Myanmar Citizens Turning to Defending Themselves Against Military, Sparking Concerns of War
Myanmar citizens are turning to defending themselves against the ruling military junta and are sparking concerns of civil war, the U.N. special envoy for the country warned on Monday.
Christine Schraner Burgener said that citizens are frustrated and fear the military that seized power in February through a coup. A civil war "could happen," Schraner Burgener said, as protesters against the military are engaging in more offensive actions and are being trained by ethnic armed groups using homemade weapons.
Schraner Burgener wants to hold inclusive dialogue with ethnic armed groups, the army—which is known as the Tatmadaw—civil society and others but said, "clearly it will not be easy to convince especially both sides to come to a table, but I offer my good offices...to avoid more bloodshed and civil war which would last a long time."
Local citizens have formed a so-called People's Defense Force with the National Unity Government, which "must try and bring them under a single command structure," Schraner Burgener said, and protesters are shifting to offensive actions. Every day, she added, "explosions" happen anywhere, which is scaring the people."
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/myanmar-citizens-turning-to-defending-themselves-against-military-sparking-concerns-of-war/ar-AAKmDHE
