Myanmar ousted leaders Aung San Suu Kyi and Win Myint pleaded not guilty to the charge of breaching COVID-19 restrictions during last year’s election campaign in the hearing indicted by a judge in Naypyitaw. Win Myint revealed the details story on the day of the 1 February coup, two senior army officers attempted to persuade him to resign from his position on grounds of ill health and threatened him that “harm” would come to him after he refused the request. Junta's Foreign Ministry has officially refused the request of ASEAN special envoy Erywan Yusof to meet detained leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

According to a senior NLD executive who spoke on condition of anonymity, 110 MPs from the party have signed a pledge not to have anything to do with the anti-junta resistance movement and affirmed not to be assigned to any duties by the party.

British American Tobacco (BAT) that manufactured and sold London & Lucky Strike cigarettes in Myanmar, announced that it has ceased production. The Kempinski Hotel in Nay Pyi Taw has ceased its operation as the current operating environment has made it impossible for them to continue to do business, according to their statement.

The junta-controlled Yangon Region General Administration Department issued an order of banning a gathering of five or more people in the roads, streets and lanes of 31 townships of the Yangon region and imposed a 10pm-4am curfew. It also imposed a 10 p.m to 4 a.m. curfew and a ban on gatherings of more than four people in Pathein of Ayeyarwady Region and Myitkyina of Kachin State.

Senior General Min Aung Hlaing called on Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) signatories and non-signatories to join the agreement at the sixth anniversary of the signing of the NCA. The junta has dropped charges against 114 individuals detained for their ties to ethnic armed groups, both NCA signatories and non-signatories.

More than 50 rights groups have urged the ASEAN leaders not to allow the coup leader to join the upcoming ASEAN Summit. A joint statement was endorsed by the US, Britain, Australia, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Norway and East Timor, urging the junta to "engage constructively" with the ASEAN Special Envoy. 

ASEAN leaders have decided to exclude the Senior General Min Aung Hlaing from the Southeast Asian leaders' summit and will invite a non-political representative from Myanmar to the regional summit. The junta issued a press release saying they were extremely disappointed and strongly objected to the outcomes of the Emergency Foreign Ministers’ Meeting as the decision was done without consensus and was against the objectives of the ASEAN, the ASEAN Charter and its principles.

Sumitomo, a Japanese company which is the partner of MPT, has requested the junta-controlled MPT telecommunications to only apply internet shutdowns in Myanmar in line with telecommunications human rights. NGO Access Now called for Norway’s Telenor Group to act responsibly in disposing of its telecommunications business in Myanmar. 

Facebook objected to releasing private posts about Myanmar’s Rohingya campaign, saying the judge’s order created grave human rights concerns and left internet users’ private content unprotected.

Protests continued in different parts of Myanmar despite the crackdown by the junta over the week. The clashes between the junta forces and the civil resistance fighters or Ethnic Armed Organizations also emerged in all states and regions except Rakhine Region. 

According to the information compiled by ANFREL, at least 50 bomb blasts happened across Myanmar in the past week. It was reported that at least 12 people were injured and 18 died. 19 Mytel telecom masts were destroyed across the country. 

As of 16 October, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) recorded that 1,178 people have been killed by the junta. 7,355 people are currently under detention and 355 are sentenced. 65 have been sentenced to death and 1,989 are evading arrest warrants.

Download the full update here: Myanmar Situation Update (11-17 October 2021)