JURIST EXCLUSIVE – Our law student correspondents in Myanmar continue to send reports of the latest developments on the ground, along with their perspectives and analysis of the legal issues presented by the February 1 military coup. These are excerpts from the first extensive report to JURIST received late last night after the Myanmar military’s internet blackout was lifted Monday morning Myanmar time:

Internet is back at 9 am.

Last night, one person died in Myit Kyi Narr, Kachin State. 5 reporters were arrested there last night but they’re released this morning, just now.

ASSK [Aung San Suu Kyi] and the president will be brought to the court on 17 Feb to decide whether this case should be brought to the Court (Although they detained them on 1 Feb, they issued the allegations on 2 Feb. 15 days of detention will be completed on 17 Feb). Will they release them now?? Or will they make another accusations to keep them in jail like before?

City Mart and Ocean supermarkets delisted all products of the military and its alliance.

Last night, when internet was cut off and electricity was also cut off in some cities, the MAI airway aircraft flew back and forth from Yangon to China 6 times. We don’t know what are they secretly planning.

All private banks close starting from today. CDM [the pro-democracy Civil Disobedience Movement] is progressing. We manage to offer shelters to CDM staffs if they feel unsafe to stay at their government apartments or they are told to leave the residents immediately for participating in CDM. The military’s attempt to use undue force against the staffs to detain them at workplace makes CDM stronger. According to their newly amended Privacy (Law), they asked us to apply the lists of people living in each household. They’re trying to prevent people from giving a shelter to those in need. Altogether with the township administrators, we refuse to obey that and will not submit anything they ask for.

This morning, many police/Military cars came to the compound of government staffs residents in Nay Pyi Taw [the Myanmar capital]. Among over 400 people (staffs and their family) in that compound, 70 of them are higher management level staffs and essential to run the government offices. All neighborhood comes out and protest so all Military forces left the compound.

All protesting is going on as usual in front of the embassy, the police station to release the CDM staffs and civilians that they’ve arrested. We pray the end of all these worries of being kept in the dark.

In normal situation, aren’t we supposed to ask for help from police and soldiers to protect us? But in Myanmar, men, women and young children have to protect ourselves and we can do nothing but bang pots whenever police/soldiers are at our doorstep. As it gets dark and internet cut off, we’re all blind and deaf. Without guns, we’re at our weakest point. Every night, it could be my teachers, relatives, neighbors or me who is at the risk of being kidnapped or a gunshot.