Pro-democracy youth activists in Myanmar are smearing the streets with red paint in Yangon (AKA Rangoon) and all throughout Myanmar in order to protest the Myanmar military’s February 1st coup. The death toll from the daily clashes between the protestors and the military in the wake of the coup has now risen to at least 570.
Young people in Yangon’s Tamwe Township launched a “Blood Strike” on Tuesday, spraying red paint, symbolizing blood, in public places to honor fallen anti-coup protesters and express their continued defiance of the military junta. (Photo: CJ)
— The Irrawaddy (Eng) (@IrrawaddyNews) April 6, 2021
#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar pic.twitter.com/kUaUT22y4w
The young activists spray-painted messages on building, pavements and roads as part of the “bleeding dye strike”. This strike allowed the protestors to express their opposition to the military rule, without risking detention or getting hurt by the authorities.
Protest against Military Coup under the raindrops in #Tarmwe today. There must be a win who dare to fight despite brutal Crackdowns and suppression by Junta.
— Save Myanmar (@SaveMyanmar990) April 6, 2021
STOP INTERNET SHUTDOWN#Apr6Coup#WhatsHappeningInMyanmar pic.twitter.com/18I0xVQa59
In the images circulating on the internet, activists were also shown giving a “three finger salute”, a style of salute which has been popularized by the extremely famous Hunger Games trilogy of books and movies. The Hunger Games is a young adult story about struggling against authoritarian control.
Myanmar red colour protest, sign of non blood clotting.(သွေးမတိတ်၊ဆေးသပိတ်) “အရေးတော်ပုံအောင်ရမည်”
— Chan Myae Paing (@ChanChan12a) April 6, 2021
See more below👇👇👇https://t.co/SSkHqncAH2#WhatsHappeninglnMyanmar #Apr6coup @freya_cole @clarissaward @DrSasa22222 @USEmbassyBurma @POTUS pic.twitter.com/M2H4DqS7GO
Outside of Yangon, pro-democracy demonstrations were held in areas like Dawei, Hpa-an, Kachin, Karen and Mandalay. Clashes and protests have become a daily occurrence in Myanmar in the aftermath of the February 1 coup.
Since the military coup, approximately 2,700 people have been detained by authorities. Around 570 people have died, including almost 50 children.
Myanmar has a long history of military rule, being under military control from its independence in 1962 to 2011. Now, the military has once again established its rule over Myanmar, deposing the civilian government led by Nobel Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup and then later detaining her, only months after Suu Kyi’s political party handily beat the Military-backed political alliance.