UN calls on Myanmar to hold talks with Rohingyas

Groups Burmese received with hostility to the UN Special Rapporteur

August 13, 2013

The United Nations has urged the Myanmar government to hold talks with Rohingya Muslims to avoid further violence in the west of the country.

United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spokesman Adrian Edwards made the remarks at a press conference in Geneva on Tuesday.

"UNHCR is reiterating its call for peaceful dialogue and confidence-building between the (internally displaced persons) and government. We believe this is key to avoiding further violence," Edwards said.

Meanwhile, UN's human rights envoy for Myanmar Tomas Ojea Quintana was visiting Rakhine state, where violence killed one and injured ten others last week.

Rohingya Muslims have faced torture, neglect, and repression in Myanmar for many years.

Hundreds of Rohingyas are believed to have been killed and thousands displaced in recent attacks by extremists who call themselves Buddhists.

The extremists frequently attack Rohingyas and have set fire to their homes in several villages in Rakhine. Myanmar army forces allegedly provided the fanatics containers of petrol for torching the houses of Muslim villagers, who were then forced to flee.

Myanmar’s government has been accused of failing to protect the Muslim minority.

Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has also come under fire for her stance on the violence. The Nobel Peace laureate has refused to censure the Myanmar military for its persecution of the Rohingyas, although she recently condemned the decision by local officials in Rakhine state to enforce a two-child policy on Rohingya Muslims.

Rohingyas are said to be Muslim descendants of Persian, Turkish, Bengali, and Pathan origin, who migrated to Myanmar as early as the 8th century.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have issued separate statements, calling on Myanmar to take action to protect the Rohingya Muslim population against extremists.

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