Pope urges ‘decisive measures’ to ease Rohingya mass exodus

DHAKA, Bangladesh — Pope Francis demanded Thursday that the international community take “decisive measures” to resolve the causes of the mass exodus of Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar, breaking his recent silence over what the United Nations has declared to be a textbook case of “ethnic cleansing.”

Arriving in Bangladesh from Myanmar, Francis said it also was “imperative” for world governments to provide assistance to help the Bangladeshi government cope with Asia’s worst refugee crisis in decades.

In a speech before Bangladesh President President Abdul Hamid, government officials and ambassadors from around the world, Francis praised Bangladesh’s sacrifice and generosity in welcoming in so many refugees “before the eyes of the whole world.”

He didn’t identify the Rohingya by name, ethnicity or faith, referring only to “refugees from Rakhine state.”

Francis had drawn criticism from human rights organizations and Rohingya themselves for having failed to speak out publicly about the Rohingya’s plight while he was in Myanmar.

Francis had remained silent out of diplomatic deference to his hosts, who consider the Rohingya as having illegally migrated from Bangladesh and don’t recognize them as one of Myanmar’s ethnic groups.

The Vatican defended Francis’ silence in Myanmar, saying he wanted to “build bridges” with the predominantly Buddhist nation, which only recently established diplomatic relations with the Holy See.

More than 620,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar and poured into Bangladesh refugee camps in the last few months amid a scorched earth campaign by Myanmar’s military.

ARINDAM DEY/GETTY-AFP A volunteer lights candles placed in the shape of a red ribbon during an awareness rally Thursday on the eve of World AIDS Day in Agartala, a city in east India.