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| The commission presents the findings of its long-awaited Arakan investigation report (Photo: Simon Roughneen / The Irrawaddy) |
April 29, 2013
YANGON, Myanmar — A Myanmar government commission investigating
sectarian violence in the country’s west last year has issued proposals
to ease tensions — including doubling the number of security forces in
the volatile region and introducing family planning programs to stem
population growth among minority Muslims.
An executive summary of the report, obtained by The Associated Press on
Monday, said concerns by Buddhists over the rising population of Muslims
they see as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh have “undermined
peaceful coexistence” between the two communities. It said family
planning education should be voluntary, but “would go some way to
mitigating” toward ameliorating the crisis.
Two outbreaks of unrest between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya
Muslims left nearly 200 people dead and forced more than 125,000, mostly
Muslims, from their homes. The violence appeared to have begun
spontaneously in June, but by October it had morphed into anti-Muslim
pogroms across western Rakhine state, human rights groups say.
The segregation of Buddhists and Muslims has since become a de facto
reality across the state, and the report said that was a temporary
solution but one that must be enforced for now. It also called for a
crackdown on hate speech and stepped-up aid for the displaced ahead of
monsoon rains expected in May.
“While keeping the two communities apart is not a long-term solution, it
must be enforced at least until the overt emotions subside,” the report
said.
President Thein Sein appointed a 27-member panel last year to
investigate the causes of the conflict and recommend measures to prevent
further violence. Its findings had been delayed several times.
The report did not use the word Rohingya, instead conforming to the
government practice of calling the Rohingya “Bengalis,” a reference to
their South Asian roots.
Predominantly Buddhist Myanmar does not include Rohingya as one of 135 recognized ethnicities.
The panel’s report also called on the government to determine the
citizenship status of all those living in Rakhine state. Most Rohingya
are effectively stateless despite the fact that some have lived in
Myanmar for generations.
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said the
report “fails to address the need for accountability for ethnic
cleansing and crimes against humanity that happened in last June and
October.”
“By failing to hold responsible the individuals who committed these
grievous crimes, the government will miss deterring precisely those
extremists who are prepared to use more violence in the future to
achieve their aims,” Robertson said.
He also said that doubling the number of security forces “without first
ensuring implementation of reforms to end those forces’ impunity is a
potential disaster.”
Last week, Human Rights Watch issued the most comprehensive and detailed
account yet of what happened in Rakhine state last year. The group’s
report accused authorities — including Buddhist monks, local politicians
and government officials, and state security forces — of fomenting an
organized campaign of “ethnic cleansing” against the Rohingya.
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Associated Press writer Todd Pitman contributed to this report from Bangkok.
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