10th April 2014
BANGKOK (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - A foreign aid worker who removed a Buddhist flag from a building did not desecrate it, but
agitators used the action as an excuse for frenzied attacks on the premises of the United Nations and aid organisations in western
Myanmar two weeks ago, a commission investigating the riots said.
In a statement published on Wednesday in the state-run Myanma Alinn Daily, the commission, set up by the government, said the female
aid worker simply removed the flag from the building in line with Malteser's policy of political neutrality.
"While her action did not break the law, the locals' incorrect opinions towards international organisations worsened because of
instigators who spread incorrect information," the statement said.
The commission also criticised the state authorities, saying their "sluggish response" resulted in damage to 14 offices, 16 homes,
15 warehouses, 14 vehicles and boats, motorcycles and office equipment valued at $43,000.
Aid agencies have warned that a humanitarian crisis is brewing in Rakhine, where food and water for tens of thousands of displaced
people in camps will soon run out as a result of the evacuation of humanitarian workers after the riots.
One month before the riots, the aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) was expelled from Rakhine. Local media said state
authorities were angered by its comments about an alleged January massacre of stateless Rohingya Muslims in northern Rakhine.
Myanmar's government denies any killing took place.
Ref: trust.org
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