Pro-democracy activists in Myanmar and in the diaspora marked the 63rd anniversary of the “7 July Student Uprising” on Monday. On July 7, 1962, Rangoon University students were killed protesting against the then-regime leader Ne Win, who introduced stricter campus rules and an end to university self-administration.

“The 7 July is a symbol of students’ resistance against military regimes,” Khin Ni, a spokesperson of the All Burma Federation of Student Unions (ABFSU), told DVB. The ABSFU was established in 1938 and it played a leading role in the fight for independence, which was achieved in 1948, and against military rule, which began in 1962.

Unofficial sources documented that the “7 July Student Uprising” resulted in the death of over one hundred students. Official accounts have only acknowledged 15 killed. The day after the crackdown, Ne Win ordered the demolition of the historic Rangoon University Students’ Union building, which has never been rebuilt. 

The National Unity Government (NUG) released a statement on July 7 commemorating the student-led uprising and commended all who have continually opposed military rule over the last six decades of resistance. 

It acknowledged its commitment to resisting Myanmar’s most recent military coup on Feb. 1, 2021 and ending military rule in the country for once and all. 

The All Burma Students’ Democratic Front (ABSDF) marked the historic date at its headquarters in Karen State with a tribute to all those who took part in the “7 July Student Uprising” with revolutionary poetry and music.

Pro-democracy activists, who oppose the 2021 coup, commemorated the uprising for the fourth year-in-a-row in Kalay and Salingyi townships of Sagaing Region, Launglon and Thayetchaung townships of Tanintharyi Region, Hpruso Township of Karenni State, and Aungban Township of southern Shan on July 7. 

In Yangon, unknown activists staged a campaign on social media sharing photos of postcards, containing images taken in 1962 of the demolished students’ union building.  

“They may have demolished the building but they have never crushed our spirit,” Kyaw San, the secretary of the Myanmar Federal Democracy Movement Coalition, told DVB in Busan, South Korea. 

His group, along with the Busan Network, and the RAM organization, staged “7 July Student Uprising” support rallies in both Busan and Daegu, South Korea, on July 7.

Myanmar exiles, who fled after the 2021 coup, living in Chiang Mai, Thailand, hung banners reading “Long Live [the] Students’ Revolution” in public spaces and outside of the Myanmar consulate in northern Thailand.