Widespread Violence Against Muslims Rages in Myanmar

International concern continues to grow over ongoing violence within Myanmar, where underlying discord between ethnic groups has boiled over in recent days. Muslim populations in particular have been increasingly targeted by the state’s military rulers, with up to 30,000 people already thought to have been displaced.

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Much of the violence has been centered against Rohingya Muslims. The minority group has been increasingly targeted by state forces in the Rakhine State, in the northwest part of the country bordering Bangladesh.

There have been reports of widespread killing as Muslim villages continue to be torched and troops stand accused of killing fleeing civilians and raping women.

The recent violence stemming from underlying ethnic tensions between Muslim and Buddhist communities has been escalating. On October 9, the Myanmar military increased its presence in Rakhine after state police and military personnel were killed at posts along the Bangladesh border. The government accused Muslim militants of carrying out the killings.

Branding the attack an “invasion” by “insurgent terrorists” the government has increasingly cracked down on Rohingya Muslims, who are already heavily oppressed by the state with restrictions on movement and citizenship.

Around 1.1 million Rohingya Muslims live in the area and are considered by many including the Myanmar government as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Following the October attacks, the government has started training mainly Buddhist civilians to "protect" their villages against "insurgent threats." Hundreds of locals have signed up to be part of the new auxiliary training force, which international monitors says will only lead to further violence. So far at least 69 alleged insurgents and 17 government security forces have been killed, according to officials.

On Friday the military was accused of killing at least 86 people in Rakhine State with a number reported to have been shot dead while crossing rivers across the border to Bangladesh. The military, however, has rejected the claims.

The United Nations has become increasingly concerned over the situation, particularly over the turning back of Muslims attempting to flee to Bangladesh. “It is essential that the border is kept open for people fleeing violence at the moment,” said UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards.

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UN Monitoring expert Yanghee Lee said on Friday that “ security forces must not be given carte blanche to step up their operations under the smokescreen of having allowed access to an international delegation. Urgent action is needed to bring resolution to the situation.”

Lee added that the government, under the leadership of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, is not  taking accusations of human rights violations seriously.

Suu Kyi received the Nobel Peace Prize Laureate in 1991 for her human rights and non-violent struggle against the Military Junta that ruled the country when it was known as Burma. 

Her party, the National League for Democracy, came to power in a landslide victory in 2015 but has been widely criticized for not doing enough to curb the ever present influence of the military.

The country had previously spent years being politically and economically isolated from the rest of the world, after being under harsh military rule which only ended in 2011.