Indonesians denounce Rohingya massacre in Myanmar
August 13, 2012 - 14:43
Angry Indonesian protesters have once again taken to the streets of the capital city, Jakarta, to voice their outrage at the ongoing violence against the minority Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.
The demonstrators, who were supporters of a Muslim political group, called on the government of Myanmar to take action to stop the discrimination and sectarian violence against the country's Rohingya population.
This is while, in a similar move on Thursday, crowds of Indonesians gathered outside Myanmar’s Embassy in Jakarta in protest against Burma’s mistreatment of Rohingya Muslim minority.
The rally was organized by the Rohingya Solidarity Society, which urged Myanmar to recognize the Rohingya as official citizens.
According to reports, on Friday Government-backed Buddhists set fire to a mosque in Myanmar’s Rakhine state and continued burning Muslim villages.
Myanmar refuses to recognize Rohingyas as Myanmarese citizens and classifies them as illegal migrants, although the Rohingyas have resided in the country for centuries.
Myanmar President Thein Sein said on July 19 that the “only solution” to the plight of the Rohingya Muslims is to send the nearly-one-million-strong community to refugee camps run by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. “We will send them away if any third country would accept them,” he added. “This is what we are thinking is the solution to the issue.”
However, the UN refugee agency has rejected the idea of setting up refugee camps to accommodate the Rohingyas.
(Source: Press TV)