Oh boy, this will be really helpful in the debate on how to deal with the Rohingya Muslims flowing out of Myanamar (Burma). Guess these guys didn’t get the political correctness memo! From AFP:
HONG KONG (AFP) — Myanmar’s senior official in Hong Kong has described the Rohingya people as “ugly as ogres” in a letter sent to media and foreign officials after a high-profile refugee case highlighted their plight.
The country’s Consul General Ye Myint Aung told heads of foreign missions in Hong Kong and local newspapers members of the Muslim ethnic group should not be described as being from Myanmar.
“In reality, Rohingya are neither Myanmar people nor Myanmar’s ethnic group,” he wrote, in a letter seen by AFP on Wednesday.
The envoy contrasted the “dark brown” Rohingya complexion with the “fair and soft” skin of people from Myanmar, which he said was “good looking as well”.
The leaders of the Burmese government maintain that the Rohingya are not an ethnic minority in Burma but are illegal aliens from Bangladesh.
New readers should know that this controversy that seems so far away may affect us at some point because pressure is mounting for the Rohingya to be resettled in the West. See our category ‘Rohingya Reports’ to catch up on the story.