Suu Kyi: Most Rohingya villages violence-free

Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi. AP FILE PHOTO

NAYPYIDAW — Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi defended her country against international criticism over an exodus of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims, saying most of their villages remain intact and that it is important to understand why conflict did not break out everywhere.

The Nobel Peace laureate’s global image has been damaged by violence since Rohingya insurgents attacked Myanmar security forces on August 25.

More than 400,000 Rohingya have fled their villages, many of which have been burned. The government has blamed the Rohingya themselves, but members of the persecuted minority have said soldiers and Buddhist mobs attacked them.

Suu Kyi told foreign diplomats gathered in Naypyidaw that “more than half” of Rohingya villages were not affected by the violence. She invited the diplomats to visit those villages so they could learn along with the government “why are they not at each other’s throats in these particular areas.”

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