Myanmar riot kills 10
At least 10 people have been killed in riots in central Myanmar, an MP said yesterday, prompting international concern at the countrys worst communal unrest since a wave of Buddhist-Muslim clashes last year.
Huge plumes of black smoke were seen rising above the town of Meiktila after buildings were set ablaze in a second day of fighting in the previously peaceful area, where a night-time curfew was imposed.
Several mosques were reported to have been torched.
The United States said it was deeply concerned by the unrest, which according to police erupted on Wednesday after an argument in a Muslim-owned gold shop intensified and caused about 200 people to fight in the streets.
Win Htein, a member of the opposition National League for Democracy party, said he had seen bodies at the scene of fresh clashes yesterday.
More than 10 people were killed, he told AFP from the town, which is his constituency seat.
The unrest comes amid heightened tensions between Muslims and Buddhists in Myanmar.
Communal conflict in a different region, the western state of Rakhine, left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced last year, overshadowing international optimism about the countrys widely praised political reforms since the end of military rule two years ago.
In a brief statement, the US embassy said it was closely monitoring the new violence. UN resident coordinator Ashok Nigam called for all parties involved to exercise the utmost tolerance and restraint within their communities.
An AFP photographer who visited the town saw three burned bodies and houses on fire.
Police said several mosques were destroyed and a Buddhist monk was among two killed on Wednesday, but they did not give an updated toll for Thursday.
Ko Ko Gyi, a member of the 88 Generation political activist group who travelled to Meiktila on Wednesday, said people from both communities were fleeing their homes for fear of being attacked.
Myanmars Muslims largely of Indian, Chinese and Bangladeshi descent account for an estimated four percent of the roughly 60 million population, although the country has not conducted a census in three decades.
Muslims entered Buddhist-majority Myanmar en masse as indentured labourers from the Indian subcontinent during British colonial rule which ended in 1948.
But despite their long history, they have never fully been integrated into the country.
Sectarian unrest has occasionally broken out in the past in some areas across the country, with Rakhine state a flashpoint for the tensions.
Since violence broke out there last year, thousands of Muslim Rohingya boat people including a growing number of women and children have fled the conflict in rickety boats, many heading for Malaysia.
Myanmar riot kills 10 | The Daily Star
At least 10 people have been killed in riots in central Myanmar, an MP said yesterday, prompting international concern at the countrys worst communal unrest since a wave of Buddhist-Muslim clashes last year.
Huge plumes of black smoke were seen rising above the town of Meiktila after buildings were set ablaze in a second day of fighting in the previously peaceful area, where a night-time curfew was imposed.
Several mosques were reported to have been torched.
The United States said it was deeply concerned by the unrest, which according to police erupted on Wednesday after an argument in a Muslim-owned gold shop intensified and caused about 200 people to fight in the streets.
Win Htein, a member of the opposition National League for Democracy party, said he had seen bodies at the scene of fresh clashes yesterday.
More than 10 people were killed, he told AFP from the town, which is his constituency seat.
The unrest comes amid heightened tensions between Muslims and Buddhists in Myanmar.
Communal conflict in a different region, the western state of Rakhine, left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced last year, overshadowing international optimism about the countrys widely praised political reforms since the end of military rule two years ago.
In a brief statement, the US embassy said it was closely monitoring the new violence. UN resident coordinator Ashok Nigam called for all parties involved to exercise the utmost tolerance and restraint within their communities.
An AFP photographer who visited the town saw three burned bodies and houses on fire.
Police said several mosques were destroyed and a Buddhist monk was among two killed on Wednesday, but they did not give an updated toll for Thursday.
Ko Ko Gyi, a member of the 88 Generation political activist group who travelled to Meiktila on Wednesday, said people from both communities were fleeing their homes for fear of being attacked.
Myanmars Muslims largely of Indian, Chinese and Bangladeshi descent account for an estimated four percent of the roughly 60 million population, although the country has not conducted a census in three decades.
Muslims entered Buddhist-majority Myanmar en masse as indentured labourers from the Indian subcontinent during British colonial rule which ended in 1948.
But despite their long history, they have never fully been integrated into the country.
Sectarian unrest has occasionally broken out in the past in some areas across the country, with Rakhine state a flashpoint for the tensions.
Since violence broke out there last year, thousands of Muslim Rohingya boat people including a growing number of women and children have fled the conflict in rickety boats, many heading for Malaysia.
Myanmar riot kills 10 | The Daily Star
