LEAD: Activists protest violent crackdown outside Myanmar embassies

(EDS: UPDATING WITH RALLY IN CAMBODIA)

Activists denouncing the Myanmar junta's resort to violence against protesters rallied Friday outside that country's embassies abroad, with one protest in Australia leading to a minor clash with police.

In Canberra, a crowd of about 70 protesters carrying pro-democracy placards skirmished with several dozen police after breaking through a barricade in an attempt to get closer to the embassy building.

One man was arrested for ''breaching the peace'' but was later released.

In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, more than 1,000 Myanmar citizens clad in red T-shirts rallied peacefully in front of their embassy, calling for the junta to halt its crackdown against protesters and an end to military rule.

Under the watchful eyes of dozens of riot police with batons and shields, and with water canon trucks guarding the entrance of the embassy, the protesters sang songs of love and peace amid chants of ''We want democracy!''

There were posters of detained pro-democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi and banners saying, ''Stop killing monks and people'' and ''Release our political prisoners.''

''We want to let the world know of the evil crackdown in Rangoon (Yangon) and other parts of Burma (Myanmar),'' said protester Kyaw Kyaw Min, a refugee from Myanmar and a member of Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy.

''We want the international community and the United Nations to take action against the military government,'' said the former teacher, who has been jailed twice in Myanmar for preaching human rights to his students and for downloading antigovernment material from the Internet.

After some 30 minutes of noisy rallying, the group marched some 200 meters toward the Chinese Embassy where they submitted a memorandum urging Beijing, the junta's main ally, to put pressure on it to engage in genuine reform.

In Manila, about 50 Filipino activists gathered outside Myanmar's embassy as some of them shaved their heads to show their support for Buddhist monks who led the huge protests in recent days.

The protesters condemned junta leader Sr. Gen. Than Shwe for ordering the crackdown and urged the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to impose ''tougher sanctions'' against his government.

''The use of brute force to quell the peaceful protest in Burma is uncalled for,'' said Joshua Mata, leader of a labor group supporting the pro-democracy group Free Burma Coalition.

In Cambodia, nearly 100 people staged a rally in front of Myanmar's embassy in Phnom Penh, condemning the junta's use of force.

The Cambodian Human Rights Action Committee, a coalition of 23 local nongovernmental organizations, released a statement in front of the embassy condemning the violence in Myanmar.

''We join our hearts and minds with the Burmese demonstrators and civilians...in praying for peace, rule of law and democracy,'' it said.

Sam Rainsy, leader of the leading opposition Sam Rainsy Party who was also present at the rally, urged ASEAN leaders to expel Myanmar from the grouping ''if the military regime there continues to violently repress peaceful popular protests.''

The junta acknowledges that at least nine protesters were killed Thursday in the main city Yangon when security forces fired on crowds protesting against decades of army rule and economic hardship.

Hundreds of Buddhist monks, who had led mammoth crowds before the crackdown began, have been beaten and hauled away in army trucks in nighttime raids of monasteries.

''The junta massacred its own people in broad daylight. It's hard to imagine how torture and human rights violations happens at night,'' Mata said, adding the junta ''crossed the line'' when it started attacking monks, who are highly revered in Burmese society.

He said the United Nations and ASEAN ''must take decisive actions against the regime before it's too late.''

''This is not the time for diplomacy or constructive engagement. Now is the time to impose tougher sanctions to Myanmar,'' he said.

The demonstrators also demanded the release of Suu Kyi, whose NLD won a landslide victory in the 1990 general election but was never allowed to govern. The Nobel Peace laureate has spent more than 12 of the last 18 years under house arrest.