Myanmar Citizens Send SOS to Musk: "Provide Starlink to Us Too"

"Request for Help Like Iran and Ukraine Amid Military Internet Shutdown"

Orbit of Starlink satellites floating above the Earth

In Myanmar, where the military coup forces have seized power, some citizens have reached out to Elon Musk for help.

According to local media The Irrawaddy on the 30th, Tin Lin Aung, Minister of Communications for the National Unity Government (NUG), the interim government of the democratic camp, requested Musk to "provide Starlink satellite internet service to Myanmar as you do for Ukraine and Iran."

Starlink is a low Earth orbit satellite internet service operated by Musk's space company SpaceX. After the Iranian government cut off the internet following protests that resulted in more than 40 deaths, Starlink has been providing satellite internet service in Iran. It is also providing internet service to Ukraine, where communications were cut off due to the Russian invasion.

According to Access Now, an organization that protects digital citizenship, the current Myanmar military government has cut off the internet in more than 54 out of approximately 330 townships and is blocking many social media platforms, including Facebook, which is widely used by the Myanmar people.

In regions such as Sagaing and Magway, where fierce battles are taking place, as well as parts of Chin State, Kayah State, and Kachin State, even mobile phone services are being blocked.

The Myanmar military, which staged a coup in February of the following year claiming the 2020 general election, won overwhelmingly by the National League for Democracy (NLD), was a fraudulent election, is violently suppressing forces opposing it.