Yangon: As tens of thousands marched through the streets of Myanmar’s biggest city on Sunday to protest last week’s coup, their spirits were lifted by the return of internet services that had been blocked a day earlier.
Separate protests began in various parts of Yangon, converging at points including Yangon's City Hall and the iconic Sule Pagoda.
Authorities had cut access to the internet as the protests grew Saturday, fanning fears of a complete information blackout.
On Sunday afternoon, however, internet users in Yangon reported that data access on their mobile phones had suddenly been restored.
Thousands rally against military takeover in Myanmar Read:Thousands join Yangon protest against army coup
The demonstrators are seeking to roll back last Monday’s seizure of power by the military and demanding the release from detention of the country’s ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, and other top figures from her National League for Democracy party (NLD).
The military has accused Suu Kyi and her party of failing to act on its complaints that last November’s election was marred by fraud, though the election commission said it had found no evidence to support the claims.
The growing protests are a sharp reminder of the long and bloody struggle for democracy in a country that the military ruled directly for more than five decades before loosening of its grip in 2012.
Suu Kyi's government, which won a landslide election in 2015, was the first led by civilians in decades, though it faced a number of curbs to its power under a military-drafted constitution.
AP
