Start of Myanmar coup captured in dance instructor's video

Teacher unwittingly filmed arrival of armed convoy at parliament complex

Military vehicles and soldiers block the road leading to the parliament in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, February 2, 2021. EPA

A woman who set out to film an exercise routine in front of Myanmar’s parliament building on Monday seems to have captured the first moments of the country's military coup.

Khing Hnin Wai – a physical education teacher, according to her Facebook page – continued her routine in Naypyidaw as a convoy of SUVs arrived at a security checkpoint on the road leading to the Assembly of the Union complex.

The dancer, whose back was to the checkpoint, seemed unaware of the events unfolding behind her.

Khing Hnin Wai posted the video to her Facebook page and later said that the video was real.

She said she had danced at that location many times in the past 11 months.

Myanmar’s military announced on Monday that it had taken control of the democratically elected government, arrested senior officials and declared a one-year state of emergency.