Since the violence reignited in Rakhine state of Myanmar on Nov. 13, the Burmese army has been launching a new carnage campaign in the Muslim-populated western part of the country. But this time, the massacre is being carried out by the army itself, not Buddhist gangs.
Dr. Wakar Uddin, Arakan Rohingya Union Director General, urges the international society to take action to stop the persecution of Muslims which he describes as a genocide in Myanmar.
He warned that a new, severe wave of violence, being conducted at the hands of the Burmese government, not extremist Buddhist locals, which is much direr than the violence between peoples.
''Burmese army forces are ruthlessly attacking all Muslim villages on their way, killing civilians and razing houses. Scores of women and children are trying to leave the burning buildings, but they are even not allowed to escape from fires. Soldiers are killing others who managed to escape by firing on them from helicopters. Open areas and rice fields are full of Muslims' dead bodies,'' Dr. Wakar said.
He described the mass killings a pure act of genocide, arguing the violence against Muslims in Myanmar exactly depicts the very definition of the concept.
''We found some mass graves, and numerous bodies of those killed by gunfire. Lots of women were burnt alive and we heard scores of gang rape incidents,'' he said.
He insisted there is only one way to stop the bloodshed, which is a humanitarian intervention mission of the UN and other international bodies and also permanent deployment of the peace keeping forces in the region.
''Whenever officials from the UN visit the region for a couple of days, the government withdraws army forces, cleans the area and removes the proofs of the carnage. So, officials leave with very little evidence of these crimes. However, after they leave, the army picks up where they left off, and continues the massacre,'' he said.
Dr. Uddin said they expect much from Turkey, urging it to keep in touch with the Burmese government and convince it to stop the killings.
''After the Turkish government, along with international society agree with Myanmar, we are planning to invite all relief agencies to the region for rehabilitation,'' Dr. Wakar Uddin said.
The tension between Muslims and Buddhists, which dates back to the 1940s, has been at its peak for a couple of weeks in Myanmar, where around 800,000 Muslims live.
Muslims are not regarded Burmese; instead, they are seen as refugees, migrated from adjacent areas and other neighboring countries.
The army, which has long carried out massive attacks on the Muslim-populated Rakhine state, began enhancing its war on Muslims in 2011.
Rohingya Muslims are called the most persecuted people in the world by the UN.
