YANGON: Myanmar’s Catholic bishops are “nervous” Pope Francis will mention the Rohingya during his visit next month, a spokesman said Friday, fearing that it would prompt protests from a Buddhist public that loathes the Muslim minority. AdvertisementsThe pontiff’s visit to Buddhist-majority Myanmar, scheduled for November 27, comes after a military campaign that has driven more than 600,000 Rohingya from the country in two months. There is “nervousness about (his) using the word Rohingya,” said Father Mariano Soe Naing, a spokesman for the Catholic Bishop’s Conference of Myanmar, the country’s main Catholic body. Myanmar authorities say the military operation is aimed at rooting out Rohingya militants who staged attacks on police posts two months ago. On Monday the Pope mourned the plight of Rohingya children stuck in overcrowded Bangladeshi refugee camps.

Source: Manila Times October 27, 2017 10:18 UTC