Burmese Authorities Detain 65 Protesters

VOA News Washington 25 August 2007

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Demonstrators march on Insein road in northern Rangoon suburb to protest over massive fuel price hikes, 22 Aug 2007

Authorities in Burma have detained at least 65 people who protested this week on the outskirts of Rangoon against a steep hike in fuel prices.

"The New Light of Myanmar" reported today that eight people were picked up as they marched in a protest Wednesday. The rest were detained Thursday and Friday.

People in impoverished Burma are angry at the military government's decision earlier this month to double fuel prices at state-owned gas stations. Demonstrations are extremely rare in the tightly controlled country where security forces tolerate little dissent.

Peaceful protests have been taking place since Sunday, mainly around Rangoon. No new demonstrations were reported today.

Burma's government has been widely criticized for human rights violations, including the extended detention of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and more than 12,00 other political prisoners.

Information for this report is provided by AP and AFP.