UN Official: Rohingya in Myanmar Facing 'Ethnic Cleansing'

 

The United Nations’ human rights chief has joined a growing group of international voices condemning¹ the government in Myanmar.

The group blames the government for the wave of violence that has forced thousands of Rohingya Muslims to flee to neighboring Bangladesh.

The United Nations official, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, spoke² on Monday to a meeting of the U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland. He said his office has received many reports and satellite images of the violence. He said they provide evidence of Myanmar security forces and militias³ carrying out extrajudicial killings⁴ and burning entire Rohingya villages.

Zeid also noted⁵ reports of Myanmar troops placing landmines⁷ along the border with Bangladesh.

"Because Myanmar has refused access to human rights investigators⁸, the current situation cannot yet be fully⁹ assessed," he told the council, "but the situation seems a textbook example of ethnic¹⁰ cleansing¹¹."

On Sunday, Amnesty International accused Myanmar of placing landmines along the roads that Rohingya refugees use to enter Bangladesh. The group reported two landmine⁶ explosions on Sunday. One explosion reportedly blew off a young man's leg while he was guarding cattle near the border.

Zeid made his report a day after Rohingya fighters called for a month-long cease-fire. The fighters said they want humanitarian¹² aid to be able to reach all victims of the conflict.

The rebels are calling themselves the Arakan Rohingya Salvation¹³ Army. They launched an attack on several police positions and an army base late last month. The attacks and resulting fighting led to the displacement¹⁴ of more than 300,000 people.

The U.S. Ambassador to the U.N., Nikki Haley, sent a message to Myanmar last Friday. It said the U.S. government supports the fight against violence in Rakhine state. But the statement added that humanitarian aid must reach those in need.

Fleeing violence

Myanmar is a Buddhist¹⁵-majority nation. The Rohingya are one of the country’s many ethnic minorities. The government considers the Rohingya to be economic migrants from Bangladesh. It has never given them citizenship¹⁶. Yet most Rohingya can prove their families have lived for generations in the country, also called Burma.

The latest violence and a military campaign killed at least 400 people. It also led to the latest mass movement of Rohingya villagers to Bangladesh.

Vivian Tan is the U.N. Refugee Agency Asia Director in Bangladesh. She told VOA Burmese that aid workers believe there are about 164,000 new arrivals in Bangladesh.

The United Nations reported that about 146,000 people have crossed the border into Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazaar¹⁷ district since August 25.

Officials with the World Food Program said they have provided tens of thousands of people with food. The U.N. agency added that it needs $11.3 million to support the new arrivals, as well as the refugees already living in camps.

Criticism of Aung San Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi is the de facto leader of Myanmar and the winner of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize. But critics have condemned¹⁸ her reaction to the violence.

Many observers say Aung San Suu Kyi has tried to dismiss reports of the Burmese military's violent treatment of Rohingya civilians¹⁹. She says there has been a lot of misinformation about the Rohingya crisis and violence in Rakhine following the attacks on security forces.

Aung San Suu Kyi used the word “terrorists” to describe the Rohingya fighters. And she said “fake information” was used to support their interests.

A number of other Nobel Prize winners have made statements asking her to personally intervene and end the violence. They include the exiled Tibetan Buddhist spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Pakistani activist²⁰ Malala Yousafzai.

Every year, the U.S. Department of State lists all the crises that it considers the most important human rights issues around the world. In 2016, it listed abuses against and restrictions²¹ on members of the Rohingya population as one of the leading human rights problems in Myanmar.

I’m Caty Weaver²².

And I'm Ashley Thompson.

Words in This Story

extrajudicial – adj. not legally authorized²³

access – n. a way of being able to use or get something

assess - v. to make a judgment²⁴ about (something)?

textbook – adj. very typical

cattle – n. cows, bulls, or steers²⁵ that are kept on a farm or ranch²⁶ for meat or milk

migrant(s) – n. a person who goes from one place to another especially to find work

district – n. an area or section of a country, city, or town

de facto – adj. used to describe something that exists but that is not officially accepted or recognized

fake – adj. not true or real

1 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

3 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

4 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

5 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

6 landmine   

n.地雷

参考例句：

• A landmine is a kind of weapon used in war.地雷是一种运用于战争的武器。
• The treaty bans the use,production and trade of landmine.那条约禁止使用生产和交易雷。

7 landmines   

潜在的冲突； 地雷，投伞水雷( landmine的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The treaty bans the use production and trade of landmines. 该条约规定，禁止使用地雷相关产品及贸易。
• One of the weapon's of special concern was landmines. 在引起人们特别关注的武器中就有地雷。

8 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

10 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

11 cleansing   

n. 净化(垃圾) adj. 清洁用的 动词cleanse的现在分词

参考例句：

• medicated cleansing pads for sensitive skin 敏感皮肤药物清洗棉
• Soap is not the only cleansing agent. 肥皂并不是唯一的清洁剂。

12 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

13 salvation   

n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困

参考例句：

• Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
• Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。

14 displacement   

n.移置，取代，位移，排水量

参考例句：

• They said that time is the feeling of spatial displacement.他们说时间是空间位移的感觉。
• The displacement of all my energy into caring for the baby.我所有精力都放在了照顾宝宝上。

15 Buddhist   

adj./n.佛教的，佛教徒

参考例句：

• The old lady fell down in adoration before Buddhist images.那老太太在佛像面前顶礼膜拜。
• In the eye of the Buddhist,every worldly affair is vain.在佛教徒的眼里，人世上一切事情都是空的。

16 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

17 bazaar   

n.集市，商店集中区

参考例句：

• Chickens,goats and rabbits were offered for barter at the bazaar.在集市上，鸡、山羊和兔子被摆出来作物物交换之用。
• We bargained for a beautiful rug in the bazaar.我们在集市通过讨价还价买到了一条很漂亮的地毯。

18 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

19 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

20 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

21 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

22 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

23 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

24 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

25 steers   

n.阉公牛，肉用公牛( steer的名词复数 )v.驾驶( steer的第三人称单数 )；操纵；控制；引导

参考例句：

• This car steers easily. 这部车子易于驾驶。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Good fodder fleshed the steers up. 优质饲料使菜牛长肉。 来自辞典例句

26 ranch   

n.大牧场，大农场

参考例句：

• He went to work on a ranch.他去一个大农场干活。
• The ranch is in the middle of a large plateau.该牧场位于一个辽阔高原的中部。