The election commission summoned the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) and the Arakan League for Democracy (ALD) to a meeting to discuss the renewed violence in the region, according to leaders of the two largest political parties in the country.
RNDP People’s Parliament politician U Phe Than told Narinjara during the meeting their parties were told to co-operate with the government to restore peace and order in Arakan State.
“They told us not to get involved in the current conflicts and to co-operate with the
government to resolve the problems - suggesting that we, as political parties, and the commission, have a responsibility to do so.”
ALD Secretary U Myo Kyaw said the election commission warned them that if any party or individual in was involved in renewed communal violence action would be taken.
But U Phe Than said it wasn’t possible to resolve the current conflict in the “short term”.
According to state estimates; 89 people were killed, 136 people injured, 5351 houses were burned down and 32,231 peoples were displaced from the latest communal violence in October - the majority being Muslim, according to the United Nations (UN).
The RNDP and the ALD were also summoned by the president back in August several months after the first wave of communal violence erupted in June. During this time about 75,000 people were displaced by the violence.
