Burma army starts killing

Rangoon - Police and soldiers at barricades beat monks and laymen back from the east gate of the Shwedagon Pagoda with batons and tear gas twice Wednesday afternoon, leaving at least five people dead, including monks, a former high-level government official said.

At least 30 monks and 50 civilians were beaten and then taken away in military vehicles to an unknown destination.

Police and soldiers manned barricades erected on the road to the east gate of the Shwedagon Pagoda, preventing marching monks from using the shrine as a launch pad for their ninth day of peaceful protests.

About 10,000 monks weaved their way through Rangoon's streets Wednesday afternoon, heading for the Sule Pagoda, where they were pushed back by more troops armed with shields and batons, witnesses said.

Soldiers stationed at City Hall, across from the Sule Pagoda, reportedly fired on the crowd at one point, claiming an unknown number of casualties.

A newly arrived tourist said shots rang out for about 30 seconds as a crowd of thousands of people, mostly laymen, moved toward a barricade about 100 metres from the roundabout where the pagoda stands.

Protestors ran in panic down side streets. Some fell and were trampled by those following them. Fear showed in their faces.

"I'm going home," one monk said.

The tourist said a 26-year-old student warned her: "You shouldn't go any farther. They are animals," referring to the soldiers.

The Burmese military, after issuing several warnings to the monks for the past two days, deployed its troops against the protest for the first time in nine days of protest marches in Rangoon.

At least 12 truckloads, each carrying about 40 police and soldiers, were dispatched Tuesday night to City Hall after tens of thousands of monks defied a government order to end their protest marches and return to their temples.

Dozens of military trucks and jeeps were seen parked outside the City Hall compound, but the troops were out of sight Wednesday morning. Police and military personnel were guarding the four gates of the Sule Pagoda, which sits in the centre of a traffic circle in front of City Hall.

The pagoda in the centre of downtown Rangoon has been where the monks have congregated, joined by thousands of laymen, over the past four days in a show of defiance against the military junta.

The marching monks appeared determined to take to the streets again Wednesday despite signs that a confrontation is looming. As on past days, they were to first meet about noon at the Shwedagon Pagoda and then march on Sule Pagoda.

"We are even ready to die," one Rangoon temple abbot told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa.

Various human rights groups and crisis-management organizations have called on Burmese allies such as China, India and South-East Asian nations to intervene to prevent a bloodbath in Rangoon.

"The Burmese military has shown in the past a willingness to kill peaceful protestors to end demonstrations," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "If the military government is going to listen to anyone, it will be countries with which it has close military and economic ties. Now is the time for these countries to show that they care about the health and welfare of the Burmese people."

Rangoon's barefoot rebellion, which started September 18, drew up to 100,000 followers Monday and Tuesday and have proceeded so far without reprisals from the regime.

But signs indicated that the junta is ready to spill blood as it did in September 1988 when the army unleashed its fury on pro-democracy mass demonstrations, killing up to 3,000 people, including hundreds of protesting monks.

Around midnight, the government announced via public loudspeakers that a 60-day curfew had been imposed in the city from 9 pm to 5 am.

Rangoon General Hospital has been instructed to clear wards in preparation for an influx of patients, hospital sources said.

In 1988, Burma was rocked by nationwide rallies against the military regime's incompetent rule, which had dragged the country down from one of the wealthiest in Asia prior to World War II to an economic basket case by 1987.

Economic hardships are partly behind the latest protests.

Without warning or consultations, the government more than doubled fuel prices on August 15, exacerbating overnight the plight of their impoverished people. The country has suffered double-digit inflation since 2006.

Anti-inflation protests started building on August 19 in Rangoon, led by former student activists and opposition politicians. Last week, the movement was taken up by the monks.

Burma's 400,000-member Buddhist monkhood has a long history of political activism in Burma, having played a pivotal role in the independence struggle against Great Britain in 1947 and the anti- military demonstrations of 1988. (dpa)

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Pressure mounts on Burma's allies to intervene

Bangkok (dpa) - International human rights and crisis-watch groups Wednesday called on the United Nations and Burma's allies to help persuade the junta to avoid bloodshed in Rangoon where a clash looms between troops and monks.

"United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon should hold urgent talks with the foreign ministers of China, India and Singapore, the current ASEAN chair, on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and lead a joint attempt to encourage peaceful dialogue in Burma," said the International Crisis Group out of New York.

The Brussels-based think tank urged China, India, and Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to back Ban Ki-moon's call on Burma's junta to exercise restraint in the face of growing peaceful protests and put their full weight behind UN efforts to find a solution to the country's political crisis.

"The regime has a long history of violent reactions to peaceful demonstrations," said Gareth Evans, president of the International Crisis Group. "If serious loss of life is to be averted, those UN members with influence over the government are going to have to come together fast."

Rangoon has been seized by monk-led peaceful protests since September 18, which swelled to include up to 100,000 Buddhist clergy and laymen followers on Monday and Tuesday.

The regime looked poised to crack down on the barefoot rebellion Wednesday. Truckloads of troops have been posted at City Hall, opposite Sule Pagoda in downtown Rangoon where the protests have congregated in the past week.

A 60-day curfew was imposed on the city Tuesday night, and regulation 144 which prohibits gatherings of more than five people, has been enforced.

Rangoon General Hospital has reportedly been put on alert.

New York-based Human Rights Watch also appealed to Burma's allies including China, Thailand, India and Russia, to put pressure on the regime to avoid violence.

"The Burmese military has shown in the past a willingness to kill peaceful protestors to end demonstrations," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. "If the military government is going to listen to anyone, it will be countries with which it has close military and economic ties. Now is the time for these countries to show that they care about the health and welfare of the Burmese people."

Observers have been amazed that Burma's military rulers have waited so long to suppress the monks' rebellion and attribute it to China's influence on the pariah state.

"I can see no other explantion for their restraint," one European diplomat said. "They've shot monks in the past." dpa

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Earlier report:

Burma showdown: Rifles vs robes

Rangoon - At least 12 truckloads, each of about 40 police and soldiers, were dispatched Tuesday night to City Hall after tens of thousands of monks defied a government order to end their protest marches and return to their temples.

Hundreds of riot police and soldiers were stationed Wednesday at Rangoon City Hall, prepared for what is likely to be a crackdown on a monk-led rebellion that has seized the city for the last week.

City Hall is near the Sule Pagoda in the centre of downtown Rangoon, where the monks have congregated, joined by thousands of laymen, over the last four days in a show of defiance against the Burmese ruling junta.

The marching monks appeared determined to take to the streets again Wednesday, despite signs that a confrontation is looming. As on past days, they are to first meet about noon at the Shwedagon Pagoda and then march on Sule Pagoda.

"Most monks will march," one Rangoon temple abbot told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. "We are even ready to die."

Rangoon's barefoot rebellion that started September 18 drew up to 100,000 followers Monday and Tuesday, without reprisals from the regime.

Now, the signs are looming that the junta is ready to spill blood, as they did in September 1988 when the army unleashed its fury on pro-democracy mass demonstrations, killing up to 3,000 people including hundreds of protesting monks.

Around midnight, the government announced via public loudspeakers that a curfew had been imposed in the city from 9 pm to 5 am, until the situation returned to normal.

Rangoon General Hospital has been instructed to clear wards in preparation for an influx of patients, hospital sources said.

In 1988, Burma was rocked by nationwide rallies against the military regime's incompetent rule, which had dragged the country down from one of the wealthiest in Asia prior to World War II to an economic basket case by 1987.

Economic hardships are partly behind the latest protests.

Without warning or consultations, the government more than doubled fuel prices on August 15, exacerbating overnight the plight of impoverished Burmese. The country has suffered double-digit inflation since 2006.

Anti-inflation protests started building on August 19 in Rangoon, led by former student activists and opposition politicians. Earlier this month, the movement was taken up by the monks.

Burma's 400,000-member Buddhist monkhood has a long history of political activism in Burma, having played a pivotal role in the independence struggle against Great Britain in 1947 and the anti- military demonstrations of 1988, which ended in bloodshed.

Observers have been amazed that the Burmese military rulers have waited so long to suppress the monks' rebellion and attribute it to China's influence on the pariah state.

"I can see no other explantion for their restraint," one European diplomat said. "They've shot monks in the past." (dpa)