Burma’s bigoted Buddhist monks shun Muslim community; have blocked humanitarian aid

The outburst against the Rohingya, often described as one of the world’s most oppressed groups, comes after weeks of ethnic violence in the Rakhine state in the west of Burma that has left more than 80 dead and up to 100,000 people living in a situation described as “desperate” by humanitarian organisations.  As state-sanctioned abuses against the Muslim community continue, Burma’s president Thein Sein . . . has urged neighbouring Bangladesh to take in the Rohingya.

“In recent days, monks have emerged in a leading role to enforce denial of humanitarian assistance to Muslims, in support of policy statements by politicians,” said Chris Lewa, director of the Arakan project, a regional NGO.  ”A member of a humanitarian agency in Sittwe told me that some monks were posted near Muslim displacement camps, checking on and turning away people they suspected would visit for assistance.”

The Young Monks’ Association of Sittwe and Mrauk Oo Monks’ Association have both released statements in recent days urging locals not to associate with the group.  

. . . Aid workers report ongoing threats and interference by local nationalist and religious groups.  Some monasteries in Maungdaw and Sittwe sheltering displaced Rakhine people have openly refused to accept international aid, alleging that it is “biased” in favour of the Rohingya.  

. . . Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK, said: “We were shocked to have [Buddhist monks' leader Ashin Htawara] propose to us that there should be what amounts to concentration camps for the Rohingya.”

. . . The Rohingya have lived in Burma for centuries, but in 1982, the then military ruler Ne Win stripped them of their citizenship.  Thousands fled to Bangladesh where they live in pitiful camps.  Foreign media are still denied access to the conflict region, where a state of emergency was declared last month, and ten aid workers were arrested without explanation.

Will the Dalai Lama speak out against this sectarian bigotry and incipient genocide?  Don’t hold your breath.

2012-07-28 14:01:24

Source: http://curiouspresbyterian.wordpress.com/2012/07/28/burmas-bigoted-buddhist-monks-shun-muslim-community-have-blocked-humanitarian-aid/