Australia has joined an international call for the Burmese military junta to immediately stop its violent suppression of the country on the first anniversary of the military coup. In a joint statement with the European Union, Albania, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, Korea, the United Kingdom and the United States on Feb. 1, Australia called for an end to the violence in Burma (also known as Myanmar). “The devastating impact on the people of Myanmar is clear,” the statement said. “Over 14 million people are in humanitarian need, the economy is in crisis, democratic gains have been reversed, and conflict is spreading across the country. The military regime bears responsibility for this crisis. “We reiterate our call on the military regime to immediately end the State of Emergency, allow unhindered humanitarian access, release all arbitrarily detained persons, including foreigners, and swiftly return the country to the democratic process,” it read. In …