Pope Francis Condemns Persecution of Rohingya Muslims

Shi'ite leader-Christian leader-Sunni leader

In his weekly address at the Vatican on 8 February, Pope Francis whose papacy began on 13 March 2013 once again showed his spirit of tolerance towards Muslims. In a situation where most Muslim leaders turn a blind eye, he defended the right of Rohingya Muslims to practice Islam and went on to call them his brothers and sisters. The 80 year old was heard telling the 7,000 strong congregation at the Paul VI Hall, "They are not Christians, they are peaceful people, and they are our brothers and sisters." The Pope was speaking in response to a UN rights flash report which showed that the Rohingya Muslims in Burma have faced abuses such as rape, torture, confistication and brutal suppression for quite some time. The Prime Minister of Malaysia, Najib Razak, recently has been the only Muslim leader who has been blowing the whistle on the Burmese government over its maltreatment of the Rohingya Muslims. The Pope said in his speech that the Rohigya are “good people” who are being persecuted “simply because they want to live their culture and their Muslim faith”. He also said in his speech that the Rohingya Muslims "are being chased from Myanmar and are fleeing from one place to another because no one wants them". The new wave of persecution of Rohingya Muslims started in October 2016 when an attack on a police post on the Burmese border with Bangladesh lead to the death of a number of Burmese officers. In the wake of the persecution, over 80,000 Rohingya Muslims fled to neighbouring Bangladesh where there is no good record of Rohingya accommodation. On the 29^th of December 2016, the Bangladeshi government ordered the refugees be sent back to Burma. In 2013, the Burmese government passed a law that made it illegal for Rohingya couples to have more than two children. According to world officials, there are currently 1.2 million Muslims in the Rakhine state of Burma which is the original home-land of the Rohingya Muslims.