Myanmar's Suu Kyi slams 'misinformation' over Rohingya crisis

Published
127
This file photo taken on August 30, 2016 shows Myanmar State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi listening to a journalist's question during a joint press conference with the UN secretary general in Naypyidaw.— AFP
This file photo taken on August 30, 2016 shows Myanmar State Counsellor and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi listening to a journalist's question during a joint press conference with the UN secretary general in Naypyidaw.— AFP

Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Wednesday alleged a “huge iceberg of misinformation” was distorting the picture of the Rohingya crisis, which has forced 125,000 of the Muslim minority to flee to Bangladesh.

In her first comments since Rohingya militant attacks sparked unrest on August 25, Suu Kyi said fake news was “calculated to create a lot of problems between different communities” and to promote “the interest of the terrorists”.

Her intervention, quoted on the Facebook page of her State Counsellor's office, followed a phone call with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has led the global chorus of condemnation of a Myanmar army crackdown on the Rohingya.

Suu Kyi decried the “fake information” spread on Twitter last week by the Turkish deputy prime minister who shared photos purporting to be dead Rohingya that were later proven not to relate to the current crisis.

“Terrorism is new (for Myanmar) but the Government will do its best to make sure that this does not expand and spread all over Rakhine,” she was quoted as saying.

Hundreds have died since Rohingya militants raided police posts in Myanmar's Rakhine State.

Over 60,000 homes have been torched and there has been an exodus of Rohingya — who are reviled in Myanmar and denied citizenship — across the border into Bangladesh.

Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, has come under intense pressure over her refusal to speak out against the treatment of the Rohingya or chastise the military.

Analysts say her obduracy despite the years of pressure from rights groups is a sop to the still powerful army and surging Buddhist nationalism in the Southeast Asian country.

Opinion

Editorial

Muddled hierarchy
Updated 15 Nov, 2026

Muddled hierarchy

The jurisdiction of the two courts and a mechanism for settling disputes between them should be spelt out in law, not left to judges to fight over.
Growing crisis
15 Nov, 2026

Growing crisis

AN emergency can be judged by the speed with which it draws an effective response. The National Population Council’s...
Organised rackets
15 Nov, 2026

Organised rackets

ON the International Day against Transnational Organised Crime, observed today, Pakistan finds itself in a tight...
Referendum talk
Updated 14 Nov, 2026

Referendum talk

Unless the PPP is deliberately using Sindh as a bargaining chip, it should issue a clarification with a clear, consistent position on new administrative units, not one tailored to protect its home turf.
Mineral wealth
Updated 14 Nov, 2026

Mineral wealth

Minerals should not be presented as a solution to Pakistan’s long-term economic difficulties. The aim should be to build an industrial base rather than export raw materials.
Late diagnosis
14 Nov, 2026

Late diagnosis

AS we mark World Diabetes Day today, Pakistan faces a troubling question: how many people are living with diabetes...