Burmese opposition figure Dr Zaw Wai Soe is a surgeon who serves as minister of health, labour and education in Myanmar's self-proclaimed National Unity Government. He has been charged with treason by the ruling junta. In an interview with FRANCE 24, Dr Zaw said the opposition feels "helpless" and that the people of Myanmar are left with no other choice than to defend themselves. According to the UN, the junta has killed 883 unarmed civilians since the February 1 coup.
Speaking to FRANCE 24 from an undisclosed location, Dr Zaw urged the international community to help the protest movement. He said the movement had been left on its own by the world and that in addition to the junta's brutal crackdown on protesters, the humanitarian situation was dire and the country was now in the midst of a third wave of Covid-19 infections.
Dr Zaw welcomed the release of some 2,200 prisoners by the regime on Wednesday, but warned that the leaders of the movement, such as Aung San Suu Kyi, were still behind bars. He added that he saw this move as a cynical "tactic" by the regime to gain some international support rather than a genuine goodwill gesture.
He dismissed allegations by the junta that he was fomenting violence and ordering attacks, saying that this was revenge because of his early commitment to the protest movement. He stressed that the movement was a "non-violent" one and that it had no intention of choosing a violent course to fight the regime. However, he added that the people had a "right" to defend themselves in the face of the violence by the junta.
