The rights of all ethnic minorities should be respected in Myanmar, Pope Francis said in a speech given during his short visit to the Asian nation.
In a speech attended by State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, government authorities, and the diplomatic corps in the country’s new capital, Naypyitaw, in which he didn’t mention the Rohingya by name or refer directly to the recent strife in north Rakhine state which has seen hundreds of thousands of Rohingya flee into neighbouring Bangladesh, the Pope said the people of Myanmar “have suffered greatly, and continue to suffer, from civil conflict and hostilities that have lasted all too long and created deep divisions”.
“As the nation now works to restore peace, the healing of those wounds must be a paramount political and spiritual priority,” he said, adding that the “arduous” process of peacebuilding and national reconciliation can only advance “through a commitment to justice and respect for human rights”.
“The future of Myanmar must be peace, a peace based on respect for the dignity and rights of each member of society, respect for each ethnic group and its identity, respect for the rule of law, and respect for a democratic order that enables each individual and every group – none excluded – to offer its legitimate contribution to the common good.”
The Pope said religious differences “need not be a source of division and distrust, but rather a force for unity, forgiveness, tolerance and wise nation building”, saying religions can play “a significant role in repairing the emotional, spiritual and psychological wounds of those who have suffered in the years of conflict”.
Some human rights group have already expressed disappointment that the Pope didn’t use the word Rohingya, a minority not officially recognised in Myanmar.
Elsewhere, the Pope said he had come to Myanmar, “above all, to pray with the nation’s small but fervent Catholic community, to confirm them in their faith, and to encourage them in their efforts to contribute to the good of the nation”.
Earlier, Pope Francis met with a group of 17 leaders from different religious traditions at the Catholic Archbishop’s residence for 40 minutes during which he stressed the concept of “unity in diversity”, according to a Vatican spokesman. He also had a separate meeting with controversial Buddhist monk Sitagu Sayadaw.
