June 14, 2017
The top UN official in Myanmar is being removed for failing to speak out against atrocities committed against the Rohingyas in Northern Maungdaw, according to reports in the BBC.
Renata Lok-Dessallien, and the entire UN team remained silent during October, November and December when Tatmadaw led operations killed more than a thousand Rohingyas, including infant children, many of whom were thrown into fire.
Lok-Dessallien even visited the conflict area but failed to share information and did not even give interviews to the media.
The UN has however said their top official was being removed for matters ‘unrelated to work’. But Lok-Dessailien is being removed at three and a half years, instead of the usual five year tenure.
Lok-Dessallien had denied allegations that UN was prioritising development over human rights after an independent UN report criticising her team’s silence was leaked.
Rohingya activists welcomed the decision and expressed hope that the UN team in Myanmar would be more active in promoting the rights of ethnic communities being persecuted by the security forces inside Myanmar.
An UN report published later in January portrayed a vastly different picture of gross human rights violations committed by Tatmadaw led forces.
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