Myanmar authorities defused a time bomb planted on a pedestrian bridge in Yangon, in an apparent sabotage attempt linked to polls planned in November, state media reported Saturday.
Acting on a tip, authorities on Thursday discovered the bomb in a box left on a wooden overpass near Bogyoke Aung San market in central Yangon, The New Light of Myanmar said, dpa reported.
The market is one of Yangon's oldest, most popular markets, that is frequented by tourists as well as locals.
"Insurgents, destructive elements and political opportunists are trying to ramp up instigation and destructive acts with the aim of disrupting the upcoming multi-party democracy election," the paper said.
Myanmar, under military rule since 1962, is planning its first general election in 20 years on November 7. Few expect the polls to be free or fair.
The New Light of Myanmar said the bombing attempt came after a "drunken brawl" a week earlier between soldiers and seven young men in Bogo, 80 kilometres north-east of Yangon, in which two civilians were shot dead.
The ruling junta claimed that "political opportunists" were trying to use the incident to instigate anti-military protests. Demonstrations in 1988 were sparked by a tea shop altercation between irate citizens and soldiers.
Five mines were also planted near a power line in Thaton, the Mon State, 243 kilometers east of Yangon, on Wednesday.
A bomb-disposal team managed to defuse four of the mines, but a fifth exploded, severing one soldier's right leg, The New Light of Myanmar reported.
"It was found that the failed sabotage act by insurgents to blow up the pylon was timed to coincide with the recent clash among young people that grew into gunfire in Bago," the report said.
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