“The Rakhine community is afraid of an OIC’s presence in Sittwe because the Islamic organization represents 57-Muslim countries. They think it will do something in favor of the Rohingya community,” said one elder who would not be named.

The OIC, which has received the green light to open the offices by the Burmese government, decided to involve itself in Arakan state after reports emerged the Rohingya were being targeted by security forces, following the worst sectarian violence in decades, in June.

 There are about 800,000 stateless Rohingya in Arakan state, who have been described by the UN as one of the world’s most persecuted minorities.
 
Thousands of Buddhist monks demonstrated on the street in Mandalay to protest the opening of the OIC office in Sittwe. The monks also demanded that the Bangladesh government provide security for the Buddhist community in the country after 300 people were arrested suspected of targeting Buddhist homes and temples.

About three-thousand Buddhist Rakhine monks demonstrated peacefully in Akyab asking for the same demands.