"Anti-coup demonstrators in Myanmar have inscribed messages on boiled eggs in an Easter-themed protest against the country’s military junta. The country has been gripped by turmoil since a coup in February ousted the civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. Security forces have sought to quell a mass uprising using lethal force, with the death toll reaching 557 as of Saturday, according to the local monitoring group Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP). To coincide with Easter Sunday, scores of Myanmar protesters decorated eggs with political messages and left them on neighbour’s doorsteps and hanging in bags on front gates. Pictures posted on social media on Sunday showed eggs adorned with Aung San Suu Kyi’s likeness and three-finger salutes – a symbol of the resistance – while others said “save our people” and “democracy”. “I am Buddhist but I have joined this campaign because it is easy to get hold of eggs. I spent almost one hour decorating my eggs,” said one Yangon-based egg decorator. “I am praying for Myanmar’s current situation to get back to democracy.” A Facebook group promoting the egg protest urged people to be respectful of Christian traditions on Easter Sunday. Myanmar’s most senior Catholic, Cardinal Charles Bo, tweeted an Easter message: “Jesus has risen: Hallelujah – Myanmar will rise again!” Protesters hit the streets of Mandalay early on Sunday, some carrying flags and riding motorbikes. It comes after four protesters were killed on Saturday in the cities of Bago and Monywa. While foreign companies have faced growing calls to sever ties with the junta, the French energy firm Total announced on Sunday it would not halt gas production in Myanmar. Its chief executive, Patrick Pouyanné, said Total had a duty to stay the course. “Can a company like Total decide to cut off the electricity supply to millions of people – and in so doing, disrupt the operation of hospitals, businesses?” he told the French newspaper Le Journal du Dimanche..."