AFP; BBC.co.uk (Burma's Transition); Wisdom Quarterly
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| Burma's most sacred shrine, the massive Shwedagon Pagoda complex (AFP/BBC) |
A curfew was declared in violence-hit Meiktila town (AFP/BBC) |
| Burma, now Myanmar, in S.E. Asia (BBC) |
Reports from Burma say deadly rioting has taken place between Muslims and Buddhists in a central town.
At least 10 people were reported killed and mosques burned in
Meiktila town, south of Mandalay, which has a large Muslim population. Officials declared a curfew overnight in the wake of the violence.
This appears to be the most serious sectarian clash since
almost 200 people were killed last year in unrest in the western state
of Rakhine [and further violence in Bangladesh].
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| Burmese fruit stand (BBC) |
What began as an argument in a gold shop escalated quickly,
with mobs setting mainly Muslim buildings alight, including some
mosques, and fighting in the streets between men from the rival
communities, says the BBC's South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head.
While the fighting was said to have stopped, several areas of the town were still on fire, according to reports. Win Htein, a member of the opposition National League of
Democracy [Aung San Suu Kyi's NLD] party, told AFP (Agence-France Presse) that "more than 10 people
were killed."
"The situation is getting worse. The police cannot control
the people. There are groups of people on the streets with knives and
sticks," a local resident also told AFP.
One of those who died was a Buddhist monk who suffered severe burns on Wednesday, police say.
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Deadly white phosphorus used on protesters |
A local official has been quoted as saying that relations
between Muslims and the Buddhist majority have been strained by ethnic
violence in Rakhine state.
Conflict erupted in Rakhine last year involving Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims [near the border with Bangladesh], who are not recognized as Burmese citizens.
Burmese police fired military-issue white
phosphorus grenades to disperse protesters at a controversial copper
mine, a new report alleges.
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