- 4 November 2013
It follows the latest eruption of violence in the western state,
where communal clashes between Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims have
claimed hundreds of lives since last year.
On Saturday, at least four people, including three Rohingyas, were
killed in Pauktaw township, an area about two hours northeast of the
state capital Sittwe. Local Buddhists later accused Médecins Sans
Frontières (MSF) of “bias” for taking three injured Muslim men to
hospital.
Government spokesperson Hla Thein told DVB that a group of
18 major aid groups, including UN agencies, were subsequently called to a
meeting to remind them that they must be impartial in the provision of
humanitarian aid.
“This morning, the [Arakan state] chief minister [Hla Maung Tin]
summoned 18 INGOs and UN agencies in Sittwe and reminded them to be
transparent with their operations in conflict areas to show the locals
that they are impartial,” he said, warning that international aid groups
are not entitled to “special privileges” because they are foreign.
Hla Thein said that Sittwe residents were upset with MSF for taking
three Muslim men, who were injured in a confrontation with police on
Saturday, to treatment at Sittwe hospital.
“They said that MSF is biased and only care for the Bengalis but not
the Arakanese,” he explained, using the government’s term for the Muslim
Rohingya who are denied citizenship in Burma.
Six Rohingyas from Sintatmaw displacement camp in Pauktaw township
disappeared on Saturday after going in search of firewood in the nearby
hills. One of the men were later discovered dead, allegedly from
physical wounds, and taken back to their local mosque. The remaining
five are still missing.
Another three Rohingya were injured by police during a confrontation
at the camp, one of whom later died in hospital. Hla Thein said police
officials were forced to shoot into the crowd.
Three Arakanese women were later targeted in the nearby Sinaigyi
village as part of a revenge attack, which claimed the life of one and
injured another.
“Some individuals were injured in Sintatmaw during the confrontation
where the police had to fire some shots to make a way out and an MSF
member brought them to Sittwe on a speedboat and residents in Sittwe
were upset because the group didn’t provide same treatment to the women
who were attacked in Sinaigyi,” said Hla Thein.
Some 140,000 people have been uprooted and at least 200 people killed
during several bouts of communal clashes to ripple through Arakan state
since June 2012.
International aid groups have been treated with hostility by local
Buddhists who say they favour the Rohingya. Aid workers report enormous
difficulties in distributing aid to the Rohingya, who make up the
majority of the displaced, often facing threats of violence from
Buddhists.
The UN has previously criticised the government for failing to ensure unhindered access for aid groups working in Arakan.
Hla Thein said that Sittwe residents on Sunday attempted to organise a
protest against the alleged NGO “bias” but later changed their minds
after negotiating with the local authorities.
Some 800,000 Rohingya Muslims are believed to reside in western
Burma, where they are considered illegal Bengali immigrants and heavily
persecuted.
Source: DVB
No comments:
Post a Comment