Doctors Without Borders expelled from Burma

(Vatican Radio) Doctors Without Borders has been expelled from Burma, after two decades of work in the country, for their work with minority Rohingya Muslims, who have long been denied citizenship by the Burmese government.

The government complained about reports by Doctors Without Borders describing an attack against Rohingya people last month in the northern part of Rakhine state. The United Nations says more than 40 may have been killed, but the government has denied the story.

Mark Farmaner of the Burma Campaign UK said the international community is ignoring the plight of the Rohingya because of the recent political reforms of the country.

“Even at the height of the military dictatorship, when they were cracking down their fiercest they didn’t stop [Doctors Without Borders] from operating in the country like this,” he told Vatican Radio. “All of the evidence there is of the violations of international law against the Rohingya, and the international community has tried to avoid talking about that, and focusing on the positives: the releases of political prisoners, and slightly more media freedom in the country, so clearly this is giving the government of Burma the confidence now that it can take this really draconian step, which will cost lives. People will die as a result of this decision.”


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