Myanmar police arrest actor Lu Min who was wanted under an anti-incitement law

Myanmar police on February 21 arrested famous actor Lu Min, who was wanted under anti-incitement law for encouraging civil servants to join in the protest. According to The Guardian, Lu Min was one of six celebrities the army said were wanted for supporting opposition to a February 1 coup. His arrest came after two people were killed when police and soldiers fired to disperse protesters in the second city of Mandalay. 

Lu Min’s charges can carry a two-year prison sentence. While taking to social media, his wife Khin Sabai Oo said that police had come to their home in Yangon and taken Lu Min away early on Sunday. In a video, which has now been deleted, Khin Sabai said that the cops forced open the door and took Lu Min away and didn’t tell where they were taking him. “I couldn’t stop them. They didn’t tell me,” she added. 

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The Burmese actor, who has appeared in nearly 1000 movies and won numerous awards in his home country, had taken part in several protests. His arrest came a day after 2 protesters were killed when police opened fire at a demonstration against the February 1 coup. Protesters in Myanmar's two largest cities even paid tribute Saturday to the young woman who died after being shot by police during a rally against the military takeover. 

The protesters appeared undeterred by the death of two people. In Yangon, several thousand young people gathered at two sites to chant slogans, while hundreds massed peacefully in the second city of Mandalay. An impromptu memorial was also created under an elevated roadway in Yangon, which attracted around 1,000 protesters. A wreath of bright yellow flowers was hung beneath a photograph of Mya Thwet Thwet Khine, who was shot in the capital, Naypyitaw, on Feb. 9, two days before her 20th birthday.

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Myanmar military coup 

Meanwhile, the Myanmar military overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1, a day before the newly-elected members of parliament were scheduled to take the oath. The military accused Suu Kyi's government of rigging November elections, in which her party National League for Democracy (NLD) had emerged the victor by a landslide. Suu Kyi's party managed to win 396 of the 476 parliamentary seats of the ones that are not reserved for the military. Experts suggest that the military feared Suu Kyi, with a larger majority than in 2015, would try and reduce the number of parliamentary seats reserved for the Army.

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