22,000 flee second wave of violence sweeping Burma’s Muslim areas

VICTIMS of Burma’s latest explosion of Muslim-Buddhist violence fled to already packed displacement camps along the country’s western coast, as a senior United Nations official yesterday said the unrest has forced more than 22,000 people from their homes.

Boats carrying some of those on the move arrived outside the state capital, Sittwe. They trudged to nearby Thechaung camp, already home to thousands of Rohingya Muslims, who took refuge there after a previous wave of violence in June.

“I fled my hometown, Pauktaw, on Friday because there is no security at all,” said 42-year-old fisherman Maung Myint, who arrived on a boat carrying 40 other people, including his wife and six children. “My house was burned to ashes and I have no money left.”

Another Muslim refugee said she fled her village, Kyaukphyu, on Thursday after attackers set her home on fire.

“We don’t feel safe,” said Zainabi, 40, a fish-seller who left with her two sons, aged 12 and 14. “I wish the violence would stop so we can live peacefully.”

Human Rights Watch released dramatic satellite imagery of Kyaukphyu on Saturday showing a vast, predominantly Rohingya swath of the village in ashes. The destruction included more than 800 buildings and floating barges.

Burma’s government has put the death toll at 67 over the last week, saying 95 more people were injured from last Sunday through Thursday in seven townships in Rakhine state.

The casualty figures have not been broken down by ethnic group, but Human Rights Watch said the Rohingya had suffered the brunt of the violence. The New York-based rights group also said the true death toll may be far higher, based on witness accounts and the government’s history of minimising news that might reflect badly on it.

Ashok Nigam, UN humanitarian co-ordinator in Burma, said 22,587 people were displaced and they included both Muslims and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists.

Some 4,600 homes were also destroyed, according to the UN, which said in a separate statement that it had begun distributing emergency food and shelter supplies with its humanitarian partners to refugees in urgent need of help.

The latest unrest pushes the total number displaced to nearly 100,000 since clashes broke out in June.

Mr Nigam said getting aid to the new wave of displaced would be a challenge, as some fled by boat and others sought refuge on isolated hilltops.

“The situation is certainly very grave and we are working with the government to provide urgent aid to these people,” he said.

Ill will between Muslims and Buddhists in Rakhine state goes back decades and has its roots in a dispute over the Muslim Rohingya’s origins. Although many Rohingya have lived in Burma for generations, they are seen as foreign intruders who came from Bangladesh.