Press Release: Widespread rape of Rohingya women as a weapon of ethnic-cleansing
Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO)
Press release
30 November 2016
Widespread rape of Rohingya women as a weapon of ethnic-cleansing
On Friday 25 November, at about 5 a.m. around 500 Myanmar cruel armed forces – most of them local Buddhist Rakhine goons dressed in uniform without badge -- had cordoned San They Pyin hamlet of Longdon village-tract in Maungdaw Township. About one hundred of them entered the village and seized and removed nearly 100 women and teenage girls to school field, stripped them naked under gun point and lined them up in lying position and raped. Then they made them walk along the village pathway in nude. Some of the women who defied the inhumaneness were slaughtered. The onslaught lasted until 5 p.m. But five beautiful women were not released and were sexually molested whole night by a group of savage soldiers in their camp whereupon three of them were slaughtered.
So far more than 500 innocent villagers were killed, in addition to wholesale destruction of everything by arson attacks, from dwelling houses, mosques and religious buildings to rice, paddy and food products. Terrible stench has spread in places where people could not bury the dead bodies which become food for foxes and other animals.
The local Buddhist Rakhine goons, under the instruction of their extremist leaders, are actively involved in killing, looting, raping and perpetrating other atrocity crimes side by side with the marauding soldiers.
Rape is being used as a weapon of ‘Rohingya ethnic-cleansing’. Shutting up the area to international journalists and observers facilitate the government to destroy the Rohingya people without the knowledge of the outside world, while preventing humanitarian aids has caused serious starvation to the victims of mass atrocity crimes. People are dying of shortage of food and lack of medical treatment.
We reiterate our request that the International community, UN and powerful countries, and Myanmar’s neighbours should intervene now to save the defenseless Rohingya community from total destruction.
For more details, please contact:
U.K.: Ronnie +44-7783118354
Japan: Zaw Min Htut +81-8030835327
Australia: Dr. Hla Myint +61-423381904
USA: Dr. Mohammed Habib Ullah +1-4438158609
Canada: Nur Hasim +1 (519) 572-5359
Bangladesh: Ko Ko Linn: +880-1726068413
Email: info@rohingya.org
