The leader of the coup in Myanmar has made his first TV address, seeking to justify the action amid mass protests.
A protester holds a photo of detained Myanmar civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi during a demonstration against the military coup. Photo: AFP
Min Aung Hlaing said November's election, won in a landslide by the party of detained elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi, had been unfair.
The military has begun to impose restrictions in some areas, including curfews and limits to gatherings.
Huge protests were held on Monday for a third straight day, along with a nationwide strike, to oppose the coup.
One demonstrating doctor - who did not want to be named - told the BBC: "Today, we, professionals - especially civil servant professionals such as doctors, engineers and teachers - came out to show that we are all together in this. Our objective is the same - to make the dictatorship fall."
The general's speech drew angry opposition, with images on social media showing people banging pots and pans in protest in front of television screens.
The military seized power last week and declared a year-long state of emergency in Myanmar, also known as Burma, with power handed over to General Min Aung Hlaing.
Suu Kyi and senior leaders of her National League for Democracy Party (NLD), including President Win Myint, have been put under house arrest.
An Australian economic adviser to Suu Kyi, Sean Turnell, has also been detained and on Monday his family posted a statement on Facebook calling for his immediate release.
What did the general say?
Min Aung Hlaing's speech focused more on the reasons for the coup and less on threats to protesters.
He said the electoral commission had failed to investigate irregularities over voter lists in the November election and had not allowed fair campaigning.
The commission had said there was no evidence to support claims of widespread fraud.
Min Aung Hlaing, wearing green military uniform, promised new elections and to hand power to the winner. A new "reformed" election commission would oversee it.
He also said his rule would be "different" from what was effectively a 49-year military grip on power that ended in 2011 and which saw brutal crackdowns in 1988 and 2007.
He spoke of achieving a "true and disciplined democracy", a phrase that drew scorn from some opponents of the coup on social media.
Myanmar military chief General Min Aung Hlaing makes an announcement on the nationwide demonstrations being held in protest over the military coup. Photo: AFP
He also told citizens to "go with the true facts and not to follow feelings of your own".
The general did not issue direct threats to protesters, saying only that no-one was above the law.
But some areas have seen clampdowns, with parts of Yangon and second city Mandalay, along with other areas, under a 20:00 to 04:00 curfew and with gatherings limited to groups of five or less.
Earlier, a broadcast on state TV warned "action must be taken, according to the law... against offences that disturb, prevent and destroy state stability, public safety and the rule of law".
Phil Robertson, the deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said: "For a military coup government that has trampled all over democracy and the rule of law, it's absurd for them to claim they have any right to 'legal action' against peaceful protesters."
Who has been on the streets?
Tens of thousands gathered on Monday in the capital, Nay Pyi Taw, for the strike, with other cities such as Mandalay and Yangon also reporting significant numbers, according to BBC Burmese. The protesters include teachers, lawyers, bank officers and government workers.
Online there had been calls asking workers to skip work to protest. "This is a work day, but we aren't going to work even if our salary will be cut," one protester, 28-year-old garment factory worker, Hnin Thazin, told news agency AFP.
People holding placards shout slogans of anti-coup as they protest against the military coup. Photo: AFP
Another protester, Hnin Hayman Soe, told the BBC she had joined the protest alongside her children, nieces and nephews. "We can see many young people can't accept the military junta. We can even see teenagers here," she said.
A few injuries have been reported, but no violence. However, a water cannon was activated in Nay Pyi Taw to disperse crowds. A video appears to show protesters rubbing their eyes and helping one another after being soaked.
Kyaw Zeyar Oo, who took the video, told the BBC two vehicles had sprayed protesters with "no prior warning", while "the crowd was peacefully protesting in front of [the police]".
The BBC's Nyein Chan Aye, in Yangon, says Buddhist monks, members of the minority Muslim community, top footballers and film and music stars have all been joining the anti-coup protests, which he says are expected to become more organised in the coming days.
- BBC
New Zealand placed fourth in global democracy index
New Zealand has been ranked fourth on a global democracy index, behind three Nordic countries.
New Zealand is a land of comparative freedom, according to a recent report on global democracy. Photo: RNZ
The Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2020 Democracy Index has just been released.
It weighed data from 167 countries to provide a snapshot of democracy worldwide, with a focus on the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Factors taken into consideration were electoral process, the functioning of government, political participation and culture, and civil liberties.
New Zealand scored 9.25 out of 10 in the latest index – a fraction less than in 2019.
Norway topped the list, followed by Iceland and Sweden, while North Korea came last with a score of 1.08 out of 10.
The US was defined as a “flawed democracy” and ranked 25th, with a score of 7.92.
“The negatives [for USA] include extremely low levels of trust in institutions and political parties, deep dysfunction in the functioning of government, increasing threats to freedom of expression, and a degree of societal polarisation that makes consensus almost impossible to achieve.
“Social cohesion has collapsed … the new president, Joe Biden, faces a huge challenge in bringing together a country that is deeply divided over core values,” the report stated.
Joe Biden is the president of the US that was categorised as a “flawed democracy” in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2020 Democracy Index. Photo: AFP
Australia was ranked ninth with a score of 8.96 and kept its status as a “full democracy”.
The report found almost 14 percent of countries worldwide were “full democracies”, 31 percent were “flawed democracies”, and 21 percent were “hybrid regimes”.
Just over 34 percent of the countries included were ruled by “authoritarian regimes”.
Hong Kong dropped down the rankings by 12 places, becoming a “hybrid regime” rather than a “flawed democracy”, and Myanmar fell by 13 places.
Asia’s average regional score fell to its lowest since 2013, as official measures to combat the pandemic led to some of the most severe constraints on individual freedoms and civil liberties in the world, the report’s writers said.
“China, Singapore and others went much further than the rest of the world in tracking and policing their citizens and locking them down in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“As a result, more than half of the countries in the region recorded a fall in their total score.
“However, the biggest country downgrades, for Myanmar and Hong Kong, were driven by other factors, including mass voter suppression in the former and a crackdown by the authorities on dissent in the latter.”
Report editor Joan Hoey said Asia gained three new “full democracies” in 2020 – Japan, South Korea and Taiwan – while western Europe lost two – France and Portugal.
“Asia continues to lag behind the West in democratic terms having only five “full democracies”, compared with western Europe’s 13, but the region has, so far, handled the pandemic much better than virtually any other, with lower infection and mortality rates and a fast economic rebound,” Hoey said.
Asian governments had reacted decisively to the pandemic, even though coercive powers had been used in some cases, Hoey said.
Asian countries had well-organised health systems and their populations still trusted their governments, he said.
“By contrast, European governments were slow to act, some health systems came close to collapse and public trust in government declined,” Hoey said.
France scored 7.99 overall and was ranked 24th, while Portugal scored 7.9 and was in 26th place.