"The root of the conflict was a murder case, which involved three people."Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara (ANTARA News) - Myanmar has declared that the ongoing conflict involving Rohingya Muslims is not because of religion, but due to differences between two groups in connection with a criminal case.
The statement was made by the Myanmar parliamentary delegation at the first plenary session of the 33rd ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA), which was held in Mataram, Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), on Tuesday.
AIPA President Marzuki Alie chaired the plenary session.
Myanmar's 15-member strong delegation consisted of 12 members of parliament and three staff.
At the session, the delegation presented the chronology of events that led to the recent conflict. It said the government had brokered peace deals between conflicting groups in many parts of the country, adding that Myanmar authorities were making similar efforts in the country`s violence-ravaged northern region.
During the presentation, the delegation pointed out that there were many misunderstandings with regard to the Rohingya issue.
"The root of the conflict was a murder case, which involved three people," it explained.
"That led to an attack on a bus wherein the three people were killed. Then, the government and the armed forces took action to control the conflict that happened after the incident," the delegation added.
"Some 90 people were killed and thousands of homes were burned as the conflict escalated. But it was never a religious conflict; it was only a conflict between two groups," it went on.
"Besides, the casualty figures reported by various organizations on the Internet are exaggerated. Same is the case with the number of houses burned," the delegation said.
It also dismissed the conflict-related pictures circulating on the Internet as misleading.
"Those pictures are of an event elsewhere. The ones on Buddhist priests are from Tibet, not Myanmar," the delegation stated.
(U.A050/INE/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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