Myanmar warned over forcing cyclone survivors home
Sunday, 1 June 2008
YANGON, May 31 (Reuters): Myanmar must stop forcing cyclone survivors to return to their shattered homes where they face more misery or even death, rights groups said Saturday, as a US official accused the junta of being "deaf and dumb" to foreign aid pleas. The former Burma's junta started evicting destitute families from government-run cyclone relief centers Friday, apparently fearing the 'tented villages' might become permanent.
"It's unconscionable for Burma's generals to force cyclone victims back to their devastated homes," Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
"Claiming a return to 'normalcy' is no basis for returning people to greater misery and possible death," he added.
Myanmar has said the rescue and relief effort is largely over and it is focused on reconstruction, but the United Nations has said the scale of the devastation means the relief phase after Cyclone Nargis struck on May 2 is likely to last six months.
In some of the bluntest comments by Washington on Myanmar's response to the cyclone, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said tens of thousands had died due to the military government's refusal to allow foreign aid.
Nearly a week after junta leader Than Shwe promised to allow in "all" legitimate foreign aid workers, 45 remaining U.N. visa requests had been approved Wednesday, but red tape is still hampering access to the Irrawaddy delta.
"It's unconscionable for Burma's generals to force cyclone victims back to their devastated homes," Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
"Claiming a return to 'normalcy' is no basis for returning people to greater misery and possible death," he added.
Myanmar has said the rescue and relief effort is largely over and it is focused on reconstruction, but the United Nations has said the scale of the devastation means the relief phase after Cyclone Nargis struck on May 2 is likely to last six months.
In some of the bluntest comments by Washington on Myanmar's response to the cyclone, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said tens of thousands had died due to the military government's refusal to allow foreign aid.
Nearly a week after junta leader Than Shwe promised to allow in "all" legitimate foreign aid workers, 45 remaining U.N. visa requests had been approved Wednesday, but red tape is still hampering access to the Irrawaddy delta.