Political Quotes

“last August, the world watched in horror as Burma's military launched an ethnic cleansing campaign of rape, arson, and mass murder against the Rohingya. Despite the Burmese military's claims that their operations were in response to attacks on police outposts by extremists, the evidence is clear that the Burmese military had made extensive preparations to carry out these operations. Their preparations included systematically disarming Rohingya civilians, training and arming non-Rohingya communities, and building up an unusually large military and security presence in Rakhine, all in anticipation of attacks that included extrajudicial executions, rape, expulsions, and mass burning of Rohingya villages throughout Rakhine state. The military's campaign of ethnic cleansing has forced more than 720,000 Rohingya--roughly 80 percent of the entire Rohingya population in Burma--to flee for safety in Bangladesh, creating the world's worst refugee crisis in recent history. The government and people of Bangladesh have shown extraordinary generosity by providing safe harbor to those fleeing violence in Burma and continuing to keep its border open. Bangladesh is at a tipping point. Already the world's most populous country, there simply isn't enough space or capacity to house this new population. Camp conditions for the Rohingya population are miserable. Refugees are living in plastic and bamboo shelters dangerously perched on the side of clay hills.…”