LONDON, 06 July 2021, (TON): A new task force was launched to investigate evidence of human rights violations in Myanmar five months after the military removed elected leader Aung San Suu Kyi and plunged the Southeast Asian country into turmoil.

The British-government funded project, Myanmar Witness, said it would be sharing information with the United Nations’ Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, which is probing suspected crimes in Myanmar.

The initiative comes as Western countries seek to increase pressure on Myanmar’s military rulers over accusations of human rights abuses, with the United Nations saying more than 880 people have been killed by security forces since the coup , a figure the military says is exaggerated.

The group said “Myanmar Witness will independently collect, preserve, process, investigate, verify and review incidents of possible interferences with human rights.”

Protesters burn a military uniform as they take part in a flash mob demonstration against the coup in Yangon on July 1.