BURMA

Police in Myeik shoot protesters from stolen ambulances during killing spree

The ambulances belong to the local fire department and police detained four firefighters who were attempting to rescue injured people

Myanmar Now
Published on Mar 26, 2021

Soldiers detain two protesters with rope in Myeik on March 26 (Supplied)

Police stole two ambulances during a killing spree in Myeik on Friday and drove through the southeastern coastal town shooting people, witnesses told Myanmar Now.

“There were two in the front and two armed policemen in uniform,” said one witness. “They were just shooting people in the street.” At least four people died and another 10 were injured in the attack, while at least 35 were detained.

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The attack began after anti-coup protesters gathered in the town. The four who died were 32-year-old Khin Khin Soe, 19-year-old Min Myat Paing, and Myo Aung and Than Chaung, who were in their 30s.

Khin Khin Soe, a resident of Aung Mingalar ward, was shot in the chest while Min Myat Paing, who lived in the town’s Sanchaung ward, was shot in the back. Than Chaung, who is also known as Arkar Oo, was shot in the head.

Residents recovered the bodies of Min Myat Paing and Khin Khin Soe but the other two bodies were taken by soldiers.

The police stole the ambulances from firefighters who were driving them to rescue injured people. They arrested four of the firefighters, a local resident who is close to the fire department told Myanmar Now.

“The firemen took the ambulances to go and carry injured protestors. The soldiers and police then arrested the firemen and used their ambulances,” the resident said.

The chief of a platoon in the Myeik fire department was among those who were arrested, he said, adding that he himself was now on the run in fear of arrest.

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Soldiers also rode around the city on motorbikes shooting people, a protester said.

A photo that circulated on social media showed soldiers walking behind two young protesters who had their hands bound behind their backs. One of the soldiers held a length of rope that was lashed to the detainees, in what appeared to be an attempt to degrade and humiliate them.

Video footage showed police kicking people and beating them with batons as they were loaded into a prison truck. Another video showed soldiers throwing what appeared to be a dead body into the back of a military truck.