Student protesters calling for education reform today defied an order to disperse in a tense standoff with hundreds of riot police in central Myanmar.
Some 200 young activists, many sporting bandanas with the fighting peacock symbol of student protest, chanted "we are unified!" as they maintained a sit-in at a monastery compound in the town of Letpadan.
The group, which has been joined by around a dozen monks, has been tightly encircled by security forces since Monday.
"The police are still blocking our way. We will not move from here until we get our demands," student leader Min Thwe Thit told AFP.
He said some protesters had decided to go on hunger strike to underscore their calls to be allowed to continue marching.
"They need to stop. If they don't follow what we say, we need to take action against them," said government spokesman Ye Htut.
Student activism is a potent political force in Myanmar with young campaigners at the forefront of several major uprisings, including a mass 1988 demonstration that prompted a bloody military assault under the former junta.
Some half a dozen police vans were seen in the centre of the city on today evening after a small group of activists briefly gathered in the city.
They have been joined by ordinary people and monks in their march, which began in the central city of Mandalay in January.
The protesters have asked the home affairs ministry for permission to continue their march and to play protest songs and wave their flag, according to Min Thwe Thit.
The rallies initially began in November before flaring up again this year, with several different student groups launching marches from across the country, where protests without permission often result in arrests.
Myanmar's quasi-civilian government has undertaken a wide range of reforms since replacing military rule in 2011 and ending the country's decades of isolation.
But rights groups and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi have raised concerns that reforms are stalling.
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