Tensions rise in Myanmar as curfew extended for 2 months
Myanmar authorities have
extended a nighttime curfew for another two months along the country’s
conflict-stricken western border with Bangladesh, extending the dusk-to-dawn
restrictions which have been in place ever since an attack on local police stations on Oct. 9 in the
district of Maungdaw in western Arakan (Rakhine) state, where a partial curfew
– in effect from 11:00 p.m. until 4:00 a.m. – had already been in effect since
state sponsored violence began in mid-2012.
In the weeks following the Oct.
9 attacks, Rohingya advocacy groups claim that around 400 Rohingyas had been
killed, while Myanmar officials claim that 93 people – including 17 soldiers
and 76 alleged “attackers” and six victims who reportedly died during
interrogations — have been killed.
Limits have also been imposed
on the number of people attending public gatherings, with no more than five
people allowed to gather in public in the area. On Saturday, the Information
Committee at the State Counselor’s Office announced the extension of the curfew
to include the hours between 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. in an area predominantly
comprised of members of the country’s stateless Rohingya Muslim minority.
Regional government
spokesperson Min Aung told Anadolu Agency (AA)that despite the curfew, people
are still able to move freely around town, visiting public places such as
mosques without restraint: “This order is in effect for both communities; not
only one,” he said by phone on Saturday. The violence in the area has left
around 57 Muslims and 31 Buddhists dead, while an estimated 100,000 people,
primarily Rohingya, have been displaced in camps. More than 2,500 homes have
been razed — most of which belonged to Rohingya.
The statement from the State
Counselor’s Office added that at least 575 people have been detained suspected
of involvement in the attacks in the area. Among those detained, 88 persons
have been charged, 10 have been released, six died during questioning, one was
released on bail and roughly 470 are still being interrogated.
The Rohingyas are being
subjected to abuses of their fundamental rights. Myanmar’s discriminatory
Nationality Law, approved in 1982, denies Rohingya citizenship in their own
ancestral land.
Rohingyas are not recognized
among the 134 official ethnicities in Myanmar because authorities see them as
illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh. They are subjected to forced
labor, have no landownership rights and are heavily restricted by the
government. They are denied the permission to leave the camps that were built
for them, have no source of income and have to rely on the World Food Program
to survive. The U.N. considers Rohingyas to be one of the most persecuted
minorities in the world.
Since 2012, the unrest in
Myanmar has cost many Rohingyas their lives. Roughly 140,000 Rohingyas whom are
made stateless have been placed into concentration camps for internally
displaced people due to the increasing violence they face, the U.N. High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said.
Note: Changes have been made;
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Source: Sabah daily