Genocide claim should not be ‘thrown around loosely’: Annan

By MRATT KYAW THU | FRONTIER

YANGON — Accusations of genocide and ethnic cleansing in northern Rakhine State are “very serious” and can only be verified through a legal review, Kofi Annan said today.

Rights groups have warned of widespread abuses by military forces conducting “clearance operations” in Maungdaw Township in the wake of coordinated attacks on Border Guard Police outposts in October.

Some have suggested genocide or ethnic cleansing could be taking place in the state, but the government has denied any wrongdoing and said the military is using the minimum possible force.

Annan, a former United Nations secretary general who now head the Rakhine State Advisory Commission, said the accusations were “a very serious charge”.

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“It is a charge that requires legal review and the judicial determination. It is not a charge that should be thrown around loosely,” he said.

Annan was speaking at the end of his second visit to Rakhine State since the commission was formed, and the first since the October 9 attacks in northern Rakhine State by Islamist militants.

Annan met State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and Commander-in-Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing this morning in Nay Pyi Taw before returning to Yangon for the evening press conference.

“Our discussions focused on reconciliation among the communities of Rakhine, freedom of movement, citizenship verification, and economic and social development of Rakhine State,” he said.

During Annan’s visit to the state, Rakhine community leaders and political party officials refused to meet him, saying that his use of the word “Rohingya” showed that he was biased. Commission members were greeted by protesters in both the state capital Sittwe and nearby Mrauk-U.

At least 86 people, including 17 military and police officers, have died since the crackdown in Maungdaw began, while hundreds of suspected militants have been detained.

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