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Myanmar
AsiaSoutheast Asia

Myanmar coup: junta designates government in exile as a ‘terrorist’ group

  • Since the February coup, a group of ousted lawmakers have formed a shadow ‘National Unity Government’ to undermine the junta
  • Designating them a ‘terrorist organisation’ means anyone speaking to them – including journalists – can be charged under counterterrorism laws

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Demonstrators carry a banner that reads “Industrial Strike Group” during a protest in Mandalay. Photo: EPA
Agence France-Presse
Myanmar’s junta has declared a group of ousted lawmakers running a shadow government would now be classified as “terrorists”, as the military moves to tighten its grip over a country in turmoil.
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Since the military seized power in a February 1 coup, detaining and ousting civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, a nationwide uprising has refused to back down in its demands for a return to democracy.

Protesters continue to take to the streets daily, while a nationwide boycott by students and faculty as well as civil servants across various sectors has brought the country to a shuddering halt.

Meanwhile, a group of ousted lawmakers – many of them previously part of Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy party – have formed a shadow “National Unity Government” to undermine the junta.

On Wednesday, the NUG announced the formation of a “people’s defence force” to protect civilians facing violence from the military.

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By Saturday night, state-run television announced that the NUG, its people’s defence force, and an affiliated group known as the Committee Representing Pyidaungsu Hluttaw (CRPH) – the Burmese word for parliament – were now classified as “terrorist organisations”.

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