Pope avoids naming Rohingya in Myanmar speech

Pope Francis, in a highly anticipated speech Tuesday, said Myanmar’s future depends on respecting the rights of ethnic groups, an indirect reference to Rohingya Muslims facing what the United Nations calls “ethnic cleansing.” In his speech to Myanmar civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other authorities and diplomats, Francis said the country’s greatest treasure is its people, who continue to suffer from civil conflict and hostilities. “Religious differences need not be a source of division and distrust, but rather a force of unity, forgiveness, tolerance, and wise nation-building,” he said. More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled into neighboring Bangladesh since the Myanmar military launched clearance operations against the group in August. Myanmar, also known as Burma, denies the Rohingya legal rights and refers to them as “Bengali.” Rights groups hoped the pope would use the name “Rohingya” to further highlight their plight during his weeklong visit to Burma and Bangladesh. Phil Robertson, director of Human Rights Watch Asia, said the pope missed an opportunity, since he previously used the term that affirms the Rohingya’s right to self-identity. But Burma’s Catholic community, itself a minority group, implored the pope to avoid referring to the Rohingya by name, for fear of reprisal attacks by the country’s military. Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, who led an advisory commission on actions in the Rohingya-majority Rakhine state, earlier agreed the pope should avoid the term during his visit, calling it “emotional.”