India along with seven other countries participated in Myanmar’s Armed Forces Day parade.
Amid the military crackdown on protesters in Myanmar, eight countries decided to send representatives to the parade in the neighbouring country on Saturday.
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It has been reported that apart from India, seven countries including Russia, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam sent representatives to Myanmar’s Armed Forces Day parade.
As per media reports, security forces in Myanmar killed over 90 people as the country witnessed one of its bloodiest days of protests since a military coup last month.
Myanmar Now, a news agency in the country, claimed 91 civilians were killed across 40 towns on Saturday.
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Indian embassy in Myanmar sent their military attaché to the military junta’s ‘armed forces day’ ceremony. India is one of the greatest democracies in the world. Why do you shake hands with the generals whose hands are soaked with our blood? @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia @PMOIndia
— Civil Disobedience Movement (@cvdom2021) March 27, 2021
With this, the overall death toll during the military crackdown went up to 1,630.
Also read: India’s strange silence on military coup in Myanmar
On Sunday, the United Nations (UN) strongly condemned the Myanmar military’s “widespread, lethal, increasingly systematic attacks against peaceful protesters, as well as other serious violations of human rights since it seized power on February 1”.
The defence chiefs of 12 countries, including Australia, the U.K. and the U.S., on Sunday condemned the “use of lethal force against unarmed people” in what was reported as the bloodiest day since the coup in which the military overthrew the democratically elected government.
The representatives of the eight countries attended the Myanmar military parade in Naypyitaw that was televised live apparently to intimidate the protesters.
India’s military attached in Myanmar attended the parade.
The presence of India’s military at the parade comes at a time when questions are being raised about the Narendra Modi-led government’s silence on the military coup and violence against the protesters.
Also read: Over 100 protestors shot dead by Myanmar armed forces on ‘day of shame’, UN ‘horrified’
India has just expressed “deep concern” over the current situation in Myanmar.
It has called for rule of law and democratic process to be upheld.
India, which is yet to condemn the atrocities on the protestors in Myanmar, has drawn flak from pro-democracy and anti-junta groups in Myanmar for sending its representative to the military parade.