Sunday 31 March 2013

Myanmar sets up emergency committee to handle sectarian violence

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March 31, 2013 1:41 pm

Yangon - Myanmar has set up an emergency committee to cope with sectarian violence that claimed at least 43 lives this month, state media said Sunday.

President Thein Sein ordered it "to prevent instigation across the country, to expose main instigators of riots and to take action against them," the New Light of Myanmar reported.

The nine-person committee is headed by Home Minister Ko Ko, with presidential advisor Aung Min as vice chairman.

Thein Sein, who came to power two years ago, vowed to use force to curb clashes between Buddhist and Muslim communities that broke out in Meiktila, Mandalay division, on March 20. Unrest has spread to other districts in central Myanmar and the southern Bago region, prompting authorities to impose dusk-to-dawn curfews in 15 townships.

The violence left 43 dead, 86 injured and more than 11,000 homeless, leading to 68 arrests.

The rioting was sparked by an argument in a gold shop in Mandalay division, where Muslims account for 30 per cent of the population, an unusually high proportion in the mainly Buddhist country.

The Home Ministry has estimated that 1,355 houses, shops and buildings were destroyed. More than 9,000 people were in temporary refuges.

In May, clashes between Buddhists and Rohingya-Muslims in the Rakhine State left at least 167 people dead and 125,000 homeless.//DPA

Religious 'radicals' driving Myanmar unrest: experts

credid-Bangkok Post
Two years after a repressive junta ceded power, Myanmar is grappling with a surge in religious extremism that experts trace to anti-Muslim "provocateurs" including radical Buddhist monks.
  • Published: 31/03/2013 at 01:49 PM
  • Newspaper section: news
Buildings burn around a mosque in riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar, on March 21, 2013. Two years after a repressive junta ceded power, Myanmar is grappling with a surge in religious extremism that experts trace to anti-Muslim "provocateurs" including radical Buddhist monks.
At least 43 people have been killed while mosques and Muslim homes have been destroyed over the past fortnight in central Myanmar, in a wave of violence that witnesses say seems to have been well organised.

"It is clear that there are some agents provocateurs with radical anti-Muslim agendas at work in the country -- including influential Buddhist monks preaching intolerance and hatred of Muslims," said Jim Della-Giacoma, a Myanmar expert with the International Crisis Group think-tank.

"Also, the systematic and methodical way in which Muslim neighbourhoods were razed to the ground is highly suggestive of some degree of advance planning by radical elements," he added.

Monks -- once at the forefront of the pro-democracy movement and viewed with reverence in this devout Buddhist-majority nation -- have been linked to the unrest.
Some members of the clergy have been involved in the violence, while others are spearheading a move to shun shops owned by Muslims and only visit stores run by Buddhists, identified by stickers showing the number "969", which has become a symbol of their campaign.

"When the profit goes to the enemy's hand, our nationality, language and religion are all harmed," said Wirathu, a monk from Mandalay whose anti-Muslim remarks have come under recent scrutiny.

"They will take girls with this money. They will force them to convert religion. All children born to them will be a danger to the country. They will destroy the language as well as the religion," he said in a speech put online.

More moderate voices among civil society activists and religious leaders are calling for the country to defuse violence that has cast a shadow over the Buddhist-majority nation's political reforms.
"We need to fight this incitement by a group of bad people," said Thet Swe Win, a human rights activist who co-organised a recent "Pray for Myanmar" peace event in Rangoon.
"We must prevent racial and religious disputes," he added.

The apparent spark for the recent violence was an argument in a gold shop in the town of Meiktila on March 20 that escalated into a full-scale riot.
Since then armed gangs have roamed from town to town in central Myanmar razing mosques and Muslim homes.

It follows Buddhist-Muslim clashes in the western state of Rakhine last year that left at least 180 people dead, mostly minority Muslim Rohingya who are viewed by many Burmese as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants.
A wave of hate has swept across social media websites targeting the Rohingya, who have long been denied citizenship by Myanmar's government, which -- like many Burmese -- refers to them as "Bengalis".

Recently, however, the violence has also targeted Muslims with Myanmar citizenship, some of whose families came to the country more than a century ago from India, Bangladesh or China.

Speaking to AFP, monk Wirathu denied that he was against all Muslims, and said the "969" movement was unrelated to the recent unrest.
"We just targeted Bengalis who are terrorising ethnic Rakhine (Buddhists)," the 45-year-old said.
"We are just preaching to prevent Bengalis entering the country and to stop them insulting our nationalities, language and religion," he added.
In an effort to stem the violence, the government has declared a state of emergency and deployed troops in the worst-hit areas.

The United Nations' human rights envoy to the country, Tomas Ojea Quintana, has said the reluctance of security forces to crack down on the unrest suggests a possible state link to the fighting -- comments rejected by Myanmar.
On Thursday, President Thein Sein appeared on national television to address the nation, warning unidentified "political opportunists and religious extremists" that their actions "will not be tolerated."

It was a "courageous" speech, according to independent analyst Mael Raynaud.
"A Myanmar president addressing the nation directly and talking about religious extremism clearly aimed at Buddhist monks -- that's never been seen before," he said.
In contrast, opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who many believe has her sights set firmly on the next election in 2015, has not yet spoken publicly about the recent clashes.
"Now is the time for political leaders to rise to the challenge of shaping public opinion, rather than just following it," Della-Giacomo said.

Suu Kyi "must be prepared to vocally and unambiguously take the side of peace and tolerance", he added.

About the author

columnist
Writer: AFP News agency
Position: Agence France-Presse

Saturday 30 March 2013

World Muslim body to meet on Myanmar violence

World Muslim body to meet on Myanmar violence

Saturday 30 March 2013 : 03:01 PM
 
OIC Secretary- General Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu.


Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu said in a statement that a contact committee of OIC foreign ministers would gather in the Red Sea port of Jeddah.

State media in Myanmar reported on Saturday that the death toll from communal violence in the centre of the country over the past 10 days has risen to 43 with more than 1,300 homes and other buildings destroyed.

An OIC statement said Ihsanoglu addressed a contact group meeting on violence against Myanmar Muslims known as Rohingya on Saturday and said the organisation was "ready to take all necessary measures and actions to deal with it".

Ihsanoglu also pressed the government of Myanmar to "put an end to the Buddhist extremists and hate campaigns, as well as ethnic cleansing that they had launched against Muslims in the country".

On Friday, Myanmar strongly rejected comments by the UN's special rapporteur on Myanmar human rights, Tomas Ojea Quintana, the previous day that he had "received reports of state involvement in some of the acts of violence".

Buddhist mobs have marauded through several towns in central Myanmar since religious violence erupted on March 20, prompting the government to impose emergency rule and curfews in some areas.

It is the worst sectarian strife since violence between Buddhists and Muslims in the western state of Rakhine last year left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced.

Myanmar's Muslims -- largely of Indian, Chinese and Bangladeshi descent -- account for an estimated four percent of the population of roughly 60 million.

Pray for Myanmar’ ceremony draws leaders of four religions

‘Pray for Myanmar’ ceremony draws leaders of four religions

An interfaith event in Yangon drew leaders of four major religions yesterday to work together to bring calm to Myanmar after last week’s deadly rioting spread tension across the country.

“The current incidents are only a trap. We need to be ever vigilant against the involvement in possible violence,” Islamic religious leader Aye Lwin said at the Pray for Myanmar meeting at the YMCA in Botahtaung township.

 “The violence is a national concern for the entire people. The military dictatorship need not return. All that is required is to restore rule of law. My attitude is the same as that of Myanmar Muslim National Affairs Organisation,” Aye Lwin told Eleven Media.
Buddhists must cultivate a benevolent attitude. We must show respect to one another, monk U Kawnanya told the gathering.

Christian priest Tmity Cathldsai Chasch said that calmness and living in peaceful coexistence in the midst of conflict would make Myanmar’s reputation shine throughout the world. Unity and coexistence are essentials in avoiding the conflict, he said, adding that unity would be proof conflict instigated under the pretext of race and religion could be prevented.
Hindu leader Aung Naing said Muslims had lived for generations together with their Buddhist neighbours.

Islamic youth leader Zaw Min Latt said, “we have grown up in Myanmar and understand the gratitude we will have to owe Myanmar.”
“If Myanmar people want to study at our mosques in all parts of Myanmar, I will guide them. Only then will suspicions disappear. All are welcome. We have sacrificed for Myanmar since the time of our earliest ancestors. For instance, if Myanmar and a Muslim country are at war, we will sacrifice only for Myanmar. We will spend our life until our death only in Myanmar,” he said.

Blogger Nay Phone Latt said, “we need to remember we are Myanmar citizens despite believing any religion. We are required to live in peaceful coexistence ... We need to remove extreme views.”
Poets recited peace and friendship poems for four religions at the event.
credit-ELEVEN 

Breakingnews > Myanmar denies blame for riots

Credid-Bangkok Post

Myanmar denies blame for riots

YANGON — Myanmar's government on Saturday rejected remarks by a UN human rights official suggesting that the authorities bear some blame for recent mob attacks by Buddhists on Muslims that killed dozens of people.

The UN official, Tomas Ojea Quintana, urged Myanmar's government on Friday to investigate allegations that security forces watched as Buddhist mobs attacked Muslims. He also said the government needed to do more to protect the country's Muslims.
Deputy Information Minister Ye Htut said on his Facebook page on Saturday that he "strongly rejected" the comments by Ojea Quintana, the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar.

Ye Htut, who is also the presidential spokesman, wrote that it was "saddening that [Ojea Quintana] made his comments based on hearsay without assessing the situation on the ground".
A police officer rides a motorbike past debris of buildings and a truck destroyed during ethnic unrest between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, 550 kilometres north of Yangon, last Monday. (AP Photo)

He added that such remarks amounted to ignoring efforts by the government, security personnel, religious leaders and civil society organisations trying to restore order.
The state-run Kyemon newspaper said on Saturday that 43 people had died and 86 were injured since rioting first flared on March 20 in the central town of Meikhtila.
It said there were 163 incidents of violence in 15 townships in the country, with 1,355 buildings damaged or destroyed.

It reported that a few attacks against "religious buildings", shops and houses continued on Friday, a day after President Thein Sein declared that his government would use force if necessary to quell the rioting, which was sparked by a dispute between a Muslim gold shop owner and his Buddhist customers.

The report said soldiers and police had to shoot into the air to disperse the mobs Friday, though no casualties were reported.

Thein Sein warned in a televised address Thursday that efforts by "political opportunists" and "religious extremists" who tried to sow hatred would not be tolerated.
Ojea Quintana welcomed Thein Sein's public call for the violence to stop, but said authorities "need to do much more" to keep the violence from spreading and undermining the reform process.

"The government has simply not done enough to address the spread of discrimination and prejudice against Muslim communities," Ojea Quintana said in his statement.
He also called on the government to look into allegations that soldiers and police stood by "while atrocities have been committed before their very eyes, including by well-organized ultra-nationalist Buddhist mobs".

Police in Meikhtila had been criticised for failing to act quickly and decisively against the rioting, in which mostly Muslim-owned houses, shops and mosques were burned down.
Occasional isolated violence involving majority Buddhists and minority Muslims has occurred in the country for decades, even under the authoritarian military governments that ruled Myanmar from 1962 to 2011.

But tensions have heightened since last year when hundreds of people were killed and more than 100,000 made homeless in violence in western Myanmar between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya

Muslims Vanish as Buddhist Attacks Approach Burma’s Biggest Cities

Muslim men pray at Meikhtila’s mosque in February. On March 20, riots would destroy the building and thousands of Muslims would flee the town. (Photo: Geoffrey Hiller)

SIT KWIN, PEGU DIVISION—The Muslims of Sit Kwin were always a small group who numbered no more than 100 of the village’s 2,000 people. But as sectarian violence led by Buddhist mobs spreads across central Burma, they and many other Muslims are disappearing.
Their homes, shops and mosques destroyed, some end up in refugee camps or hide in the homes of friends or relatives. Dozens have been killed.

“We don’t know where they are,” says Aung Ko Myint, 24, a taxi driver in Sit Kwin, a farming village where on Friday Buddhists ransacked a store owned by the town’s last remaining Muslim. “He escaped this morning just before the mob got here.”

Since 42 people were killed in violence that erupted in Meikhtila town on March 20, unrest led by hardline Buddhists has spread to at least 10 other towns and villages in central Burma, with the latest incidents only about a two-hour drive from the commercial capital, Rangoon.

The crowds are fired up by anti-Muslim rhetoric spread over the Internet and by word of mouth from monks preaching a movement known as “969″. The three numbers refer to various attributes of the Buddha, his teachings and the monkhood. But it has come to represent a radical form of anti-Islamic nationalism which urges Buddhists to boycott Muslim-run shops and services.

Burma is predominantly Buddhist but about 5 percent of its 60 million people are Muslims. There are large Muslim communities in Rangoon, Mandalay and towns across Burma’s heartland where the religions have co-existed for generations.
But as violence spreads from village to village, the unleashing of ethnic hatred, suppressed during 49 years of military rule that ended in March 2011, is challenging the reformist government of one of Asia’s most ethnically diverse countries.
Dusk-to-dawn curfews are in effect in many areas of Pegu Division, the region where Sit Kwin lies, while four townships in central Burma are under a state of emergency imposed last week.

“I will not hesitate to use force as a last resort to protect the lives and safeguard the property of the general public,” President Thein Sein said in a nationally televised speech on Thursday, warning “political opportunists and religious extremists” against instigating further violence.
The unrest has made almost 13,000 people homeless, according to the United Nations. State-run media reports 68 people have been arrested.

RUMOURS
The trouble in Sit Kwin began four days ago when people riding 30 motorbikes drove through town urging villagers to expel Muslim residents, said witnesses. They then trashed a mosque and a row of Muslim shops and houses.
“They came with anger that was born from rumours,” said one man who declined to be identified.

Further south, police in Letpadan have stepped up patrols in the farming village of 22,000 people about 160 km (100 miles) from Rangoon.
Three monks led a 30-strong group towards a mosque on Friday. Police dispersed the crowd, many of whom carried knives and staves, and briefly detained two people. They were later released at the request of township officials, police said.
“I won’t let it happen again,” said police commander Phone Myint. “The president yesterday gave the police authority to control the situation.”

The abbot who led the protest, Khamainda, said he took to the streets after hearing rumors passed by other monks by telephone, about violence between Buddhists and Muslims in other towns. He said he wanted revenge against Muslims for the destruction by the Taliban of Buddhist statues in Bamiyan province in Afghanistan in 2001.

“There is no problem with the way they live. But they are the minority and we are the majority. And when the minority insults our religion we get concerned,” he told Reuters. “We will come out again if we get a chance.”
Letpadan villagers fear the tension will explode. “I’m sure they will come back and destroy the mosque,” says Aung San Kyaw, 35, a Muslim. “We’ve never experienced anything like this.”

Across the street, Hla Tan, a 67-year-old Buddhist, shares the fear. “We have lived peacefully for years. Nothing can happen between us unless outsiders come. But if they come, I know we can’t stop them,” he said.
North of Sit Kwin, the farming town of Minhla endured about three hours of violence on both Wednesday and Thursday.

About 300 people, many from the nearby village of Ye Kyaw, gathered on Wednesday afternoon. The crowd swelled to about 800 as townsfolk joined, a Minhlapoliceman told Reuters. They then destroyed three mosques and 17 shops and houses, he said. No Buddhist monks were involved, said witnesses.

“VERY NERVOUS”

The mob carried sticks, metal pipes and hammers, said Hla Soe, 60, a Buddhist who runs an electrical repair shop in Minhla. “No one could stop them,” he said.
About 200 soldiers and police eventually intervened to restore a fragile peace. “I’m very nervous that it will happen again,” he said.
About 500 of Minhla’s township’s 100,000 people are Muslims, said the police officer, who estimated two-thirds of those Muslims had fled.
However, Tun Tun is staying. “I have no choice,” says the 26-year-old, whose tea shop was destroyed and looted by Buddhists, one armed with a chainsaw.

He plans to rebuild his shop, whose daily income of 10,000 kyat ($11) supports an extended family of 12. On the wall of his ransacked kitchen is a portrait of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. He did not believe she could do anything to help.
Tun Tun traced the rising communal tension in Minhla to speeches given on Feb. 26 and 27 by a celebrated monk visiting from Mon State, to the east of Rangoon. He spoke to a crowd of 2,000 about the “969 movement”, said Win Myint, 59, who runs a Buddhist community centre which hosted the monk.

After the 969 talks, Muslims were jeered and fewer Buddhists frequented his tea shop, said Tun Tun. Stickers bearing pastel hues overlaid with the numerals 969 appeared on non-Muslim street stalls across Minhla.
President Thein Sein’s ambitious reform programme has won praise, but his government has also been criticised for failing to stem violence last year in Arakan State in western Burma, where officials say 110 people were killed and 120,000 were left homeless, most of them Rohingya Muslims.

The UN special rapporteur on human rights in Burma said on Thursday he had received reports of “state involvement” in the recent violence at Meikhtila.
Soldiers and police sometimes stood by “while atrocities have been committed before their very eyes, including by well-organized ultra-nationalist Buddhist mobs”, said the rapporteur, Tomas Ojea Quintana. “This may indicate direct involvement by some sections of the state or implicit collusion and support for such actions.”

Ye Htut, a presidential spokesman and deputy minister of information, called those accusations “groundless”. “In fact, the military and the government could not be concerned more about this situation,” he said in a Facebook post.
Late on Friday, three monks were preparing to give another “969″ speech in Ok Kan, a town 113 km (70 miles) from Rangoon.

credid-The Irrawaddy

Friday 29 March 2013

Iran urges OHCHR to end Muslims’ genocide in Myanmar

Iran urges OHCHR to end Muslims’ genocide in Myanmar
File photo shows Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims taking refuge on a street near the United Nations High Commission for Refugees office in New Delhi on May 6, 2012.
File photo shows Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims taking refuge on a street near the United Nations High Commission for Refugees office in New Delhi on May 6, 2012.
Tue Jul 24, 2012 2:16PM GMT
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Iran has called on the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay to take immediate action and urge the Myanmar regime to put an end to the ongoing genocide and systematic violation of human rights of the Muslim people in the country.


In a letter to Pillay, Iran's permanent representative at the UN's European Office in Geneva, Seyyed Mohammad Reza Sajjadi, has called for immediate and effective action by all concerned international organizations, including the High Commissioner for Human Rights, to condemn and rapidly stop the “genocide and widespread and systematic violation of human rights of the innocent Muslim people of Myanmar.”

He has also expressed deep concern over the continuation of rampant violence and pogrom of the Muslim people of Myanmar, including a remarkable number of women and children.

Sajjadi stressed that the new wave of violence against Muslims in Myanmar, which has led to mass killing of hundreds of innocent civilians, destruction and burning of mosques and houses, and forceful expulsion of people from their homes has hurt the humane sentiments and caused deep concern among the international community and the world people.

The Iranian envoy emphasized that Iran also wrote another letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon last week to express profound concern over continuation of the horrendous situation of the oppressed Myanmarese Muslims.

The Iranian envoy stated that a copy of the letter to Ban had also been sent to Pillay, but the UN has so far failed to take any serious practical steps in this regard.

The government of Myanmar refuses to recognize Rohingyas, who it claims are not natives and classifies them as illegal migrants. This comes while the Rohingya are said to be Muslim descendants of Persian, Turkish, Bengali, and Pathan origin, who migrated to Myanmar as early as the 8th century.

Myanmar’s President Thein Sein said on July 19 that the "only solution" to the plight of Rohingya Muslims is to send the country’s nearly one million Muslims -- which is one of the world's most persecuted minorities -- to refugee camps run by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

However, the UN refugee agency has snubbed the idea of setting up refugee camps to accommodate the Rohingyas.

"We will send them away if any third country would accept them," Sein added. "This is what we are thinking is the solution to the issue."

Even Myanmar’s Western-sponsored democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi has kept silent on atrocities perpetrated against the Rohingya Muslims.

Over the past two years, waves of ethnic Muslims have attempted to flee by boats in the face of systematic oppression by the Myanmar government. 
 
source-Press tv

Myanmar resouces silence US-led West on Rohingya genocide : Dr. Randy Short

Fri Mar 29, 2013 11:55AM GMT
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Interview with Dr. Randy Short
 
I believe that these people are being cleansed so there can be access to do offshore drilling to get these people out of the way. And of course you have to get the approval of the government of Myanmar to drill and to bring your corporations in.”
A human rights activist tells Press TV that the world has been silent on the genocide of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar in order for them to get the access they want to the country’s energy resources.


The United Nations says there are reports showing the government of Myanmar has been involved in recent deadly violence against Rohingya Muslims. On Thursday, the UN special rapporteur on Myanmar human rights Tomas Ojea Quintana issued a statement saying that “I have received reports of State involvement in some of the acts of violence.” Myanmar's government has been repeatedly criticized for failing to protect the country’s Muslim community, known as Rohingyas. Hundreds of Rohingyas are believed to have been killed and thousands of others displaced in attacks by Buddhist extremists, who frequently attack the Muslim community and burn their homes in the state of Rakhine.

Press TV has interviewed Dr. Randy Short, a human rights activist from Washington, regarding the issue. The following is an approximate transcript of the interview.

Press TV: What is being reported by this rapporteur from the UN is nothing new. State collusion was raised time and time again with regards to the repression of the Muslim community there. why did it take so long for the UN to come up with this conclusion?

Short: It is not so much that took so long. Who funds the UN? Who are the dominant nations in the UN? I think the United States gives a disproportionate amount of money for the UN’s operation as well as the other countries in Europe.

So they do not really have any interest in the lines of Muslims, in particular poor minority groups and just maybe capitalism and finance -- as you look at -- Myanmar has recently opened up its country to foreign investment. Some of these countries that put money into the UN do not want to anger the government there.

Myanmar is a new frontier for investment, for infrastructure, for construction, for energy, for these countries in Europe ... the top five, you are talking about the economic problems in Europe. Why would these countries speak up for poor hated Muslim minority group when they stand to get money, to invest in their sagging economies and I will go one step further.

One thing that all of these countries want is energy. I believe that whether Rohingyas live in Myanmar along the West Coast, offshore drilling is in the offing, the same way that Chevron and other American energy groups such as General Electric and others are interested in that country’s energy sector.

I believe that these people are being cleansed so there can be access to do offshore drilling to get these people out of the way. And of course you have to get the approval of the government of Myanmar to drill and to bring your corporations in.

So there is this corporate interest that trumps the human lives of these people who have suffered for centuries and the government has always been complicit. If they claim to be in charge of that state and killing happens, they are at fault. So everyone looks the other way as these people are slaughtered.

Press TV: Right, now that is so far as the West goes but what about within Myanmar itself? Where are those so-called human rights activists like Aung San Suu Kyi who pioneered human rights and won the Noble Peace Prize? Where is she? Why isn’t she speaking up about this?

Short: You are too kind. Her father is a xenophobic racist type of ethnocentric politician in Myanmar. She is not different from her father. So I mean that runs in the family to do nothing for the Rohingya.

She has a peace price but so does F. W. de Klerk, so does Henry Kissinger and for that matter Barack Obama who is making war all over the world has a peace prize.

What does that really mean to me? Forgive me for asking you. It does not mean much these days especially when it comes down to the lives of Muslims or Africans or people in the third world. Basically they give the prize for how many they kill.
 
credit-Press Tv interview

UN must move to end genocide against Myanmar Muslims: Mohsen Saleh


Wed Mar 27, 2013 3:28PM GMT
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Interview with Mohsen Saleh
 
Well of course the United Nations has a great duty in order to put an end to this and also the countries around Myanmar especially Bangladesh, Pakistan and India and other countries, they have also a kind of task to intervene in order to put an end for these people."
A political analyst tells Press TV that the United Nations has a great duty in order to put an end to the violence going on against the minority Muslims in Myanmar and find a way to protect these people.


The comments came after a United Nations official, Vijay Nambiar, said that the houses and mosques of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar have been targeted with “brutal efficiency” in recent attacks. The statement came on Tuesday by Nambiar, a special advisor to the UN secretary general on Myanmar, who toured the country after the latest round of attacks by extremist Buddhists on March 20, in which over 40 Rohingya Muslims were killed in the city of Meiktila.

Press TV has conducted an interview with Mohsen Saleh, professor at the Lebanese University, to further discuss the issue. What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.

Press TV: It seems that the violence against the Muslims in Myanmar is not just limited to the western region of Rakhine but it is also spreading to other areas as well. Why has there been so much silence and no action so far regarding the attacks against the minority Muslims?

Saleh: Well first of all it shows that this systematic tragedy going on for about more than two years and the international body as you mentioned, the United Nations and its organizations did not do anything for the people in Myanmar.

I guess the Muslims have been exposed to all kinds of torture, cleansing, racial and religious cleansing without any kind of international intervention or at least meeting on the international level in the UN, in the Security Council or in the General Assembly in order to take a kind of decision to protect these people.

I guess all the people there, whether not only the Buddhists and I guess some other people, probably they are really desiring to see such kind of tragedy for the Muslims because this kind of Islamophobia extended to Myanmar and other places.

I guess the West when they go to other places in Africa and in the Atlantic and other places also as well, they try to protect any kind of [tribal] people in Africa or other places.

They do not move any kind of wall, militarily or even in terms of media. They do not do anything for these people, poor people and also minority in this region.

Press TV: Professor Saleh, if the violence is systematic then it is an obvious violation of a number of Rights Conventions that oppose racism and ethnic discrimination. What has to be done in your view to see the violence recede and rescind?

Saleh: Well of course the United Nations has a great duty in order to put an end to this and also the countries around Myanmar especially Bangladesh, Pakistan and India and other countries, they have also a kind of task to intervene in order to put an end for these people.

I guess it is probably about time for the United Nations especially when this United Nations has been created in order to take people and protect minorities and raise their voice to a kind of protection and take at least a kind of resolution in order to put an end and probably find a kind of forces to protect these people.

They only go to places to protect occupation and protect probably the French occupation of Mali and also the Israeli occupation of Palestine and they protect probably here and there. They go and invade places at a time when these people in Myanmar are exposed to all kinds of torture and burning of their religious mosques and sacred places and probably this kind of cleansing will go on and this will allow for other probably examples in the world.

Where is the United Nations and the what so-called the free people in the West and other places? 
 
credid-Press Tv

Photos of killed Muslims with armed Terrorist Buddhists in Meiktila, Myanmar

Photos of killed Muslims with armed Terrorist Buddhists in Meiktila, Myanmar
In this Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, a group of people try to destroy a building in Meikhtila, Mandalay division (AP Photo)<br /><br />
” src=”<a href=http://banoosh.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/myanmar-muslim-killeing-25.jpg&#8221; width=”444″ height=”333″ />

 In this Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, a group of people try to destroy a building in Meikhtila, Mandalay division (AP Photo)
 
myanmar muslim killeing 1 The charred bodies of Muslim who were burnt alive by terrorist Buddhist mob and monks called 969 campaign with the presence of police in Meiktilar city, Myanmar. The police and authorities were not stopping them to kill Muslim, to burn Muslim and their homes and to torch the Mosques in broad day light. Photo Credit - Maung Nyan
The charred bodies of Muslim who were burnt alive by terrorist Buddhist mob and monks called 969 campaign with the presence of police in Meiktilar city, Myanmar. The police and authorities were not stopping them to kill Muslim, to burn Muslim and their homes and to torch the Mosques in broad day light. Photo Credit – Maung Nyan
Photos of killed Muslims  (8)
The charred bodies of Muslim who were burnt alive by terrorist Buddhist mob and monks called 969 campaign with the presence of police in Meiktilar city, Myanmar. The police and authorities were not stopping them to kill Muslim, to burn Muslim and their homes and to torch the Mosques in broad day light. Photo Credit - Maung Nyan
The charred bodies of Muslim who were burnt alive by terrorist Buddhist mob and monks called 969 campaign with the presence of police in Meiktilar city, Myanmar. The police and authorities were not stopping them to kill Muslim, to burn Muslim and their homes and to torch the Mosques in broad day light. Photo Credit – Maung Nyan
myanmar muslim killeing
A body is seen on a street in Meikhtila on Thursday. (Photo: Reuters / Soe Zeya Tun)
A body is seen on a street in Meikhtila on Thursday. (Photo: Reuters / Soe Zeya Tun)
myanmar muslim killeing 5
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Muslim residents look out from a temporary relief camp after their evacuation from riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar on March 22, 2013. (Soe Than Win/AFP/Getty Images)
Muslim residents look out from a temporary relief camp after their evacuation from riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar on March 22, 2013. (Soe Than Win/AFP/Getty Images)
myanmar muslim killeing 2
A resident walks past a burnt body in riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar on March 21, 2013. AFP PHOTO/ Soe Than WIN
A resident walks past a burnt body in riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar on March 21, 2013. AFP PHOTO/ Soe Than WIN
Photos of killed Muslims  (9)
myanmar muslim killeing 34
A body is seen on a street in Meikhtila March 21, 2013. Image by: Soe Zeya Tun / REUTERS
A body is seen on a street in Meikhtila March 21, 2013. Image by: Soe Zeya Tun / REUTERS

People look on as smoke rises over a Meikhtila neighborhood on Thursday. (Photo: Reuters / Soe Zeya Tun)

A man stands in front of a mosque as it burns in Meikhtila on Thursday. (Photo: Reuters / Soe Zeya Tun)
Muslims rest as they take refuge at a stadium amid riots in Meikhtila March 22, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
Muslims rest as they take refuge at a stadium amid riots in Meikhtila March 22, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
The body of a person is pictured on a street in Meikhtila. Image by: Soe Zeya Tun / REUTERS
The body of a person is pictured on a street in Meikhtila. Image by: Soe Zeya Tun / REUTERS
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A policeman and residents stand around the body of a man in a street in riot-hit Meiktila, central Myanmar on March 22, 2013. STR/AFP/Getty Images)

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MEIKHTILA BURNS: People carry weapons during riots in Meikhtila on Friday. Unrest in central Myanmar has stoked fears that last year’s sectarian bloodshed is spreading into the country’s heartland. Picture: REUTERS
MEIKHTILA BURNS: People carry weapons during riots in Meikhtila on Friday. Unrest in central Myanmar has stoked fears that last year’s sectarian bloodshed is spreading into the country’s heartland. Picture: REUTERS
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A smoldering charred body lies in the middle of a road in Meikhtila. (Photo: Teza Hlaing / The Irrawaddy )
A smoldering charred body lies in the middle of a road in Meikhtila. (Photo: Teza Hlaing / The Irrawaddy )
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In this Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, smoke billows from a burning mosque following ethnic unrest between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, Mandalay division, about 550 kilometers (340 miles) north of Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo)
In this Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, smoke billows from a burning mosque following ethnic unrest between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, Mandalay division, about 550 kilometers (340 miles) north of Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo)
Carrying belongings Muslims refugees get off a vehicle as they arrive at a rescue camp in Meikhtila about 550 kilometers (340 miles) north of Yangon, Myanmar, Friday, March.22, 2013. (AP Photo/Khin Maung Win)
Carrying belongings Muslims refugees get off a vehicle as they arrive at a rescue camp in Meikhtila about 550 kilometers (340 miles) north of Yangon, Myanmar, Friday, March.22, 2013. (AP Photo/Khin Maung Win)
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People arrive at a stadium, a safe place for Muslims amid riots in Meikhtila March 22, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
People arrive at a stadium, a safe place for Muslims amid riots in Meikhtila March 22, 2013. REUTERS/Soe Zeya Tun
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Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, local residents walk on a road near a burning building following ethnic unrest between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, Mandalay division, Myanmar. (AP Photo)
Thursday, March. 21, 2013 photo, local residents walk on a road near a burning building following ethnic unrest between Buddhists and Muslims in Meikhtila, Mandalay division, Myanmar. (AP Photo)
A burning corpse in the Myanmar town of Meikhtila, where at least 20 people have been killed in Buddhist violence against Muslims since Wednesday. Photograph by Soe Zeya Tun.
A burning corpse in the Myanmar town of Meikhtila, where at least 20 people have been killed in Buddhist violence against Muslims since Wednesday. Photograph by Soe Zeya Tun.
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Myanmar must take ‘bold steps’ to tackle unrest: UN envoy

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Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea Quintana. UN Photo/Pierre-Michel Virot
Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea Quintana. UN Photo/Pierre-Michel Virot

The UN’s Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea Quintana, on Friday issued a statement from Geneva expressing his “serious concerns” about the spread of violence between Muslim and Buddhist communities in Myanmar and urged the Thein Sein government to take “bold steps” to counteract what he called a “frightening trend”.

“The Government must take immediate action to stop the violence from spreading to other parts of the country and undermining the reform process,” Quintana said. “This includes stemming campaigns of discrimination and hate speech which are fuelling racist and, in particular, anti-Muslim feeling in the country.”

The UN envoy was undoubtedly referring to the emergence of Buddhist extremists, in many cases led by monks, who stand accused of masterminding the violence. A group calling itself “969”, which appears to be spearheaded by a Buddhist monk named Wirathu, has inundated social media with anti-Muslim vitriol and called for a boycott of all Muslim businesses.

“The warning signs have been there since the communal violence in Rakhine State last June, and the Government has simply not done enough to address the spread of discrimination and prejudice against Muslim communities across the country, and to tackle the organised and coordinated mobs that are inciting hatred and violently attacking Muslim communities,” Quintana said.

He called for Myanmar’s authorities to hold to account those responsible for acts of violence and destruction against religious and ethnic minorities.

Quintana also alluded to allegations that some State officials, including local politicians and administrators, have been encouraging discriminatory views and inciting hatred.

“The Government must clearly distance itself from such incitement to hatred, and instruct its officials to do likewise,” the UN envoy said. “Although Myanmar is a majority Buddhist country, the Government must promote tolerance of all faiths and religions.”

Quintana went on to say that he had received reports that the military, police and other civilian law enforcement forces had stood by “while atrocities have been committed before their very eyes, including by well organised ultra-nationalist Buddhist mobs.”

He called for Myanmar to also hold to account those military and police officers who were responsible for tolerating attacks against Muslims.

Quintana praised the work of 88 Generation leaders, such as Min Ko Naing, who had travelled to Meiktila following the violence and worked to ease tensions and promote understanding.

In the Special Rapporteur’s latest report to the UN Human Rights Council earlier this month, he warned that the crisis in Rakhine State could spread to other parts of the country, and issued a number of recommendations to the Government aimed at addressing the widespread discrimination and prejudice against ethnic and religious minority groups in Myanmar, including lifting restrictions on discriminatory practices against Muslim communities, and reviewing the functions of the border security forces.

Reports of ‘state involvement’ in Burma unrest: UN expert

By AFP and DVB
Published: 29 March 2013
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Tomas Quintana, UN special envoy on human rights in Burma, reads his statement during a news conference before his departure in the VIP lounge of the Rangoon International Airport in February 2012. (Reuters)
 
The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Burma human rights said Thursday he had received reports of “state involvement” in some of the recent violence between Buddhists and Muslims in the former army-ruled nation.

At least 40 people have been killed and mosques burned in several towns in central Burma since fresh sectarian strife erupted on 20 March, prompting the government to impose emergency rule and curfews in some areas.

“I have received reports of State involvement in some of the acts of violence,” Tomas Ojea Quintana said in a statement.

He also pointed to “instances where the military, police and other civilian law enforcement forces have been standing by while atrocities have been committed before their very eyes, including by well organised ultra-nationalist Buddhist mobs.
“This may indicate direct involvement by some sections of the State or implicit collusion and support for such actions.”

According to the statement, Quintana also received information indicating that the military and police may be arbitrarily detaining people based on religious and ethnic profiling.
“The military and police must now be held to account for human rights violations committed against ethnic and religious minorities,” he said.

Quintana also called on the government to take “immediate action to stop the violence from spreading to other parts of the country and undermining the reform process.”
“This includes stemming campaigns of discrimination and hate speech which are fuelling racist and, in particular, anti-Muslim feeling in the country,” he said.
“Tackling discrimination is fundamental to establishing the rule of law, and impunity for acts of violence and discrimination must no longer be tolerated.”

His comments come after Burma President Thein Sein vowed a tough response to religious extremists in a national address.

According to the United Nations, the recent clashes, which were apparently triggered by an argument in a gold shop that turned into a riot, have seen some 12,000 people displaced.
It is the worst sectarian strife since violence between Buddhists and Muslims in the western state of Arakan last year left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced.

Source-DVB