Riots being instigated - NLD
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'Invisible hand' seeking to derail democracy, says opposition party
The opposition National League for Democracy (NLD) has claimed that incidents of communal violence ongoing since 2011 are being instigated behind the scenes.
“In our opinion, the occurrence of communal crises across the country seems unnatural. We believe there is an ‘invisible hand’ behind the scene [instigating the violence]. It is not easy to tell who is who. It is not a conflict between Buddhism and Islam, but we think some are creating communal crises,” said NLD spokesperson, Nyan Win, speaking to reporters after a meeting of the NLD’s central executive.
Communal riots erupted in western Myanmar’s Rakhine State after a Buddhist woman was brutally raped and murdered by Rohingya Muslims in May 2012. The riots continued up to June then flared up again in October, leaving an estimated 140,000 people displaced despite a state of emergency being declared.
In March this year sectarian riots erupted in the northern town of Meikhtila and spread to various towns in the Mandalay Region and some in Bago Region. Officials say these incidents killed 43, injured 64 and left hundreds of families displaced.
Similar riots have occurred in Okkan Township, Yangon Region, and in Lashio in Shan State. The most recent incident was in August this year in Kantbalu Township, Sagaing Region.
The communal violence across Myanmar has exacerbated tensions between Buddhist and Muslim minority communities and threatens to destabilise an already fragile reform process. Most of these incidents have common characteristics and causes, including initial incidents of rape and the spread of unfounded rumours to incite people to violence.
Presidential spokesperson Ye Htut announced on June 29 that an emergency management committee had been formed to address these conflicts. Investigations are underway to expose those inciting the unrest.
Despite numerous claims of behind-the-scenes instigation and repeated police assurances that such incidents are being investigated, the authorities have yet to expose any perpetrators.
