100 Reported Dead in Burmese Protests : Troops in Rangoon Fire on Thousands Marching in Streets

Burmese troops today fired on thousands of demonstrators calling for the overthrow of President Sein Lwin, and a Western diplomat said he had reports of more than 100 people killed.

A U.S. official in Washington said witnesses reported seeing demonstrators carrying bodies of dead protesters over their heads as they marched through the streets of Rangoon, the Burmese capital.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said reports from Rangoon put casualties in today’s demonstrations in “the hundreds,” but said it would take time for information to be sorted out.

A Rangoon-based Western diplomat said he had “fairly credible” reports of more than 100 people killed as students, monks and others confronted soldiers who had been moved into the city since martial law was declared last week.

State-owned Rangoon radio said authorities clamped an 8 p.m.-to-4 a.m. curfew on the capital and banned gatherings of more than five people.

All Schools Closed

The broadcast listed a total of 26 areas, not including Rangoon, where demonstrations were held today. It also said schools throughout the country, including elementary schools, were closed indefinitely. All universities were ordered shut following riots in June.

Some foreign offices, including the U.S. Embassy, closed their doors today and Burmese consulates in some Asian cities stopped issuing entry visas to tourists.

“It was a game of cat and mouse. The army was chasing,” said James Cole, a 27-year-old Australian architect who arrived in Bangkok today. He said he saw up to 600 soldiers, some armed with machine guns, at Shwedagon Pagoda, a site of anti-government protests.

Cole said parts of the city were cordoned off with barricades and roadblocks were manned by soldiers. On a drive from Mandalay to Rangoon, he said he saw six armored cars and up to 20 trucks loaded with troops heading for the capital.

“They appeared nervous but ready for some sort of trouble,” he said.

The demonstrations are by far the largest show of anti-government sentiment since democracy was toppled in the Southeast Asian nation in 1962.