Just a day after Myanmar’s ambassador to the United Nations Kyaw Moe Tun called upon the international community to take “the strongest possible action… to restore democracy” in his country the military junta in power in Yangon fired him on Saturday. Speaking at the United Nations General Assembly, he said, “This revolution must win.” Tun was appointed as the ambassador by the National League of Democracy (NLD) government in last October.
According to Myanmar’s state-run MRTV, “(He) didn’t follow the order and direction by the state and betrayed the country… That is why he is revoked from his position starting from today.”
Tun’s open defiance of the military junta came as a shot in arm to the thousands of protesters who are taking to the streets demanding the restoration of democracy and release of all political prisoners including NLD leader Aung San Suu Kyi. On Friday, the day Tun gave the speech in the United Nations, the military in Myanmar which took power on February 1 last, carried out widespread crackdown on the protesters.
Clashes with police were reported from many places in the country. Police fired rubber bullets to disperse the mobs. Reacting to his dismissal Kyaw was quoted by the news agency Reuters as saying, “I decided to fight back as long as I can.”
Myanmar, which enjoys the backing of China, has been under military rule for most of the period between 1962 and 2011. In 2011, the military junta was dissolved and a nominal civilian government came to power.
