COLU @ CONCEPTS

Media caption Who is burning down Rohingya villages? The 300,000 people who have fled Rakhine state to Bangladesh over the past two weeks all come from the northern districts of Maungdaw, Buthidaung and Rathedaung, the last areas of Myanmar with sizeable Rohingya populations not confined to displacement camps. These districts are hard to reach. Roads are poor, and the government requires permits to go there, which journalists rarely get. So we grabbed the opportunity to join a government-organised visit to Maungdaw, for 18 local and foreign journalists. It would mean seeing only places and people they wanted us to see. But sometimes, even under these restrictions, you can glean valuable insights. Besides, the government has arguments that need to be heard. It is now facing an armed insurgency, albeit one some would argue has been self-inflicted. The communal conflict in Rakhine state has a long history, and would be difficult for any government to deal w...

Image copyright GETTY IMAGES The plight of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people is said to be the world's fastest growing refugee crisis. Risking death by sea or on foot, more than half a million have fled the destruction of their homes and persecution in the northern Rakhine province of Myanmar (Burma) for neighbouring Bangladesh since August 2017. The United Nations described the military offensive in Rakhine, which provoked the exodus, as a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing". Myanmar's military says it is fighting Rohingya militants and denies targeting civilians. Who are the Rohingya? Image copyright GETTY IMAGES The Rohingya, who numbered around one million in Myanmar at the start of the year, are one of the many ethnic minorities in the country. Rohingya Muslims represent the largest percentage of Muslims in Myanmar, with the majority living in Rakhine state. They have their own language and culture and say they are descendants of Ara...