Aid workers in Rakhine said thousands of displaced Rakhines and Rohingyas remained in dire conditions
BANGKOK (AlertNet) – About 90,000 people are displaced and in need of assistance in Rakhine state in western Myanmar as a result of communal violence which started over a week ago, the United Nations’ World Food Programme said in a statement on Tuesday.
It is the first major burst of violence since a new, reformist government took over last March. The violence has displaced more people than in Myanmar’s north where the army and the Kachin ethnic rebels have been fighting for a year.
WFP said it has reached more than 66,000 displaced people in Sittwe, Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung with emergency food supplies – rice, beans and cooking oil – in the past week.
"At this stage, WFP estimates there are about 90,000 displaced people in need of assistance as a result of the recent clashes," said the statement.
“The most significant obstacle WFP is currently facing is access, with poor roads and bridges a particular constraint. Some displaced populations can only be reached using small trucks,” it added.
The agency said it is currently finalising plans for a three-month food assistance operation.
After days of clashes between Rohingyas and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists, the president on June 10 declared a state of emergency in Rakhine state, sent security reinforcements, imposed a curfew and made a televised address.
CONDITIONS
Aid workers in Rakhine said thousands of displaced Rakhines and Rohingyas remained in dire conditions.
"The response of government is still so slow and the help of the government has been weak since June 10," said Khaing Kaung San, a member of local relief group Wan Latt Foundation, which is running some camps for displaced people in Rakhine state.
The violence between Rohingyas and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists flared on June 8 with a rampage of rock-hurling, arson and machete attacks after the gang rape and murder of a Buddhist Rakhine woman blamed on Muslims. A district court sentenced two men to death on Monday for the woman's death.
The rape incident led to calls for retribution that were swiftly answered by Buddhist vigilantes, who lynched 10 Muslims with no ties to the alleged killers.
Tensions also stem from an entrenched distrust of around 800,000 Rohingyas, who are recognised by neither Myanmar nor Bangladesh, and are largely considered illegal immigrants.
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