Protests grow in Myanmar against Thai beach murder verdict

YANGON: Hundreds of people in Myanmar have staged a fifth day of protests against death sentences issued by a Thai court to two Myanmar men convicted of murdering a pair of British backpackers, but who are seen by many as scapegoats in the high-profile case.

Tuesday's protest was held outside the Thai Embassy, which has closed its consular section for the entire week due to the ongoing demonstrations since last week's verdict.

Win Zaw Htun and Zaw Lin were sentenced to death for the murders of David Miller and Hannah Witheridge, whose bodies were found on the Thai island of Koh Tao on September 14, 2014. Autopsies showed that Witheridge had also been raped.

Both men say they are innocent and that police tortured them to force them to confess.