- The doctor said that Myanmar’s military government is hoarding oxygen and restricting the supply to residents.
- As the country battles the wave of deadly Covid-19 cases, a blow to life-saving supplies follows.
- After the February coup, the political situation has become turbulent, and this scarcity has sparked even greater anger.
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According to doctors and residents, with the third wave of Covid-19 sweeping the country, the Myanmar military government is hoarding oxygen and limiting access to life-saving medical care.
More than five months after enlisting in the army Seized power in the February coupHealth workers told the authorities that the authorities prohibited private medical clinics from obtaining oxygen and prohibited citizens from buying supplies from oxygen producers, and the authorities accused them of driving up prices. New York Times.
Charity workers told the media that the government also restricts charities from providing oxygen to people who need it.
according to Irrawaddy, A news website founded by Burmese exiles living in Thailand, the military government also ordered private oxygen plants not to replenish gas cylinders for people in need, claiming that citizens are hoarding supplies.
With the proliferation of Delta variants, Myanmar is struggling with record Covid-19 cases, thus taking a blow to life-saving supplies. According to official media reports this week, the country has recorded 5,000 cases every day, with an average of more than one-third of the tests positive. Public health experts believe that the actual infection rate may be much higher.
Many private clinics in the country that are prohibited from using oxygen are equipped with doctors who refuse to work in public hospitals Persistent civil disobedience To the coup. Several of these doctors told The Times that they believed the regime intends to direct the country’s limited oxygen supply to military hospitals that mainly serve members of the military government.
Health professionals told The Times and Reuters The lack of available oxygen has caused many deaths due to Covid-19-this trend is unlikely to end soon under an authoritarian regime Hoarding most of the country’s vaccines At the same time, a life-saving public health mechanism is reserved for military personnel.
Earlier this week, in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, videos and photos on social media showed dozens of residents in long lines hoping to fill up or buy a limited number of oxygen tanks.
Starting early on Wednesday morning, people lined up to replenish oxygen tanks in Yangon, Myanmar. The military government has restricted the supply of oxygen factories to the public. According to the military government’s health authorities, more than 100 people died from the virus on Tuesday.#Myanmar what happened pic.twitter.com/c19uL1NZGc
— Zaw Zaw, Athens (@zaw_athens) July 14, 2021
Witnesses told The Times that earlier this week, soldiers in the city opened fire on the queue of people. It is unclear whether there were casualties.
With the country’s political situation already turbulent, this scarcity has triggered even greater anger and despair.
According to reports, since the military announced that it would take over control after detaining several senior politicians in February, more than 900 people have been killed by security forces, including dozens of children. Political Prisoners Aid Association Advocacy Group.
Mandalay resident Ko Thein Zaw told The Times: “I want to know if the army is trying to survive by making it so that there is no one in the country.”
