Reuters, Yangon :
The United States on Friday urged Myanmar to allow humanitarian agencies “unfettered access” in Rakhine state, following reports the government had ordered medical aid group Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) to stop working there.
The Nobel Prize-winning charity has been giving health care to both ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Rohingya Muslims, a mostly stateless minority who live in apartheid-like conditions and who otherwise have little access to healthcare.
“Free, regular and open access is essential to ensure the benefits of humanitarian activities are delivered appropriately to all people of Rakhine State,” a US embassy official told Reuters.
Government spokesman Ye Htut told media that MSF had been ordered to cease operations. He accused the organization of falsely claiming it treated victims of violence around the time of an alleged massacre in mid-January, which the government denies took place.
The United Nations and human rights groups say at least 40 Rohingya were killed by security forces and ethnic Rakhine Buddhist civilians in a restricted area of the conflict-ridden western state.
MSF said on January 24 it had treated 22 people in the area of the alleged massacre for injuries including a gunshot wound, stab wounds and beatings.
A diplomatic source who declined to be identified told Reuters that MSF was in negotiations with officials in the capital, Naypyitaw, after suspending operations late on Thursday. An MSF spokesman declined to comment. Ye Htut and other government officials were unavailable for comment.
