Timeline of The 2007 Burmese Anti-government Protests - Timeline - Junta Crack-down - October 1

October 1

The barricades around the Shwedagon Pagoda were removed, witnesses told Reuters, but soldiers were still stationed at the four entrances. Monks say at least five of their brethren have been killed during the clashes with security forces during the protests. Eye witnesses say troops and police are still positioned at many street corners and key locations around Yangon, making it impossible for demonstrators to gather.

The United Nations envoy Ibrahim Gambari is still waiting to see Myanmar's military junta chief, Than Shwe; it is not clear why he has not yet been granted an audience. Mark Canning, the British ambassador to Myanmar, says China is pushing hard for Gambari's mission to be as long and as far-reaching as possible.

Thousands of heavily armed soldiers are reported to be patrolling the streets of Yangon, and there are no signs of protests against the junta. The troops are stopping pedestrians and car drivers and searching them for cameras. The internet and mobile phone networks are still largely disrupted. General Than Shwe is expected to meet Ibrahim Gambari on Tuesday, officials say.

Around 4,000 monks are said to have been rounded up by the military during the last week in an attempt to stamp out the protests. They are being held at a disused race course and a technical college. A BBC report said sources from a government-sponsored militia stated they would soon be moved away from Yangon. The monks have been disrobed and are shackled, sources told the BBC Radio Burmese service. The Democratic Voice of Burma, the banned opposition broadcaster, has published a photograph which they say shows the body of a monk floating near the mouth of the Yangon river.

5,000 protesters are reported to have gathered in the town of Man Aung, Rakhine State, in the morning. At 9 a.m. they marched while holding two banners displaying their demands; for the release of all political prisoners, a reduction in commodity prices, and national reconciliation. The demonstration finished at 11 a.m.

Three people were arrested at a protest in Sanchaung Township in Yangon a report in The Irrawaddy stated.

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Famous quotes by october 1:

    In the genuine hope that this peace will be permanent, we take the opportunity to pay homage to all our fighters, commandos and volunteers who have paid the supreme sacrifice. They did not die in vain. The union is safe.
    —Combined Loyalist Military Command. New York Times, p. A12 (October 14, 1994)

    In all sincerity, we offer to the loved ones of all innocent victims over the past 25 years, abject and true remorse. No words of ours will compensate for the intolerable suffering they have undergone during the conflict.
    —Combined Loyalist Military Command. New York Times, p. A12 (October 14, l994)