Myanmar marks one year since military coup

Protest leaders have called for a “silent strike” to mark the anniversary. [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [View in your browser]( [Top of The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- What The World is following Myanmar marks one year since military coup [The roadway up to the railway station sits empty in Mandalay, central Myanmar as opponents of military rule mark the one-year anniversary of the coup with a nationwide strike, Feb.1, 2022.] Credit: AP Photo Myanmar Tuesday marks one year since the military took over the government in a coup in Myanmar, arresting more than 100 elected officials. Protest leaders called for a “[silent strike](” to mark the anniversary, urging people to stay home and cease public activity for six hours. But military officials warned that participants would be charged with terrorism and have already arrested some people. The United Nations says that [more than 400,000 people]( have been displaced in fighting since the coup. The UN Human Rights Office says that at least 1,500 civilians have died while being targeted at protests or during raids, and thousands more have died during military attacks on remote towns and villages. Nearly 9,000 people have also been imprisoned over the past year. Israel Amnesty International has become the latest human rights organization to call Israel’s treatment of Palestinians apartheid. The group summarized its [nearly 300-page report]( by saying that it “analysed Israel’s intent to create and maintain a system of oppression and domination over Palestinians,” including “territorial fragmentation, segregation and control, dispossession of land and property and denial of economic and social rights.” The report was compiled over four years, and traces the policies back to the nation’s establishment in 1948, when [700,000 Palestinians fled or were expelled]( during the Arab-Israeli war, and subsequently barred from the right of return. Israel has criticized the report, with Israeli [Foreign Minister Yair Lapid]( saying, “Amnesty quotes lies spread by terrorist organizations.” Denmark Denmark has become the first European nation to lift all of its COVID-19 restrictions, stating that it is now “a disease that [no longer poses a threat]( to society.” It comes as the country faces the [second-highest infection rate]( — or seven-day average of new infections — of any nation in the world. But officials say that Denmark has a [high vaccination rate](, and although the omicron variant is surging, it's not burdening the health system. Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has not ruled out reinstating regulations in the future, saying, “I dare not say that it is a final goodbye to restrictions. We do not know what will happen in the fall, whether there will be a new variant.” --------------------------------------------------------------- From The World ['The torture of political prisoners is real' in Uganda, says poet and free speech activist]( [Ugandan author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija is seen in an undated photo posted to his Twitter, Dec. 25, 2021.]( Credit: Courtesy of VOA/via Twitter Ugandan poet Stella Nyanzi talks about her friend, the satirist Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, and his torture while recently under military detention. His crime? Calling Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's son "obese" in a [series of tweets]( last December. --------------------------------------------------------------- Bright spot It's the Year of the Tiger! 🐯 Feb. 1 marks the start of the Lunar New Year this year, with nearly 2 billion people celebrating around the world. The holiday is often commonly known as Chinese New Year, Vietnam's Tết Nguyên Đán or South Korea's Seollal and can extend to more than two weeks. Many festivities have been drawn down or canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but millions of families have planned celebrations at home. [A tiger figure holds money in its mouth next to an offering set at an altar during the Lunar New Year celebrations at the Thien Hau Temple in the Chinatown neighborhood of Los Angeles, Jan. 31, 2022.] [Credit: Damian Dovarganes/AP]( --------------------------------------------------------------- [In case you missed it from The World]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Don't forget to subscribe to The World's Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: [RadioPublic](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Stitcher](, [Soundcloud](, [RSS]( [The World logo]( [The World on Facebook]( [The World's Twitter account]( [Donate]( | [Forward to a friend]( | [Subscribe]( | [Edit your subscription]( | [Unsubscribe]( | [View in your browser]( Top of the World is written weekday mornings by the team at [The World](. [The World]( is produced by [PRX]( and [GBH](.