SUU KYI SLAMS ‘FAKE NEWS’ ON ROHINGYA PREDICAMENT
Persecution of the religious minority generates outrage worldwide, particularly in Muslim countries
YANGON
GLOBAL outrage over Myanmar’s treatment of its Rohingya Muslims is being fuelled by “a huge iceberg of misinformation”, Aung San Suu Kyi said yesterday, after the United Nations led calls for her government to end violence that has forced 146,000 to flee to Bangladesh.
Rohingya refugees have poured over the border with Bangladesh, fleeing a massive security sweep in western Rakhine state by Myanmar forces following a series of deadly ambushes by Rohingya militants on Aug 25.
In her first public comments since last month’s ambushes, Suu Kyi said sympathy for the Rohingya was being generated by “a huge iceberg of misinformation calculated to create a lot of problems between different communities and with the aim of promoting the interest of the terrorists”.
The comments were made following a call with Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan who has been particularly critical of Myanmar’s treatment of the Rohingya, dubbing it a “genocide”.
But, Suu Kyi said her administration was “defending all the people” in Rakhine state.
India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said yesterday that the country shared Myanmar’s concern about “extremist violence” in its Rakhine state, after talks with Suu Kyi during a visit aimed at expanding commercial ties as part of an “Act East” policy, and pushing back against Chinese influence.
Suu Kyi said Myanmar was grateful for India’s stance on the attack on her country and they could work together to face the challenge.
“We would like to thank India particularly for the strong stance it has taken with regard to the terrorist threat that came to our country a couple of weeks ago.
“We believe that together we can work to make sure that terrorism is not allowed to take root on our soil.”
Modi said India and Myanmar had similar security interests in the region.
“We share your concerns about extremist violence in Rakhine state and especially the violence against security forces and how innocent lives have been affected,” he said.
Modi’s government has taken a strong stance on an influx into India of some 40,000 Rohingya from Myanmar over the years, vowing last month to deport them all.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Tuesday of the risk of ethnic cleansing and regional destabilisation.
The Rohingya are the world’s largest stateless minority and have lived under apartheid-like restrictions for years.
They largely eschewed violence but in October a militant group called the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army launched a series of deadly ambushes on border police, prompting a massive armyled crackdown.
Anger is particularly acute in Muslim countries. Thousands protested outside the Myanmar embassy in Jakarta yesterday. Police had stopped two attempts by militants to bomb the embassy.
The Rohingya are dismissed in Myanmar as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. They are derided by many as “Bengalis”.
Earlier this year, UN investigators said Myanmar’s military had used “devastating cruelty” in its security crackdown in what might constitute ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya. Agencies