A protest march, against recent attacks on members of the opium eradication group Pat Ja San (PJS), was held in Myitkyina, the Kachin State capital, on the morning of 26 February.
Thousands of Kachin people left the Myitkyina Sitapu Manaw Ground at 10.30am. They intended to march to the Kachin State Government’s offices, but the police prevented them, so instead they marched to Myitkyina General Hospital.
A prayer ceremony led by the Myanmar Council of Churches (MCC), where protesters prayed for PJS members injured in a grenade attack and those on the frontline, was then held in the grounds of Mytkyina General Hospital. After, the protestors marched back to the Mawnaw ground.
This was the second public protest in support of the PJS, previously thousands of people had protested in front of Mytkyina General Hospital on the evening of 25 February.
Over 20 PJS members have been receiving treatment at Myitkyina General Hospital after they were attacked in Kanpaiti by government Border Guard Forces (BGF) and poppy farm owners.
Most of the PJS members are camped in the Sadon area and they are still holding discussions about when they should re-launch their programme, said a PJS leader at the Manaw ground on 26 February.
Translated by Thida Linn
Edited in English by Mark inkey for BNI
