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| Report on Unrest Is at Odds With Account of Myanmar | Report on Unrest Is at Odds With Account of Myanmar |
| (7 months later) | |
| HONG KONG — The United Nations report this week that rampaging mobs in western Myanmar killed at least four dozen people, mostly Muslims, did more than contradict the government’s official stance. It also put a spotlight on the country’s continuing religious and ethnic strife — and what some say is a flawed government response — even as Myanmar tries to burnish its international image. | |
| Symbolically, this is supposed to be an important moment for Myanmar in its transition to democracy. In taking over the annual rotating chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this month, it assumed a responsibility the government considers prestigious. And after five decades of military dictatorship, Myanmar has been moving on several fronts to shore up its international image, hosting the Southeast Asian Games, a regional sporting event, last month and releasing what it said was the last of its political prisoners. | Symbolically, this is supposed to be an important moment for Myanmar in its transition to democracy. In taking over the annual rotating chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations this month, it assumed a responsibility the government considers prestigious. And after five decades of military dictatorship, Myanmar has been moving on several fronts to shore up its international image, hosting the Southeast Asian Games, a regional sporting event, last month and releasing what it said was the last of its political prisoners. |
| But the United Nations report on the violence in northern Rakhine State this month is almost certain to add to criticism of the government for its failure to aggressively investigate the killings of Muslims ever since sectarian violence in June 2012 set off a series of attacks across the country. | But the United Nations report on the violence in northern Rakhine State this month is almost certain to add to criticism of the government for its failure to aggressively investigate the killings of Muslims ever since sectarian violence in June 2012 set off a series of attacks across the country. |
| Human rights groups say that with the latest round of anti-Muslim violence, the government now appears to be trying to cover up the problem. | Human rights groups say that with the latest round of anti-Muslim violence, the government now appears to be trying to cover up the problem. |
| The area where the attacks occurred has been torn by tensions between its Buddhist population and Muslims known as Rohingya, with frequent bursts of violence driving more than 100,000 Rohingya Muslims from their homes and leaving at least 200 dead. The majority of Myanmar’s population is Buddhist, but Muslims outnumber Buddhists along the border with Bangladesh. | The area where the attacks occurred has been torn by tensions between its Buddhist population and Muslims known as Rohingya, with frequent bursts of violence driving more than 100,000 Rohingya Muslims from their homes and leaving at least 200 dead. The majority of Myanmar’s population is Buddhist, but Muslims outnumber Buddhists along the border with Bangladesh. |
| Navi Pillay, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, said Thursday that the latest violence started on Jan. 9 when eight Rohingya men were killed in the village of Du Chee Yar Tan, near the border with Bangladesh. Four days later, after the reported kidnapping and killing of a police sergeant, the local police stood by as Buddhists seeking revenge used swords, knives and sticks to attack the Rohingya, killing 40 more, officials said. | Navi Pillay, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, said Thursday that the latest violence started on Jan. 9 when eight Rohingya men were killed in the village of Du Chee Yar Tan, near the border with Bangladesh. Four days later, after the reported kidnapping and killing of a police sergeant, the local police stood by as Buddhists seeking revenge used swords, knives and sticks to attack the Rohingya, killing 40 more, officials said. |
| The attacks were first reported by The Associated Press, but government officials have denied the accounts of a massacre. | The attacks were first reported by The Associated Press, but government officials have denied the accounts of a massacre. |
| “We have had no information about killings,” a government spokesman, Ye Htut, said last week. He also has suggested that the claims of violence against the Rohingya were being used to cover up or play down the killing of the police sergeant. Last week, the government-run newspaper The New Light of Myanmar published an article stating in the headline that The A.P. “falsely reports violence occurred in Rakhine State” and saying that the news agency’s reports “seemed to instigate” the unrest. | “We have had no information about killings,” a government spokesman, Ye Htut, said last week. He also has suggested that the claims of violence against the Rohingya were being used to cover up or play down the killing of the police sergeant. Last week, the government-run newspaper The New Light of Myanmar published an article stating in the headline that The A.P. “falsely reports violence occurred in Rakhine State” and saying that the news agency’s reports “seemed to instigate” the unrest. |
| The latest violence erupted after monks from an extremist group known as 969 descended on the area and began giving sermons calling for the expulsion of all the Rohingya, according to local news media accounts. | The latest violence erupted after monks from an extremist group known as 969 descended on the area and began giving sermons calling for the expulsion of all the Rohingya, according to local news media accounts. |
| Ms. Pillay called for an aggressive investigation by Myanmar’s government, urging it “to carry out a full, prompt and impartial investigation and ensure that victims and their families receive justice.” | Ms. Pillay called for an aggressive investigation by Myanmar’s government, urging it “to carry out a full, prompt and impartial investigation and ensure that victims and their families receive justice.” |
| “By responding to these incidents quickly and decisively, the government has an opportunity to show transparency and accountability, which will strengthen democracy and the rule of law in Myanmar,” she said. | “By responding to these incidents quickly and decisively, the government has an opportunity to show transparency and accountability, which will strengthen democracy and the rule of law in Myanmar,” she said. |
| The violence against Muslims has been widely publicized in Muslim countries, including Indonesia and Malaysia, important members of Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The government has sought to play down the issue and announced earlier this month that it would not allow it to be put on the agenda during its chairmanship. | The violence against Muslims has been widely publicized in Muslim countries, including Indonesia and Malaysia, important members of Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The government has sought to play down the issue and announced earlier this month that it would not allow it to be put on the agenda during its chairmanship. |
| Anti-Muslim feelings run deep in Myanmar, partly because the Rohingya, who number around one million and are the largest Muslim group in the country, are considered illegal immigrants. That sentiment, among the Buddhist-Burmese majority, is a legacy of colonial times, when large numbers of Indians were brought into Burma by the British. The Myanmar government refuses to use the term Rohingya, preferring to call the group Bengalis. | Anti-Muslim feelings run deep in Myanmar, partly because the Rohingya, who number around one million and are the largest Muslim group in the country, are considered illegal immigrants. That sentiment, among the Buddhist-Burmese majority, is a legacy of colonial times, when large numbers of Indians were brought into Burma by the British. The Myanmar government refuses to use the term Rohingya, preferring to call the group Bengalis. |
| Human Rights Watch said Friday that police officials in Rakhine had issued an order allowing for the arrest of all Rohingya men over the age of 10. | Human Rights Watch said Friday that police officials in Rakhine had issued an order allowing for the arrest of all Rohingya men over the age of 10. |
| “In the event such an order has been issued, it should be rescinded immediately and authorities should act to ensure the safety of the entire population in the area,” the group said. | “In the event such an order has been issued, it should be rescinded immediately and authorities should act to ensure the safety of the entire population in the area,” the group said. |
| While President Obama highlighted the plight of the Rohingya during his visit to Myanmar in November 2012, the country’s leading politicians, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Prize-winning rights leader, have largely been quiet on the issue. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi is considered a potential candidate for president in 2015. | While President Obama highlighted the plight of the Rohingya during his visit to Myanmar in November 2012, the country’s leading politicians, including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Prize-winning rights leader, have largely been quiet on the issue. Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi is considered a potential candidate for president in 2015. |