“Another UN report shelved: Why?”
Regarding the removal from publication of a WFP food security assessment about the levels of hunger and malnutrition in the northern part of Rakhine State in Myanmar earlier this year, the assessment should not have been removed and I have directed that it be republished immediately in its original form.
Put simply, the World Food Programme stands firmly behind the findings of the report. It contained important information about the deterioration of food security in northern Rakhine and its impact on vulnerable people, especially women and children.
It is important to note that the report is now very outdated, because the assessment took place between March and April this year, before the latest surge in violence in northern Rakhine. The level of food needs on the ground has undoubtedly changed – sadly, most likely for the worse.
Now, more than ever, humanitarian workers must be given access to the communities living in northern Rakhine. My message to the authorities in Myanmar is clear: the World Food Programme must have free and unhindered access so we can provide the necessary food assistance to people who are hungry and in need.
Further, as you may know, I recently visited the Cox's Bazar area in Bangladesh and spoke to refugees from the northern Rakhine. As I said then, what happened to these men and women and boys and girls that forced them to flee Myanmar is truly appalling and stomach-turning. The violence must stop.
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