Suu Kyi, Myanmar army all the same: Rohingyas in Bangladesh react to coup

The military coup in Myanmar today and the arrest of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint, and the imposition of a state of emergency have provoked mixed reactions in the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh.

"What the Myanmar army has done today is by no means justified. Although Aung San Suu Kyi did not ensure the interests of the Rohingya people, she is still an elected leader," Badrul Islam, a Rohingya community leader in Teknaf's Hnila, told The Daily Star.

The Rohingyas will not benefit from the coup. This is because the army deprived them of their rights to vote in the 2008 elections in Myanmar, said Badrul.

"The interests of the Rohingya will not be protected because of the coup. Rohingyas have no interest in this matter," said Mohammad Nur, another Rohnigya leader at Kutupalong in Ukhiya.

Khadija Khatun, 60, a resident of Shalbagan camp in Hnila, Teknaf, said, "I am happy that the army has taken over. Because of Suu Kyi, we had to leave our own country and take refuge here."

"Suu Kyi is just like the Myanmar army to the ordinary Rohingyas. This is a conflict between Myanmar's ruling party NLD and the army. Their position on the Rohingya is not expected to change," said Hafez Jalal Ahmed, chairman of the Kutupalong Rohingya camp.