Arakan News Agency
President Thein Sein’s office says Myanmar will not attend Thai summit on crisis if invitation mentions name ‘Rohingya‘.
Myanmar refused to shoulder blame for an escalating migrant crisis and cast doubts on whether it will attend a summit in Thailand later this month aimed at easing an emergency that has left thousands of refugees stranded at sea.
“We are not ignoring the migrant problem, but our leaders will decide whether to attend the meeting based on what is going to be discussed,” said Major Zaw Htay, director of the office of Myanmar’s president.
“We will not accept the allegations by some that Myanmar is the source of the problem,” he added.
Boats filled with more than 2,000 desperate and hungry refugees have arrived in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia in recent weeks, and thousands more migrants are believed to be adrift at sea after a crackdown on human traffickers prompted captains and smugglers to abandon their boats.
Many of those on the overcrowded vessels are ethnic Rohingya Muslims fleeing persecution in Myanmar. Others are Bangladeshis fleeing poverty.
Source : Al Jazeera English
