The Rohingya have suffered decades of persecution in Myanmar but the crisis erupted in August, when Myanmar security forces responded to militant attacks. The United States said the military operation in Myanmar (formerly Burma) that drove 620,000 Rohingya to seek sanctuary in neighboring, largely Muslim Bangladesh, amounted to “ethnic cleansing”, echoing an accusation first leveled by top U.N. officials in the early days of the humanitarian crisis.
Pope Francis has been visiting Myanmar and he met with Myanmar leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi Tuesday, but avoided any public mention of the country's Muslim Rohingya minority. The pope said Myanmar's future "must be peace, a peace based on respect for the dignity and rights of each member of society, respect for each ethnic group and its identity." He also called for a "democratic order that enables each individual and every group — none excluded — to offer its legitimate contribution to the common good."
The term “Rohingya” is avoided inside Myanmar because the ethnic group is not a recognized minority. Whether Francis would even use the term “Rohingya” during his trip was uncertain. The country’s cardinal, Charles Maung Bo, had requested that he refrain from using it, since the Buddhist-majority population refers to them as “Bengalis” who come from Bangladesh, the Huffington Post reports. Rohingya Muslims have been persecuted for years and they live with limited rights. They cannot travel freely, practice their religion, or work as teachers or doctors, and they have little access to medical care, food or education.
“For years the international community has towed the government of Myanmar’s line, refusing to say ‘Rohingya’ for fear of doing harm,” said David Baulk, a Myanmar researcher for Fortify Rights. “There should be nothing controversial about the pope identifying people by the name they want.”
“The pope absolutely should stand up for the Rohingya by using the name Rohingya,” said Phil Robertson, deputy director for Human Rights Watch in Asia. “The Rohingya have little left besides their group name after years of statelessness, discriminatory restrictions on movement and access to life-sustaining services, and being targeted by a military subjecting them to ethnic cleansing and atrocities.”
Francis is scheduled to fly to Dhaka in Bangladesh where he will meet Rohingya refugees on Thursday. The problem is that the Pope failed to mention and condemn persecution of Rohingya and he certainly disappointed them. Pope Francis was supposed to use a huge opportunity to advocate for vulnerable ones.
Photo Credits: CNN
