,” they said.

After more than four months since the uprising that ended Myanmar’s young democracy, the Army has not managed to take control of the entire country despite the violent repression with the opposition to the military command.

Security forces have fired to kill peaceful protesters demanding the restoration of democracy and the release of their elected leaders.

At least 864 people have lost their lives as a result of the violence unleashed by the security forces, according to figures from the Association for the Assistance of Political Prisoners.

Some protesters have decided to take up arms against the army, tired of the little progress made by the peaceful protests; while the confrontations between the military and armed rebel groups have opened or escalated throughout the country.

The Myanmar Army justifies the coup on an alleged electoral fraud in November’s elections, in which the party led by Suu Kyi won a landslide victory, as it did in 2015, and which were considered legitimate by international observers. EFE

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