One important message that Myanmar's junta leader tried to stress this weekend was his offer of an olive branch to his country's ethnic minorities, AP reports.

Min Aung Hlaing, speaking on Union Day, said: “The patriotic spirit is defined as adoring the own country, national races, language, literature and culture and having a feeling against the encroachment on the nation and the national races,” he said. “The weak patriotic spirit can bring terrible danger to the national and the national races.”

Min Aung Hlaing had invited Ethnic Armed Organisations (EAOs) to attend “pre peace” talks in Naypyidaw on Union Day, but most of the organisations he asked, including the ABSDF, Karen National Union (KNU) and Arakan Army (AA) rebuffed him.

Social media users also called on everyone to observe ‘Black TV Day’ and‘ blackout’ all state media by not looking at anything broadcast or published by the military on Union Day.