Four more diplomats from Myanmar’s foreign missions have announced that they will no longer work for the military regime, citing the junta’s continuing use of deadly violence against peaceful civilians protesting the military’s Feb.1 coup.
Two second secretaries from the Myanmar embassy in Paris, France said on March 18 that they have joined the civil disobedience movement (CDM) and will no longer work for the junta. Another two diplomats from the Myanmar embassies in Tokyo, Japan and Rome, Italy also announced that they would join the CDM, starting from March 19.
Daw Phe Grace Mee and Daw Wutt Yee Phyo Chit, who work at the Myanmar embassy in Paris, said that they had decided to take part in the CDM as they are deeply saddened and disturbed by the overthrowing of the democratically- elected civilian government and the use of lethal force against peaceful anti-coup protesters.
As of Thursday, more than 230 civilians have been killed by the security forces during their brutal crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrations.
Diplomats have urged the military regime to respect the result of Nov.8 election and to return power to the people.
Myanmar State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi led the National League for Democracy (NLD) party to a landslide win in the Nov.8 election. The military launched their coup just a few hours before the new NLD-dominated Parliament was set to convene in Naypyitaw, Myanmar’s capital, claiming that the election had been marred by fraud.
The diplomats who have joined the CDM said that they are practicing their own right of peaceful expression and are standing together with the people of Myanmar. They are refusing to resign from their positions at embassies around the world.
Thousands of civil servants have been participating in the CDM, despite the threat of arrest from the military regime. Over two dozen diplomats based at Myanmar’s foreign missions are now refusing to work for the junta, including staff from the embassies in the US, UK, Japan and Switzerland.
Some of the diplomats from the Myanmar embassy in Tokyo who have joined the CDM said that the junta had notified them in mid-March that they had been dismissed from their jobs.
In late February, U Kyaw Moe Tun, Myanmar’s envoy to the United Nations (UN) broke ranks with the regime during a speech to the UN General Assembly, saying that he represented the ousted NLD government and appealing to the world for help to restore democracy in Myanmar.
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