A Muslim religious scholar was brutally attacked by two monks in the Central Arakan township of Minbya on Friday.
The elderly man Md Hossain sustained severe and life threatening injuries as he went out of his village of Paikmarong to fish.
Rohingya activists allege that since the riots of 2012, Budddhist nationalists and security forces have imposed a state of blockade on Muslim villages by blocking them access to the waterways and hills which serve as the traditional sources of income for the Rohingya villagers. They allege the blockade is depriving the Rohingyas of income and leading to severe food shortages in areas where the Muslim population has always been a minority.
Meanwhile, the interception of a boat full of Rohingya refugees in Southern Thailand have once again drawn international limelight to the plight of hungry Rohingyas, willing to risk their lives in order to get to the shores of South East Asia. Our correspondent in the Akyab region reports that severe food shortages are compelling many Rohingyas to risk their lives and the lives of their infant children by making this risky journey. He reports that unless the state of blockade in the Central Arakan region is lifted, starving Rohingyas will have no choice but to risk their lives across the ocean in rickety boats.
Recent Comments