Burmese government 'putting cyclone survivors at risk'
Amnesty International has criticised the Burmese government
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Thursday, 05, Jun 2008 05:00
The Burmese government is forcing survivors of Cyclone Nargis out of emergency shelters and withholding aid from them, Amnesty International has said.
The charity said today that the government's actions were placing tens of thousands of people at "increased risk of death, disease and hunger".
Burma's rulers announced an end to the rescue and relief phase of the disaster response on May 20th.
Since then, Amnesty claims, Burma's State and Development Council (SPDC) has launched a campaign to force homeless cyclone survivors out of resettlement camps.
More than 130,000 people are believed to be dead or missing as a result of Cyclone Nargis and 2.4 million more are said to be suffering from a lack of food and shelter.
Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International's Burma researcher, said: "After surviving the cyclone's fury, thousands of cyclone survivors are now suffering at the hands of the SPDC."
In its report, the international aid organisation quotes more than 30 instances and accounts of people being forcibly removed from emergency shelters in monasteries, schools and other places.
It also claims to have received over 40 reports of aid being confiscated by officials, in some cases being diverted and even withheld from survivors.
Amnesty claimed that despite statements otherwise it had reports that local officials were acting "without impunity" when it came to withholding the support meant for those suffering in the aftermath of the cyclone.