KABUL: Thousands of Afghans held protests on Friday to condemn the violence against the Muslims of Rohingya. The protesters blamed the world for failing to stop the abuse that has claimed thousands of lives and forced hundreds of thousands to flee Myanmar over the past two weeks.
The protests were the largest thus far and were held in at least six towns and cities, including the capital, Kabul.
There were no immediate reports of violence from any of the protests which coincide with rising anti-Western sentiments in Afghanistan. Many Afghans see the West as ignoring abuses against Muslims all over the world, and also blaming the US for waging war in a number of Muslim countries.
“The silence of the West is questionable. We are witnessing a genocide and Western leaders, who normally raise voice against abuses affecting non-Muslims, are silent about the killings of Muslims in Myanmar,” said Ahmad Ultaf, a 28-year old man in Kabul.
The marchers, which included a group of women in Kabul, went by the main UN compound and submitted a resolution demanding the guilty be punished and that a fact-finding mission be dispatched from Muslim countries and the UN.
The abuses against Rohingya Muslims have been dominating discussions among Afghans, some of whom even called for the Taliban and Daesh to go to Myanmar to save Muslims there instead of fighting in Afghanistan.
Both the Afghan government and the Taliban, who lead the insurgency against the government and US-led troops, have condemned the violence in Myanmar and those responsible for it. Apparently preoccupied by the standoff in North Korea, Western leaders have so far appeared reluctant to speak out strongly about the abuse.
“Do not connive in the genocide in Myanmar. It is time to act, to save humanity, regardless of religion and ethnicity,” said another Kabul protester Shah Mahmoud.
Afghans question world’s silence over Rohingya crisis
Afghans question world’s silence over Rohingya crisis
