Easter eggs become symbol of defiance against Myanmar coup

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Louise Watt
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Protesters holding eggs with messages to coincide with Easter Sunday during a demonstration against the military coup in Taunggyi in Myanmar's Shan state.
Protesters holding eggs with messages to coincide with Easter Sunday during a demonstration against the military coup in Taunggyi in Myanmar's Shan state.

Eggs became the latest symbol of protest against Myanmar’s military coup on Easter Sunday when opponents took to the streets bearing eggs painted with messages of defiance.

Demonstrators cradled boiled eggs displaying Aung San Suu Kyi’s image and “Get out MAH,” in a reference to junta leader Min Aung Hlaing.

Others were decorated with the three-fingered salute, a symbol of resistance.

In the South-East Asian country’s biggest city of Yangon, protesters marched through streets chanting protest songs and handing out eggs with the slogan “Spring Revolution”, a local name for the massive outpouring of opposition to the Feb. 1 coup.

“Easter is all about the future and the people of Myanmar have a great future in a federal democracy,” said Dr Sasa, the international envoy for Suu Kyi's ousted civilian government.

Sasa is a member of the Christian minority in the predominantly Buddhist country.

There has been no let-up in the opposition to the two-month-old seizure of power by the military, even as authorities have escalated their use of force against protesters.

A total of 557 people have been killed in coup-related violence since Feb. 1 as of Saturday, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a monitoring group. It said Sunday that 2,658 people were currently detained or had been sentenced.

Authorities on Friday and Saturday announced that they have issued arrest warrants for nearly 40 celebrities known for opposing military rule, including social media influencers, singers and models. Most are in hiding.

Opponents of the coup have called on foreign companies operating in the country to sever ties to the junta in response to its bloody crackdown.

On Sunday, French oil and gas group Total said it will not stop producing gas in Myanmar.

"Can a company like Total decide to cut off the electricity supply to millions of people -- and in so doing, disrupt the operation of hospitals, businesses?" chief executive Patrick Pouyanne told France’s Journal du Dimanche.

While he said he was “outraged by the repression” in Myanmar, he said they wouldn’t "act to the detriment of our local employees and the Burmese population who are already suffering so much."

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