The Evening Wrap: Myanmar forces kill dozens
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Myanmar forces kill dozens in deadliest day since coup |
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As Myanmar's military celebrated the annual Armed Forces Day holiday with a parade Saturday in the country's capital, soldiers and police elsewhere reportedly killed dozens of people as they suppressed protests in the deadliest bloodletting since last month's coup. A count issued by an independent researcher in Yangon who has been compiling near-real time death tolls put the total as darkness fell at 93, spread over more than two dozen cities and towns. The online news site Myanmar Now reported the death toll had reached 91. Both numbers are higher than all estimates for the previous high on March 14, which ranged in counts from 74 to 90. Figures collected by the researcher, who asked not to be named for his security, have generally tallied with the counts issued at the end of each day by the Assistance Association of Political Prisoners, which documents deaths and arrests and is widely seen as a definitive source. The killings quickly drew international condemnation, with multiple diplomatic missions to Myanmar releasing statements that mentioned the killing of civilians Saturday, including children. "This 76th Myanmar armed forces day will stay engraved as a day of terror and dishonour," the European Union's delegation to Myanmar said on Twitter. "The killing of unarmed civilians, including children, are indefensible acts." The death toll in Myanmar has been steadily rising as authorities grow more forceful with their suppression of opposition to the February 1 coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. The coup reversed years of progress toward democracy after five decades of military rule. Up through Friday, the Association of Political Prisoners had verified 328 people killed in the post-coup crackdown. Junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing did not directly refer to the protest movement when he gave his nationally televised Armed Forces Day speech before thousands of soldiers in Naypyitaw. He referred only to "terrorism which can be harmful to state tranquility and social security," and called it unacceptable. West Bengal, Assam witness over 70% turnout in first phaseThe Election Commission on Saturday said the first phase of polling in the West Bengal and Assam Assembly elections went off peacefully, with 79.79% and 72.14% turnout respectively as of 5 p.m. Voting was carried out at 21,825 polling stations in a total of 77 Assembly constituencies in the two states. About 74 electors were eligible to vote for the polls in 30 constituencies of West Bengal and 81 lakh in 47 constituencies of Assam. The EC said in a statement that the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPATs) used for the phase one polls malfunctioned less than previous polls. "Non-functioning rate during the poll is lesser than experienced in last few polls. (sic)," the EC said. The EC added that live monitoring and webcasting was carried out for over 50% of the polling stations, including critical and vulnerable polling booths. The EC said COVID-19 safety protocols like sanitising all polling stations a day before voting, thermal scanning, hand sanitisers and face masks were available at the locations. Modi meets Hasina; India, Bangladesh sign five MoUsPrime Minister Narendra Modi met his Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina today and discussed the progress achieved in areas like connectivity, energy, trade, health and developmental cooperation following which the two countries signed five MoUs covering a number of areas of bilateral cooperation. Modi, who is visiting Bangladesh on his first trip to a foreign country since the outbreak of the coronavirus, held one-on-one talks with Hasina, which was followed by a delegation-level meeting that continued for over an hour. "Relationship going from strength to strength! Prime Minister @narendramodi and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina discussed the progress achieved in areas of health, trade, connectivity, energy, developmental cooperation and many more," Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi tweeted after the talks. The two sides signed five Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) covering areas such as connectivity, commerce, information technology and sports. In a humanitarian gesture, Modi handed over a representational key of 109 ambulances to his counterpart Hasina. He also handed over a representational box to her as a symbol of India's gift of 1.2 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to Bangladesh. NIA official tortured my nephew in custody, says ex-police officerA 31-year-old man was allegedly tortured by an officer of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Jammu on Friday, his family has claimed. The federal anti-terror probe agency ordered an inquiry today. Yugraj Singh, who works for a food delivery app, was called by the NIA for questioning in a narco-terror case on Friday. It is alleged that Singh was beaten in NIA's custody and was later admitted in a government hospital in Jammu. Sewak Singh, maternal uncle of the victim and a retired police officer, claimed that his nephew was abused by the NIA officials for wearing a kirpan (sword). "He is my sister's son and is an amritdhaari (baptised). He wears a kirpan as it is part of the religious attire of the Sikhs. The NIA officer asked why he was wearing a long kirpan. When he replied that it was a religious symbol, the officer abused his mother and thrashed him. What is his crime that he has a long beard?" Singh told The Hindu. The family released a video of Singh from the hospital which showed severe injuries on his back, legs and hands. "His father is paralysed for the past four years. He is the one who takes care of his parents. We do not know why he was called for questioning. If he was involved in any crime, why was he released after being tortured?" he said. Singh alleged that they had submitted a complaint but the police were not registering an FIR. "They are saying the officer has been suspended and transferred to Nagaland. We want that a case be registered against him," Singh said. Using social media to troll judges is a concern, says Law MinisterUnion Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Saturday flagged the government's concern over "social media campaigns" conducted against individual judges for their judicial opinions and judgments. The Minister, who is also in charge of the Information Technology, Electronics and Communications portfolios, criticised "some people" who file PILs in court, campaign on social media for a particular judgment, and later troll judges when the verdict does not meet their expectations. He termed it "campaign justice". Judiciary should be free to work in accordance with the rule of law, Prasad said. Chief Justice of India Sharad A. Bobde said judges had become quite used to the PIL route being used for filing frivolous petitions. "The administration of justice is often tried to be made difficult by some vested interests. But that is something we as judges have got used to," CJI Bobde said. They were speaking in Goa at the inaugural function of the new building of the Bombay High Court. "I am a great supporter of social media. It is empowering. Social media enables people to ask questions, to criticise the Prime Minister, us and all. That is part of a healthy democracy. Therefore, we all encourage that," Prasad said. But he said there was a "disturbing trend" as well. "Some people file PILs, then they start a campaign on social media 'that only this type of judgment is possible in this case'. And, if the judgment does not come in accord with what they perceive to be their right, then they start not only criticising the judges but also trolling judges... You can always criticise a judgment, that's your right, but if you start campaigning against a judge on social media, it is plainly not fair," Prasad said. John Kerry to visit India in April ahead of Biden's climate summitU.S. President Joe Biden will host a virtual 'Leaders Summit on Climate' on April 22 and 23 with 40 world leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and U.S. Special Envoy for Climate John Kerry will visit India in early April in the run-up to this meeting, sources told The Hindu. Other guests at the climate summit will include President Xi Jinping of China and President Vladimir Putin of Russia, both of whom have a challenging relationship with Biden. With America's re-entry into the Paris Agreement on climate, the summit seeks to put Biden's stamp on the fight against climate change, after the U.S. largely took itself out of the international dialogue on climate action when Trump, climate change sceptic, withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement. The U.S. summit will highlight the urgent need to address climate change and the economic benefit of doing so, the White House said in a statement on Friday. It is also a prelude to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) which will be held in Glasgow in November, the White House said. Kerry's visit to India is part of the U.S.'s planning to Glasgow — he had said as much in February. "I look forward to coming to India before too long, COVID notwithstanding, and be able to plot and plan with the leaders of India how we are going to make Glasgow a success," he had said at the (virtual) World Sustainable Development Summit organised by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The former Secretary of State had also said that he intends to work "very, very closely" with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and others in India on climate change. President Kovind to undergo bypass procedure on March 30President Ram Nath Kovind was on Saturday shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi for a planned bypass procedure which is expected to be performed on Tuesday, a statement issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan said. The President's health condition is stable and he is under the care of experts, it said. Kovind, 75, had undergone a health check-up at the Army Hospital (R&R) in New Delhi following chest discomfort on Friday morning. "The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, has been shifted to the AIIMS, Delhi, in the afternoon today (March 27, 2021). Post investigations, doctors have advised him to undergo a planned bypass procedure which is expected to be performed on the morning of March 30, Tuesday. "The President's health is stable and he is under the care of the experts at the AIIMS," the statement said. Earlier in the day, the Army Hospital said Kovind was shifted to the AIIMS "for further treatment". Covid Watch: Numbers and DevelopmentsThe number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 1,19,18,780 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 1,62,685. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. |
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