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BOMB DAMAGE: This car had its windscreen shattered by one of Sunday's explosions, the latest in a series of small blasts and rebel shootings in Myanmar since last December. -- PHOTO: AFP
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YANGON - THE Myanmar government yesterday released pictures of a man 'carrying explosives' who it says was behind Sunday's bombings, days after it warned that terrorists might plant bombs during next month's referendum on a long-awaited Constitution.
Security cameras behind the Traders Hotel in Yangon, the biggest city in Myanmar, filmed the man before blasts went off in the area, the New Light of Myanmar newspaper reported.
The ruling junta has blamed an armed exiled student group for the blasts.
The English-language daily reprinted a snapshot from the security camera, showing a blurred image of a man in a T-shirt and knee-length shorts holding what appears to be a small bag and another non-descript item.
'It is learnt that the perpetrations were committed by a man dubbed Mone Dine, who was sent into the nation after attending explosives courses conducted by Vigorous Burma Student Warriors (VBSW),' said the state-run daily.
It said the man went by the code name Storm, and the authorities have appealed to the public for help in finding the suspect.
The blasts, the latest in a spate of similar incidents this year, come just three weeks before a referendum on a proposed army-backed Constitution, Myanmar's first polls since 1990.
The second explosion on Sunday went off behind the luxury hotel, about an hour after the first blast nearby.
They were caused by explosives planted under cars, and caused no injuries, the newspaper said.
Five armed students from the VBSW were responsible for storming the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok in October 1999. The group took 38 hostages to demand democracy in their country. Thailand allowed them to fly to the border and disappear, angering Myanmar but ending the stand-off without bloodshed.
Several exiled Myanmar dissident groups operate from neighbouring Thailand.
Terrorism is rare in Myanmar, which has been under military rule since 1962.
The country has been hit by a series of small blasts and rebel shootings since December. The authorities have blamed many of the attacks on the Karen National Union rebel group.
Earlier this month, state-run media warned that terrorists might plant bombs during the referendum.
Critics say the proposed Constitution, which was drafted without any input from the opposition, is designed to ensure the military's grip on power.
The junta crushed peaceful pro-democracy protests led by Buddhist monks last September, sparking global outrage.
ASSOCIATED PRESS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
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