By JAMES HOOKWAY
BANGKOK?A week of clashes in western Myanmar has left at least 84 people dead and forced some 22,000 people to flee their homes to live in crowded camps along the country's coast, raising pressure on the government to find a lasting solution to the crisis as it continues its precarious transition to democracy.
Although local government officials say there were no fresh attacks between Rakhine state's minority Muslim Rohingyas and majority Rakhine Buddhists over the weekend, human-rights groups are urging authorities to do more to end the sectarian violence that has plagued the state, which borders Bangladesh, since June. The United Nations has warned that more violence could derail political overhauls introduced by a quasicivilian national government that took power last year.
Myanmar government-run television reported Sunday night that 84 people had died and 95 more were injured in the latest flare-up of violence, with 2,818 houses razed from Sunday until Thursday in seven of Rakhine state's towns, although human-rights groups warned that the final death count could rise further.
New York-based Human Rights Watch on Saturday warned that the Rohingyas "are under vicious attack," and released satellite photographs appearing to show widespread destruction of Rohingya-inhabited areas of Kyaukpyu, an important port from which an oil pipeline to China starts.
"It is critically important that the government ensures that the rule of law prevails," the U.N.'s chief representative in Myanmar, Ashok Nigam, said in a statement issued Sunday. "The violence, fear and mistrust is contrary to the democratic transition and economic and social development that Myanmar is committed to. It should not become an impediment to progress."
The U.N. says that more than 22,000 people, including both Rohingyas and Rakhines, have been displaced by the conflict.
Political analysts warn that Myanmar's reform-minded government's efforts to find a long-lasting remedy to the violence are hampered by deep-seated racial and religious prejudices in some parts of the country that are resurfacing after the former military regime relinquished power last year after decades of rule.
Ill feelings between Rohingyas and Rakhines, in particular, goes back decades and was fueled in part by the previous military government to help generate support among the larger Buddhist Rakhine population, but the more open environment that has prevailed since the new government took office last year has also triggered a wave of rumors and recriminations that have further stoked hostility.
The first wave of violence came in June after allegations that four Rohingya men had raped and murdered a Rakhine woman. Rakhines retaliated by lynching several members of a Rohingya group traveling by bus, and the violence spiraled into clashes that claimed more than 90 lives. A new wave of clashes erupted a week ago for reasons that remain unclear, triggering curfews across many parts of Rakhine State. The government has accused unidentified individuals and groups of purposely fomenting the violence.
Around 800,000 Rohingyas live in Myanmar, many of them subsisting in refugee camps and making up 1.25% of Myanmar's 64 million population, and about a fifth of the population in Rakhine State. Much larger ethnic groups nationally include Bamar or Burmans, who comprise 68% of the total population of about 64 million, Shan, with 9%, Karen, comprising 7%, and Rakhine, who account for 4%.
In addition, Rohingyas aren't among the myriad ethnic groups classified as Myanmar citizens. They are regarded by many people in Myanmar as Bengali-speaking illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, despite many Rohingyas tracing their roots in the country back several generations. Bangladesh regards the Rohingyas as foreigners also, leaving them in a precarious state of legal limbo.
With an election approaching in 2015, President Thein Sein's government appears sensitive to local criticism if it does too much assist Rohingyas, analysts say. Earlier this month, the government blocked plans by Muslim nations to establish a liaison office for the Organization of the Islamic Conference to help channel aid to Rohingyas living in refugee camps after large protests led by Buddhist monks.
The opposition National League for Democracy has also been guarded in its comments on the legal status of Myanmar's Rohingyas, many of whom brave dangerous sea journeys in open-topped boats to seek work in countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia.
"I expect we will see many fact-finding missions and other inquiries which could take a long time, but the outcome will be very ambiguous, especially when it comes to the issue of statehood for Rohingyas," said one political analyst at a think tank who asked not to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue.
Write to James Hookway at james.hookway@wsj.com
A version of this article appeared October 28, 2012, on page A12 in the U.S. edition of The Wall Street Journal, with the headline: Myanmar Faces Pressure To Find Solution to Crisis.
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