The junta on Saturday staged a major show of might for its annual Armed Forces Day as the death toll since the February 1 coup climbed to at least 423, according to a local monitoring group. The defense ministers of 12 countries including the United States, Britain, Japan and Australia condemned the Myanmar military’s use of lethal force against civilians. Armed Forces Day commemorates the start of local resistance to the Japanese occupation during World War II, and usually features a military parade attended by foreign military officers and diplomats. The warning came a day after the US cultural center in Yangon had shots fired at it Saturday. Overnight, at the Miss Grand International beauty pageant in Bangkok, a tearful Myanmar contender, Han Lay, pleaded for peace.

Source: Manila Times March 28, 2021 16:18 UTC