Sign in. It’s quick, free and it’s up to you.
An account is an optional way to support the work we do. Find out more.
AFTER A MASS exodus of Rohingya Muslims sparked allegations of ethnic cleansing, Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has said her country does not fear international scrutiny.
She told the world that even with an estimated 412,000 Rohingya fleeing to Bangladesh in less than a month as their villages burned and hundreds were killed, the “great majority” of Muslims within the conflict zone stayed and that “more than 50% of their villages were intact”.
The Nobel Peace laureate’s global image has been damaged by violence since Rohingya insurgents attacked Myanmar security forces on 25 August.
The Rohingya community fled their villages in the military crackdown that followed. Many of their villages were in flames when they left. The government has blamed the Rohingya themselves, but members of the persecuted minority have said soldiers and Buddhist mobs attacked them.
‘No armed clashes’
Suu Kyi told foreign diplomats gathered for her speech in Naypyitaw, the capital, that the government was working to restore normalcy in the area.
Though fires have continued to flare in recent days in northern Rakhine state, home to most Rohingya, she said “there has been no armed clashes and there have been no clearance operations” since 5 September.
“Nevertheless we are concerned to hear that numbers of Muslims are fleeing across the border to Bangladesh,” she said.
We want to understand why this exodus is happening. We would like to talk to those who have fled as well as those who have stayed.
She said she it would be helpful to understand why conflict did not break out everywhere. She invited the diplomats to visit villages that weren’t affected so they could learn along with the government “why are they not at each other’s throats in these particular areas”.
Refugees
In the Kutupalong refugee camp, Abdul Hafiz said Rohingya once trusted Suu Kyi more than the military that not only ruled for half a century before but also held her under house arrest for many years.
Now, Hafiz called Suu Kyi a “liar” and says Rohingya are suffering more than ever.
He said Suu Kyi should give international journalists more access to their destroyed villages. If Rohingya are proven wrong that they were attacked, he said, “we will not mind if the world decides to kill us all by pushing us into the sea”.
The Rohingya have had a long and troubled history in Myanmar, where many of the country’s 60 million people look at them with disdain.
Though members of the long-persecuted religious minority first arrived generations ago, they were stripped of their citizenship in 1982, denying them almost all rights and rendering them stateless. They cannot travel freely, practice their religion, or work as teachers or doctors, and they have little access to medical care, food or education.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Busy night for dfb
C Watch
Well done B watch. Good save
Jaysus! SRT’s mobilised to domestics now? Spare the water lads ;-)
Thank God all are safe and no fatalities!
Chip-pan roulette ?
It was on fm104 tonight that someone petrol bombed that family
Yeah and they were sxxm bags 2 one of them chased a little 13 year old girl down the road with a knife live by the sword this is what happens
General Exclusions
We shall not be liable for
War and Terrorism
Notwithstanding any provision to the
contrary within this insurance or any
endorsement thereto it is agreed that
this insurance excludes liability, loss,
damage, cost or expense of
whatsoever nature directly or
indirectly caused by, resulting from
or in connection with any of the
following regardless of any other
cause or event contributing
concurrently or in any other
sequence to the loss;
(1) war, invasion, acts of foreign
enemies, hostilities or warlike
operations (whether war be
declared or not), civil war,
rebellion, revolution,
insurrection, civil commotion
assuming the proportions of or
amounting to an uprising,
military or usurped power, or
(2) any act of terrorism.
An act of terrorism means an
act, including but not limited to
the use of force or violence
and/or the threat thereof, of any
person or group(s) of persons,
whether acting alone or on
behalf of or in connection with
any organisation(s) or
government(s), committed for
political, religious, ideological or
other purposes including the
intention to influence any
government and/or to put the
public, or any section of the
public, in fear.
This endorsement also excludes
liability, loss, damage, cost or
expense of whatsoever nature
directly or indirectly caused by,
resulting from or in connection with
any action taken in controlling,
preventing, suppressing or in any
way relating to (1) and/or (2) above.
If the Company alleges that by reason
of this exclusion any liability, loss,
damage, cost or expense is not
covered by this insurance the burden
of proving the contrary shall be upon
the Insured.
In the event any portion of this
endorsement is found to be invalid or
unenforceable, the remainder shall
remain in full force and effect.
have your say