The strike was called for by the activist group Gen Z and the Civil Disobedience Movement, urging people to come together for a "spring revolution” on the “Five Twos,” a reference to the digits in Monday’s date, 22/2/2021, and a nod to the 8888 pro-democracy uprising in Myanmar on August 8, 1988.
In Pictures: Nationwide General Strike against Military Coup in Myanmar
![A demonstrator flashes the three-finger salute during a protest against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.](https://gdb.voanews.com/34003c18-6276-40be-a2fd-a98fbe44190a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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A demonstrator flashes the three-finger salute during a protest against the military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.
![Anti-coup protesters flash the three-fingered salute during a rally near the Mandalay Railway Station in Mandalay, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.](https://gdb.voanews.com/8cc87056-b470-40ea-84fa-600a35102711_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Anti-coup protesters flash the three-fingered salute during a rally near the Mandalay Railway Station in Mandalay, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.
![Riot police are deployed outside the American Center in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021. (Credit: VOA Burmese Service)](https://gdb.voanews.com/78058f17-88c3-472b-98a7-5fc16cf61c1a_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Riot police are deployed outside the American Center in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021. (Credit: VOA Burmese Service)
![Demonstrators protest against military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.](https://gdb.voanews.com/17307bdd-1196-4a61-a017-1d465605d5fe_w1024_q10_s.jpg)
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Demonstrators protest against military coup in Yangon, Myanmar, Feb. 22, 2021.