Tens of thousands of anti-government protesters led by Buddhist monks have rallied in Burma's main city of Rangoon. The peaceful rally was launched from the golden Shwedagon Pagoda, and many civilians soon joined in. Demands ranged from calls for the military government to step down to requests for negotiations and economic reforms. Among those who joined in were members of the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) party. Columns of protesters stretched for about a mile (1.6km), some participants said. They said as many as 100,000 people marched, making it the biggest protest in the past several days. Rallies were also reportedly held in other cities. Security forces were not in evidence for most of the march in Rangoon, but Burma's military junta later warned it was ready to "take action" against protesters. Monks are revered in Burma, but there are fears of a repeat of 1988, when a pro-democracy uprising was brutally crushed by the army. On Saturday, protesters greeted pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under a house arrest, but police blocked access to her house on Sunday and Monday. Back 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Next



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