More Than 125,000 Myanmar Teachers Suspended for Opposing Coup

More than 125,000 schoolteachers in Myanmar have been suspended by military authorities for joining a civil disobedience movement to oppose the military coup in February, an official of the Myanmar Teachers' Federation said.

The suspensions have come days before the start of a new school year, which some teachers and parents are boycotting as part of the campaign that has paralyzed the country since the coup cut short a decade of democratic reforms. A total of 125,900 schoolteachers had been suspended as of Saturday, said the official of the teachers' federation, who declined to give his name for fear of reprisals. He is on the junta's wanted list on charges of inciting disaffection. Myanmar had 430,000 schoolteachers according to the most recent data, from two years ago.