Mourners demand justice as shot street artist buried in Chile

Issued on: 08/02/2021 - 

Mourners at the funeral of juggler Francisco Martinez, who was shot by police, call for justice 

MARTIN BERNETTI AFP

Santiago (AFP)

Around 100 mourners demanded justice on Monday at the funeral of a street artist killed by Chilean police during a search.

Juggler Francisco Martinez, who was 27, was fatally shot by an officer after refusing to cooperate with a police identity check in the south of the country.

He was buried in the capital Santiago at a ceremony attended by family members, friends and other street artists who played music and chanted "justice for Francisco" as well as slogans against the police and the government of President Sebastian Pinera.

The funeral turned violent as mourners attacked press teams covering the event, forcing them to flee under a hail of blows and rocks, pictures published by local media showed.

Martinez died in Panguipulli on Friday, some 530 miles (850 kilometers) south of Santiago.

Martinez refused to co-operate with officers checking identity cards while he was juggling with swords on a busy street.

The check resulted in a dispute that ended with one of the agents firing at the street artist, according to a video widely circulated by local channels and on social media.

The fatal shooting sparked indignation across the country and violent protests in Panguipulli, where demonstrators torched a public building.

Chile's security forces were already under fire for the violent reaction to months of protests against social injustice that exploded in October 2019 and resulted in accusations of human rights abuses.

© 2021 AFP

Sudan announces new cabinet with

 ex-rebels as ministers

Issued on: 08/02/2021 

Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok speaks during a press conference in Khartoum on Monday, when he announced a new cabinet bringing in ex-rebel chiefs as ministers ASHRAF SHAZLY AFP

Khartoum (AFP)

Sudan's Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok announced Monday a new cabinet bringing in seven ex-rebel chiefs as ministers, following a peace deal in October aimed to end decades of war.

Veteran rebel leader and economist Gibril Ibrahim, of the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) -- which played a major role in the Darfur conflict -- was appointed as Sudan's new finance minister.

"We have reached consensus on over 25 ministries," Hamdok said, during a press conference in Khartoum.

"This lineup aims to preserve this country from collapse... we know there will be challenges but we are certain that we will move forward."

Hamdok dissolved the previous cabinet on Sunday to make way for a more inclusive lineup in government.

Two ministers were selected from the military, with the remaining coming from the Forces for Freedom and Change group, which plays a key role in Sudanese politics.

The group was the driving force behind the anti-government protests that led to the April 2019 ouster of strongman Omar al-Bashir.

Hamdok named as foreign minister Mariam al-Sadiq al-Mahdi, daughter of Sudan's last democratically elected prime minister, Sadiq al-Mahdi, who died aged 84 in November from a coronavirus infection.

He was toppled by Bashir in a 1989 Islamist-backed military coup.

- Economic challenges -

Last week, Sudan appointed three ex-rebels to the ruling sovereign council, the civilian-majority ruling body led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, which was installed months after Bashir's ouster.

It follows the peace deal last year between the transitional government and the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF), a coalition of five rebel groups and four political movements, including the troubled western region of Darfur.

Hamdok said he is still pushing for talks with two remaining holdout groups who did not sign the deal.

Fighting in Darfur since 2003 left at least 300,000 people dead and 2.5 million displaced, according to the UN.

Hamdok said his government will continue with completing other pillars of the peace agreement, including establishing a transitional parliament by February 25.

Despite the October peace deal, violence continues in Darfur, a vast and impoverished region awash with weapons where bitter rivalries over land and water remain.

Hamdok said the new government will focus on fixing the ailing economy.

Sudan's economy was decimated under Bashir by decades of US sanctions, mismanagement and civil war, as well as the independence of oil-rich South Sudan in 2011.

Galloping inflation, chronic hard currency shortages, and a flourishing black market remain pressing challenges, with protests in recent weeks at the worsening economy.

Ibrahim, the new finance minister, taught as an economist at universities in Khartoum and Saudi Arabia, before he took over leadership of the JEM rebels when his brother Khalil was killed in an 2011 airstrike.

The government will also have to tackle stormy relations with neighbouring Addis Ababa, amid both border tensions and long-running negotiations -- along with Egypt -- over the controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile.

Facebook ramps up effort to curb vaccine hoaxes

Issued on: 08/02/2021

Facebook announced fresh moves to curb the spread of coronavirus misinformation in coordination with global health authorities Olivier DOULIERY AFP/File

San Francisco (AFP)

Facebook on Monday said it is ramping up efforts to stem the spread of misinformation about Covid-19 vaccines, spread facts, and figure out who might be wary of getting the jab.

The move includes banning groups which repeatedly spread misinformation and debunked claims about the virus and vaccines.

The leading social network has been highlighting health advice from reliable agencies and removing Covid-19 misinformation for months and on Monday expanded that initiative.

A list of debunked claims about the virus of vaccines not welcomed at Facebook was updated with the help of the Worth Health Organization.

Groups or accounts that share such misinformation may be removed completely from the social network, Facebook warned. Debunked information about vaccines or the pandemic is already banned in ads at the social network.

People in charge of groups at the social network were told to require posts of members prone to spreading bogus information to be approved before being shared.

At Facebook-owned Instagram, accounts of people discouraging Covid-19 vaccinations will be harder to find using automated search tools, according to the social network.

Facebook said that it has gotten more than 50 million responses to a Covid-19 survey it launched last year in a collaboration with two US universities.

It was designed to gather insights from people about Covid-19 symptoms, mask wearing, and access to care.

"The survey program is one of the largest ever conducted and has helped health researchers better monitor and forecast the spread of Covid-19," Facebook said.

"The survey data will provide a better understanding of trends in vaccine intent across sociodemographics, race, geography and more."

Survey findings about vaccine attitudes will be shared globally, according to the social network.

US Sanctions hurt Venezuela economy, 

US government study says

Issued on: 08/02/2021 -

A man uses a mobile phone in front of a sign displaying prices in US dollars in December 2020 outside a clothing store in Venezuela's capital Caracas, which has been ravaged by hyperinflation and other economic problems Federico PARRA AFP/File

Washington (AFP)

US sanctions have likely contributed to Venezuela's economic deterioration and have caused obstacles for humanitarian workers, a study by a US government watchdog said Monday.

The assessment by the Government Accountability Office, requested by Democratic lawmakers, comes as President Joe Biden looks set to fine-tune Venezuela policy but largely preserve his predecessor's unsuccessful goal of toppling leftist leader Nicolas Maduro.

"The US sanctions likely contributed to the decline of the Venezuelan economy, mainly by further limiting its revenue from crude oil exports," the report said.

It pointed to the sanctions Donald imposed by Donald Trump's administration on state oil firm PDVSA, saying that buyers of Venezuela's key export shied away or were able to negotiate lower prices.

But the report did not quantify a figure and noted that there were plenty of other factors behind Venezuela's economic collapse, including mismanagement by the government.

It did not directly say if sanctions hurt ordinary Venezuelans rather than the government and noted that the United States has emphasized that it is not restricting humanitarian goods.

"However, despite US agency efforts to mitigate the negative humanitarian consequences of sanctions, humanitarian organizations assisting Venezuelans are still experiencing some challenges delivering assistance, including delays in processing financial transactions and transfers," it said.

The report recommended that the Treasury Department do more to track complaints from humanitarian workers to address recurrent problems.

Representative Andy Levin, one of the lawmakers who requested the report, said it "makes clear that sanctions imposed by the United States made a dire situation worse."

"With this new administration, we have an opportunity to pursue foreign policy guided by our values," he said.

"Let us take the lessons of this report to heart and use them to craft a more thoughtful, humane and effective approach moving forward."

The Biden administration plans one key shift by shielding Venezuelans in the United States from deportation -- a step refused by the anti-immigration Trump despite his tough talk against Maduro.

But State Department spokesman Ned Price made clear that the new administration does not plan dialogue anytime soon with Maduro, who has voiced hope of improving ties with Biden.

The United States and most Western and Latin American nations declared Maduro to be illegitimate two years ago after an election that drew wide reports of irregularities.

More than five million Venezuelans have fled the crumbling economy but Maduro remains in power with support from the military, Russia, China and Cuba.

© 2021 AFP

Lawrence of Arabia's legendary Brough motorcycles reborn in French revival

Issued on: 08/02/2021 - 

Vintage items are displayed, on January 28, 2021 at the Brough

 Superior Motorcycles factory in Saint-Jean, southwestern France. 

AFP - LIONEL BONAVENTURE

Text by: WEB NEWS

Brough motorcycles, favourites of the writer, spy and gentleman adventurer T.E. Lawrence, are making a comeback — not in their former home in England, but deep in the southwest of France.

Production of Brough bikes, of which the historic figure known as "Lawrence of Arabia" owned seven, ended in 1940 when the factory in Nottingham was requisitioned for Britain's war effort.

Manufacture didn't resume after the war, but the bike's memory was kept alive over the decades by diehard — and flush — fans, with prices for the bikes sometimes reaching $600,000 at auction.

In the meantime the motorcycle world embarked on a nostalgic love affair with famed old British brands, with Royal Enfield, now Indian-owned, and Triumph leading the neo-vintage way.

'The most beautiful'

Brough fans had to wait much longer for a revival, which began to take shape only in 2013 when Frenchman Thierry Henriette, a former Toulouse motorbike salesman, met with Briton Mark Upham, who had bought the Brough Superior trademark five years earlier.

Within three months Henriette came up with a prototype for a new Brough that won cheers when he presented it at the Milan bike show.

Henriette started production, first under licence, before taking over the brand in 2018.

"I always thought Brough was the most beautiful motorbike brand," Henriette told AFP.

Production is based near Toulouse in southwest France, but Henriette wanted continuity with the brand's English tradition.

It was an important moment when members of the Brough Superior Club made the trip to France on their 1930s bikes to give the venture their blessing.

'The English will forgive you'

"What we're doing is heritage theft," acknowledged Albert Castaigne, Brough Superior's CEO. "But if you do it well, the English will forgive you."

The memory of T.E. Lawrence, bike lover, supporter of an Arab rebellion during World War I and author of the "Seven Pillars of Wisdom", is a big factor for the longevity of the Brough legend.

Lawrence kept a regular correspondence with Brough's founder George Brough, got a say in the bikes' design, and acquired seven, four of which were S.S. 100s, the model that still gets the hearts of aficionados racing.

He died in the Dorset countryside when he crashed his sixth Brough before he could take delivery of the seventh, a scene memorably captured in David Lean's 1962 epic film starring Peter O'Toole as Lawrence.

The ultra-modern factory in Saint-Jean will deliver around 100 Brough bikes this year, at a price tag of 60,000 to 100,000 euros ($72,000-$120,000), with customisation costing extra.

Brough offers three neo-retro models: a contemporary version of Lawrence's S.S. 100, a scrambler and an art-deco effort to mark the brand's centenary.

"We have customers in a dozen countries in Europe, in Russia, Australia, Mexico and soon in the United States," Henriette said. 

A new version of an old dream Lionel BONAVENTURE AFP

'Worth the money'

One of them is Patrick Blandinet, a businessman in his 60s based in the French Caribbean department of Guadeloupe, who came over to see the factory, customise his bike and "indulge myself", he said.

"I asked for a gold-leafed logo on the tank," said Blandinet, calling his brand-new bike "a gem" and "worth the money".

The availability of qualified sub-contractors in the Toulouse region, thanks to the Airbus production there, is "indispensable" for Brough, which requires high-value materials including titanium, carbon fibre and speciality steel, Castaigne said.

"You should be able to place every component of the bike on a table and consider them to be both technically accomplished and beautiful," Henriette said.

Brough has also started a collaboration with Aston Martin of James Bond fame, whose first motorcycle, called the AMB01, will be made by Brough.

Ten units of the futuristic-looking Aston Martin bikes are already at the assembly stage.

(AFP)

RACISM IS THE MASK OF COLONIALISM

French police played role in death of black man in custody: report


Issued on: 08/02/2021 - 

Traore has become one of the faces of a growing campaign to end what activists say is police brutality in France Bertrand GUAY AFP

Paris (AFP)

An investigation into the death of a young black man in French police custody found that the tactics used to overpower him played a hand in his death from heatstroke, according to a report seen by AFP on Monday.

The report, from four Belgian doctors commissioned by investigating magistrates, said the way officers pinned Adama Traore to the floor had likely contributed to his death during a heatwave.

Traore, dubbed the "French George Floyd" after the black American killed by US police in 2020, has become one of the faces of a growing campaign to end police brutality in France.


He died on July 19, 2016, at the age of 24 after fleeing officers who wanted to check his ID in Beaumont-sur-Oise north of Paris. After a chase he was traced to an apartment where three officers jumped on him to handcuff him.

One of the officers later said he had complained that he could not breathe -- an admission that later drew comparisons with Floyd's May 2020 death in a chokehold in the US city of Minneapolis.

Traore was taken unconscious to a police station and left handcuffed on the floor in the recovery position, where the emergency services later pronounced him dead two hours after his arrest.

- Conflicting medical reports -

Although an initial autopsy found he died from asphyxiation, experts overruled that finding in May 2020, saying an underlying heart condition and genetic illness caused his death.

Believing his death to be the object of a cover-up, Traore's family demanded another opinion.

The Belgian doctors said they believed he had "very likely suffered a heatstroke."

But "the role in the lethal process of a period of suffocation due to physical constraint cannot be ruled out," they said.

They added that the "momentary containment manoeuvres" and "to a lesser extent underlying conditions" likely hastened the deterioration of his condition.

The Traore family's lawyer Yassine Bouzrou was quoted by France Info radio as expressing satisfaction over the finding.

"We know today that among the causes of death are the violence of his arrest and being tackled face down, which clearly had an important role in the death of Adama Traore," he said.

The report comes a week after the French government kicked off weeks of public consultations on ways of increasing public confidence in the police following repeated scandals over racism and brutality.

In November, a video of Paris police beating and abusing a black music producer inside his studio shocked the country. The police were also recently filmed using violence to tear down a migrant camp in central Paris.

© 2021 AFP

LAWNORDER A COVER FOR LARCENY

Spain's rightwing in dock as slush fund trial opens


Issued on: 08/02/2021 

Former Popular Party treasurer Luis Barcenas says the slush fund was used to pay bonuses to party leaders Juan Carlos Hidalgo POOL/AFP

Madrid (AFP)

The trial of a key figure in an illegal funding scandal involving Spain's rightwing Popular Party opened Monday with the defendant pledging a full confession directly implicating the former premier.

The case centres on a system of parallel bookkeeping used by the PP to manage undeclared funds that was run by Luis Barcenas, the main suspect, who served as the party treasurer between 1990 and 2009.

Two former PP prime ministers will testify at the high-profile trial which opened on Monday morning at the National Court in Madrid and will run until May.

One is Mariano Rajoy, who served as premier between 2011-2018 and has always denied any knowledge of the system, although Barcenas has testified he was "perfectly aware" of it.

José María Aznar, who was Spain's prime minister between 1996-2004, will also testify alongside various other former top party officials.

Just days before the trial opened, Barcenas sent a letter to the prosecutors professing his "willingness to collaborate with the justice system" in a dramatic U-turn that has added further drama to a case that has gripped the nation.

In the letter, he said "Mariano Rajoy was perfectly aware of all these activities to the point that in 2009 we had a meeting in his office in which I showed him the slush fund accounting papers".

Rajoy, who at the time was leader of the opposition, then destroyed them "in a paper shredder without knowing I'd kept a copy", Barcenas wrote.

The alleged slush fund, which was fed by corporate cash donations, operated between 1990 to 2008 and was used to pay bonuses to party leaders, including Rajoy, as well as for the renovation of the party's Madrid headquarters, Barcenas has said.

- Deal breaker -

Details of the accounts emerged in the so-called "Barcenas papers" which were first published by El Pais newspaper in 2013.

In his letter, which was published on Thursday, Barcenas said he was now willing to talk after the PP failed to honour a deal in which he would keep silent as long as they ensured his wife did not go to jail.

Barcenas himself is serving a 29-year sentence over the so-called Gurtel case which centred on a vast system of bribes given to former PP officials in exchange for juicy public contracts between 1999 and 2005.

His wife was also convicted for her role in the case and began serving a 12-year sentence in December.

The trial comes at a difficult time for the main opposition Popular Party which is currently campaigning ahead of Sunday's regional election in Catalonia as polls suggest the faction is facing a dismal result.

Earlier on Monday, PP leader Pablo Casado -- who took over in 2018 after Rajoy was forced out as premier and party head -- said he could not take responsibility for events that happened before his tenure.

That PP "no longer exists" he told Onda Cero radio.

© 2021 AFP

Protests swell in Myanmar one week after military coup

Myanmar coup protests grow – in pictures Police stand guard by their vehicles as protesters rally against the military coup in Naypyidaw, Myanmar. Photograph: Reuters

Huge crowds of protesters have marched in towns and cities across Myanmar in the largest show of popular defiance so far following the military coup a week ago

Myanmar: military imposes curfew and bans crowds of more than five people | Myanmar | The Guardian

Myanmar coup leaders threaten "action" to quell mounting protests

FEBRUARY 8, 2021 / 10:01 AM / AFP

Yangon — Martial law was declared in parts of Myanmar's second largest city Mandalay Monday, after hundreds of thousands rallied across the country against the coup and the military issued a stern warning against further protests. The orders cover seven townships in Mandalay, banning people from protesting or gathering in groups of more than five, and a curfew will run from 8 pm until 4 am, the general administration department said in a statement.

A similar declaration has been made in a township in Ayeyarwaddy further south and announcements concerning other localities are expected to trickle out tonight.

"This order is applied until further notice," a Mandalay township statement said.

"Some people... are behaving in a worrying way that can harm the safety of public and law enforcement. Such behaviors can affect stability, safety of people, law enforcement, and peaceful existence of villages and could create riots, that's why this order bans gathering, speaking in public, protest by using vehicles, rallies," the statement said.
"Action must be taken"

The junta has so far refrained from using deadly force against the demonstrations sweeping most of the country, but with pressure building riot police fired water cannon in an attempt to disperse thousands gathered in Naypyidaw, and there were threats of greater force.


The military last week detained elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and dozens of other members of her National League for Democracy party, ending a decade of partial civilian rule and triggering international condemnation.

In the face of an increasingly bold wave of defiance, state broadcaster MRTV warned that opposition to the junta was unlawful and signaled a potential crackdown.


"Action must be taken according to the law with effective steps against offenses which disturb, prevent and destroy the state's stability, public safety and the rule of law," said a statement read by an announcer on the channel.

Three-finger defiance

Tens of thousands of people overcame a nationwide internet blockade to rally over the weekend in the first major outpourings of opposition to the coup.

The movement built on Monday, with thousands of protesters holding three fingers into the sky — a defiant gesture borrowed from The Hunger Games movie series — gathering across the country and the start of a nationwide strike. In Yangon, the nation's commercial capital, crowds spilled onto the city's main roads, immobilizing traffic and dwarfing the previous day's rally.Protesters flash the three-fingered salute, a protest gesture borrowed from the Hunger Games movies, as they march against the military rule of their country in Mandalay, Myanmar, February 8, 2021.AP

"Down with military dictatorship" and "release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and arrested people," protesters chanted, flashing the three-finger salute as car horns were honked in support.

Calls for a nationwide strike gathered momentum over the weekend, with textile workers, civil servants and railway employees walking out of work in the commercial hub.

"This is a work day, but we aren't going to work even if our salary will be cut," one protester, 28-year-old garment factory worker Hnin Thazin, told AFP.

Construction worker Chit Min, 18, joined the Yangon rally, saying his loyalty to Suu Kyi outweighed concerns about his financial situation.


"I am jobless now for a week because of the military coup, and I am worried for my survival," he told AFP.

Similarly large crowds marched in Mandalay, the country's second-largest city, many clutching photos of Suu Kyi and waving the red flags of her party.

People hold up images of Myanmar's de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi at a protest outside Maynmar's embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, February 1, 2021.LAUREN DECICCA/GETTY

Police attempted to disperse thousands of people gathered on a highway in Naypyidaw, where the deposed leader is believed to be detained. Water cannon were fired into the crowd, injuring at least two demonstrators, according to a photographer on the scene.

Police reportedly put a sign in a roadway warning that security forces could use live ammunition if protesters got past the third of three lines of officers in the city Naypyitaw.

Huge rallies were reported across much of the country, from Muse on the Chinese border to the southern cities of Dawei and Hpa-an. Protesters started to disperse in the early evening.

International pressure post-coup

Myanmar's generals detained Suu Kyi, 75, and other top NLD leaders in pre-dawn raids last Monday, justifying the coup by claiming fraud in last November's elections, which the party won in a landslide.

The junta proclaimed a one-year state of emergency, promising to hold fresh elections after that without offering any precise timeframe.

U.S. President Joe Biden has led global calls for the generals to relinquish power.

Pope Francis on Monday called for the prompt release of imprisoned political leaders.

"The path to democracy undertaken in recent years was brusquely interrupted by last week's coup d'etat," he told a gathering of diplomats. "This has led to the imprisonment of different political leaders, who I hope will be promptly released as a sign of encouragement for a sincere dialogue."

South East Asian lawmakers have also urged Myanmar's military to respect the people's rights to protest.

"As peaceful demonstrations grow, the risk of violence is real. We all know what the Myanmar army is capable of: mass atrocities, killing of civilians, enforced disappearances, torture, and arbitrary arrests, among others," Tom Villarin from ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights said.

First published on February 8, 2021 

© 2021 AFP. All Rights Reserved. 

  

Myanmar junta leader promises free election as anti-coup protests swell

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing says an election will be held and power handed to winning party, in a rare national address, as anti-coup protesters hit streets nationwide.

A protester holds a placard with an image of Myanmar's military leader Min Aung Hlaing and Justice For Myanmar as fellow protesters march around Mandalay, Myanmar on February 8, 2021. (AP)

VIDEOS AT THE END

Myanmar's junta leader has called on the public to prioritise facts and not feelings, and said an election would be held and power handed to the winning party, in a rare national address, as anti-coup protests took place nationwide on the third day in a row.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, in his first address since a coup a week ago, said on Monday the junta was different to previous military governments and that the campaigning in a vote last November had not been fair.

Suitable ministers were selected, he said, adding foreign policy would remain unchanged and countries would be encouraged to invest in Myanmar.

He reiterated there were irregularities in last year's election that were ignored and said no organisation was above the law. He made no mention of ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

READ MORE: Mass protests against army coup hit Myanmar for second day

Martial law imposed

Martial law was declared in parts of Myanmar's second largest city Mandalay on Monday, after hundreds of thousands rallied across the country against the coup and the military issued a stern warning against further protests.

The orders cover seven townships in Mandalay, banning people from protesting or gathering in groups of more than five, and a curfew will run from 8 pm until 4 am (local time), the general administration department said in a statement.

A similar declaration has been made in a township in Ayeyarwaddy further south and announcements concerning other localities are expected to trickle out tonight.

"This order is applied until further notice," one Mandalay township statement said.

"Some people ... are behaving in a worrying way that can harm the safety of public and law enforcement. Such behaviours can affect stability, the safety of people, law enforcement, and peaceful existence of villages and could create riots, that's why this order bans gathering, speaking in public, protest by using vehicles, rallies," the statement said.

READ MORE: Myanmar army blocks internet as thousands protest against coup

Opposition to junta called illegal

The junta has so far refrained from using deadly force against the demonstrations sweeping most of the country, but with pressure building riot police fired water cannon in an attempt to disperse thousands gathered in Naypyidaw.

The military last week detained Suu Kyi and dozens of other members of her National League for Democracy party, ending a decade of partial civilian rule and triggering international condemnation.

In the face of an increasingly bold wave of defiance, state broadcaster MRTV warned that opposition to the junta was unlawful and signalled a potential crackdown.

READ MORE: Myanmar military junta plans probe of last year's election won by Suu Kyi

Anti-coup protests swell

Police fired a water cannon at hundreds of protesters in Myanmar's capital who are demanding the military hand power back to elected officials, as demonstrations against last week’s coup intensified and spread to more parts of the country.

The demonstrations in Naypyitaw, ongoing for several days, are especially significant since the city, whose population includes many civil servants and their families, has no tradition of protest and has a heavy military presence.

A protest also swelled at a major downtown intersection in the country’s largest city, Yangon, with people chanting slogans, raising a three-finger salute that is a symbol of resistance and carrying placards saying, "Reject the military coup" and "Justice for Myanmar."

"Police used water cannons to clear the (road)," Naypyidaw resident Kyaw Kyaw, who had joined the protest, told AFP news agency.

A photographer also witnessed the incident, the first reported use of water cannons against protesters since rallies kicked off three days ago.

"We are joining the protest to end the military dictatorship," Kyaw Kyaw said.

Rallies over the weekend were largely peaceful, but local media reported that in the southeastern city of Myawaddy, police fired warning shots in the air to disperse a group of protesters.

'Reject Military Coup'

Thousands of anti-coup protesters marched in Myanmar's biggest city of Yangon on the third day of street demonstrations.

A group of saffron-robed monks marched in the vanguard of the protest with workers and students. They flew multicoloured Buddhist flags alongside red banners in the colour of Suu Kyi's NLD, witnesses said.

"Release Our Leaders, Respect Our Votes, Reject Military Coup," said one sign.

Many protesters wore black.

In Myanmar's second largest city, Mandalay, more than a thousand had also gathered by mid morning.

And hundreds were seen turning out in the capital of Naypyidaw, riding around on motorbikes and honking car horns, while major rallies were also reported in other towns.

Over the weekend tens of thousands of people massed on the streets across Myanmar in the biggest protests since the coup.

READ MORE: Myanmar military junta plans probe of last year's election won by Suu Kyi


Military coup

Myanmar's generals have justified the coup by claiming fraud in last November's elections, which the NLD won in a landslide.

The junta has proclaimed a one-year state of emergency, and promised to then hold fresh elections, without offering any precise timeframe.

The coup has triggered widespread international condemnation, although neighbouring China has declined to criticise the generals.

US President Joe Biden has been leading the calls for the generals to relinquish power.

Pope Francis on Sunday also expressed "solidarity with the people of Myanmar," urging the army to work towards "democratic coexistence."

Britain and the European Union requested on Monday that the United Nations Human Rights Council hold a special session in response to the ongoing political crisis.

The call comes came a week after Myanmar's generals conducted a coup in the country.

"The United Kingdom would like to inform all colleagues that together with the European Union, we have submitted a request for a special session on the human rights implications of the crisis in Myanmar," Julian Braithwaite, Britain's ambassador in Geneva, told a council organisational meeting.

READ MORE: UN Security Council expresses 'deep concern' after