“Prisoners who seem to be drunk have set fire to private houses” … Myanmar’Fear Night’ [영상]

While protests against the coup continue in Myanmar, the military’s’fear politics’ to suppress it is also in full swing. Criminal law is amended to detain and punish citizens who oppose the military, and the Internet is blocked every night.

Various ugly rumors are also circulating. The military is mobilizing even prisoners who have recently pardoned on a large scale to create an atmosphere of fear. On social media, claims are spreading that released prisoners appear in private houses every night and attempt arson, threatening residents. Posts with the phrase “Our nights are more dangerous than daytime” have been posted one after another. Some analyzes say that “after the military deliberately raises anxiety, social stability is to justify the government with the slogan.”

Men caught by a civil patrol in Hmurbi, Yangon City, Myanmar at the dawn of the 14th. It was shared in real time through Facebook live broadcast. Hmerby’s civic patrol squad sued him when a non-neighborhood man appeared during the curfew, and searched for drugs, weapons, and handcuffs.[페이스북 라이브 방송 갈무리=미얀마 제보자 제공]

The atmosphere conveyed by the local residents and Koreans whom the JoongAng Ilbo contacted was not very different. They said that they were mobilizing self-help measures, such as organizing night patrols in each village in a noble atmosphere.

Mr. A, a local resident in Ranmader, Yangon, the largest city in Myanmar, said, “As the arson incident continued, patrols were set up in each village.” From the night of the 12th, when 20,000 prisoners were pardoned, there were simultaneous attempts at arson.

On the 13th at 9:30 pm, Lanmother Hledan Street, Yangon City. A police car arrived while the civil patrol team found and pursued a strange man. When this man says,’I came to protect the neighborhood,’ the residents booed. [A씨 제공]

He provided a related video, saying, “On the night of the 13th, a resident patrol team caught a suspicious man, and when he tried to pursue this man, the police immediately took him.” He said, “When I asked who sent it, I was gibberish and shut my mouth, and in two minutes a police car came and picked him up.”

Mr. A said a similar thing happened in the neighborhood next door at the same time. Mr. A said, “A strange man was caught trying to fire at the civil patrols,” he said. “It looked like he was in a state of being drunk, but he found a certificate saying he was released on the 12th,” he said. It is said that he was also taken by the police.

A release certificate from a man who tried to attack the civil patrol on Ranmader Street. At the bottom right, the date of release is written as February 12, 2021. [A씨 제공]

Another Myanmar Indian reported related photos and videos, claiming that an arson incident occurred in Taqueta-dong, Yangon city on the night of the 13th. In the video, a fire ring descends from the night sky and burns a building in a private house. Residents of Taqueta-dong found a suspect, and a Molotov cocktail was found in him.

A fire ring discovered on the night of the 13th in Taqueta-dong, Yangon, Myanmar. A fire broke out in the building where the fire ring fell. [미얀마인 작가 찬찬 제공]

On the 14th, a resident of Humebi, Yangon, revealed a man being searched and blamed by residents on a live Facebook broadcast. The video also shows the men’s drugs, knives, and handcuffs spread over the bonnet of the car. Another Myanmarian claimed that a vial with the word’poison’ was found in a suspicious man, and that he was dispensing the drug in a water tank in the village.

Park Mo, a Kyomin living in Yangon for eight years, said, “The Myanmarians are being arrested all night,” and “I know that they were caught for reasons such as posting a message calling for protests on the Internet.”

Protesters launched a civil disobedience campaign in Yangon, Myanmar on the 17th (local time). [AFP=연합뉴스]

J., a local interpreter, said, “In 1988, the military released prisoners, and the stories I hear now are similar to those of those days.” “We justified the government with the logic of stabilizing the government.” “But the citizens who know this well are trying to avoid violence as much as possible,” he added.

“We believe this is the last opportunity for democratization,” said Chan Meermeer, a Myanmar writer who lives in Korea and communicates the local situation.

Reporter Jeong Eun-hye [email protected]