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Burma admits Rakhine destruction
Burma's president has acknowledged major destruction in the west of the country, scene of recent ethnic unrest."There have been incidents of whole villages and parts of the towns being burnt down in Rakhine state," Thein Sein's spokesman told the BBC. He was speaking after Human Rights Watch released satellite pictures showing hundreds of buildings destroyed in the coastal town of Kyaukpyu alone. It says the victims were mostly Muslim Rohingya, targeted by non-Muslims. The presidential spokesman said the government was tightening security in affected areas. Officials have said 64 people died in recent unrest, but HRW says it fears the figure could be much higher. Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said the violence showed that Burma's government "urgently needs to provide security for the Rohingya" in Rakhine state, which is also known as Arakan. There is long-standing tension between the ethnic Rakhine people, who make up the majority of the state's population, and Muslims, many of whom are Rohingya and are stateless. The Burmese authorities regard the Rohingya as illegal immigrants and correspondents say there is widespread public hostility to them. Posted by: tipper 2012-10-27 |
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