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NEW YORK: The United Nations fears that the coup in Myanmar will worsen the plight of some 600,000 Rohingya Muslims still in the country, a UN spokesperson said on Monday (February 1) as the Security Council planned to meet. on Tuesday about the latest events.
Myanmar’s military seized power on Monday in a coup against the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was detained along with other political leaders in morning raids.
READ: Aung San Suu Kyi calls on the public to reject and protest against the military coup
A 2017 military crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine state sent more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fleeing to Bangladesh, where they are still stranded in refugee camps. The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, and the western states accused the Myanmar army of ethnic cleansing, which they denied.
LEE: Bangladesh hopes that Myanmar will comply with the repatriation commitments of the Rohingya despite the coup
“There are around 600,000 Rohingya who remain in Rakhine State, including 120,000 people who are effectively confined in camps, cannot move freely and have extremely limited access to basic health and education services,” the spokesman told reporters. of the UN Stephane Dujarric.
“So our fear is that the events could make the situation worse for them,” he said.
The 15-member UN Security Council plans to discuss Myanmar in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday, diplomats said.
“We want to address long-term threats to peace and security, of course by working closely with Myanmar’s neighbors in Asia and ASEAN,” British Ambassador to the UN Barbara Woodward, president of the council, told reporters. in February.
READ: Crisis in Myanmar after army alleges election fraud
Russia-backed China shielded Myanmar from any significant council action after the 2017 military crackdown. Beijing and Moscow are veto powers of the council along with France, Britain and the United States.
The Chinese UN mission told Reuters on Monday that it expected to learn more about the latest developments in Myanmar at the Security Council briefing on Tuesday.
“We are also hopeful that any move by the Council will lead to the stability of Myanmar rather than complicate the situation,” said a spokesman for the Chinese UN mission.
Myanmar’s military said it had detained Aung San Suu Kyi and others in response to “electoral fraud”, handing over power to military chief Min Aung Hlaing and imposing a state of emergency for a year.
READ: Myanmar military dismisses 24 ministers and deputies, appoints 11 replacements in new administration
The UN called for the release of all those detained, Dujarric said. He said Guterre’s special envoy in Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, “continues to be actively involved” and is likely to report to the Security Council.
The UN has been in Myanmar for a long time. The Security Council envoys traveled to Myanmar in April 2018 and met separately with Aung San Suu Kyi and Min Aung Hlaing following the crackdown on the Rohingya.
