Nearly 10,000 flee Mandalay riots for refugee camps
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The number of people living in the five camps for people displaced by the riots in Meikhtila has risen to nearly 10,000, according to Mandalay Region Border Affairs Minister Colonel Aung Kyaw Moe.
The camps are overcrowded but there is no shortage of food, people in one camp said.
“We have no problem with food at this camp, but there are too many people here. The next to arrive will have to camp under trees,” said Yin Htwe, a refugee at a camp at Thamone Gone Monastery.
“We are full of worry night and day,” Yin Htwe said.
Some camp residents said they were separated from their families. “When we visited the camps, most of the refugees said they wanted to meet their family members and relatives. We are now working on this,” said Ye Myint, the chief minister for Mandalay region.
Authorities are transferring those who sought refuge at the district stadium to schools in the town because there is no protection from the sun at the stadium.
The rioting began in Meikhtila following a dispute between the Muslim owner of a gold shop and Buddhist customers on Wednesday morning. The riots left 32 dead and thousands displaced, according to official figures. Over the past three days, there have been reports of burglaries and robberies in some areas of the city.
