Myanmar’s ruling junta blamed Buddhist monks Wednesday for last month’s violent crackdown on pro-democracy protests, as it admitted nearly 3,000 people had been detained over the rallies.The official New Light of Myanmar newspaper, a government mouthpiece, said that if the monks had remained in their monasteries, “the government would not have used force to prevent protests.” “If... they had not staged protest marches, demanding release of political prisoners, the nation would not have seen any chaos,” it added.
State media also gave a sharply higher figure for the number of people who were detained in connection with the protests, saying 2,927 had been locked up around the country and 468 remained behind bars. Earlier state media had indicated about 2,100 people had been arrested. The newspaper said security forces were continuing to make arrests, despite a statement last week by the UN Security Council demanding the release of all political prisoners. “Some are still (being) called in for questioning, and those who should be released will be released,” the paper added.