[ti:Explainer: How Are the Myanmar Protests Being Organized?] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]Protests in Myanmar against the military [00:04.40]overthrow of the elected government [00:07.72]have grown in recent days. [00:10.92]But the country's military rulers have taken steps [00:15.44]to make organizing the protests difficult or even illegal. [00:22.04]Here is a look at who is organizing the protests [00:26.76]and the problems they face: [00:30.16]It was unclear for many days after the military overthrow on February 1 [00:37.64]whether demonstrations were permitted or not. [00:41.48]But as the demonstrations grew and spread around the country, [00:47.08]the military announced Monday it was banning peaceful public protests [00:53.88]in the country's two largest cities. [00:58.04]Gatherings of more than five people were outlawed and curfews [01:02.96]were put in place from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. for areas of Yangon and Mandalay. [01:11.80]Thousands of people have been demonstrating in those cities since Saturday. [01:18.48]The new restrictions have raised concerns [01:22.04]about the possibility of a violent crackdown. [01:26.44]For the most part, the protests have grown [01:30.08]without any clear leadership structure. [01:33.56]"This movement is leaderless -- people are getting on the streets [01:38.56]in their own way and at their own will," [01:41.84]said Thinzar Shunlei Yi, a well-known activist. [01:47.24]Activist groups, professional work groups, [01:51.72]unions and others across Myanmar have all come out to protest. [01:58.48]The demonstrators are supported by Aung San Suu Kyi's [02:03.12]National League for Democracy party. [02:06.60]Suu Kyi was ousted from power in the military takeover. [02:11.92]Myanmar experienced direct military rule [02:16.28]for more than 50 years until 2012. [02:21.04]Shortly after the latest military overthrow, a Facebook page called [02:27.16]"Civil Disobedience Movement" started calling for peaceful protests. [02:33.52]The page now has more than 230,000 followers. [02:39.04]It is also widely used by Twitter users in Myanmar. [02:44.84]Health care workers also started a protest campaign. [02:49.84]They are urging employees to refuse [02:53.00]to work at state-run medical buildings. [02:56.72]Some people who live in Yangon have voiced their anger [03:01.48]by making loud noises across the city at night. [03:06.08]One of the biggest problems for protesters [03:09.56]has been the military's attempts to block communications. [03:14.48]Facebook has 22 million users in Myanmar, [03:19.08]nearly 40 percent of the population. [03:22.20]The government acted quickly to shut Facebook down. [03:27.16]But people then began moving to other social media services like Twitter. [03:33.56]People have also been passing around information [03:37.96]about how to keep communications secret [03:41.40]and how to stay safe during protests. [03:45.80]Last weekend, the military temporarily [03:49.16]cut internet services and some phone service. [03:53.56]But many protestors were quick to overcome those problems, [03:58.08]with some using phones registered in neighboring Thailand. [04:03.60]"Even when the internet was completely cut off on Saturday [04:08.72]for 24 hours, people were able to communicate [04:13.16]within Myanmar by phone," said Clare Hammond. [04:17.72]She is a senior campaigner for the rights group Global Witness. [04:23.16]For others, simple word of mouth and an understanding [04:28.44]of where demonstrations took place in earlier years [04:32.76]has brought them out in protest. [04:36.12]The protesters seem to remain operating without fear, [04:41.24]even with the new restrictions in place on demonstrations. [04:45.76]Some are worried, however, that the military [04:49.16]is preparing for a violent crackdown similar [04:52.40]to those that ended past uprisings in 2007 and 1988. [05:00.36]Linda Lakhdhir is a legal advisor at Human Rights Watch. [05:05.52]She said the military could try to use violations of the new rules, [05:11.28]as well as existing laws, to justify another crackdown. [05:16.92]She called the laws "draconian." [05:20.72]At times, police have used water cannons [05:24.64]and non-deadly bullets at some protests, [05:28.44]raising concerns about the possibility of additional government measures. [05:34.92]I'm Susan Shand. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM