Maungdaw ceremony marks 8th anniversary of ARSA massacre of Hindus

By Admin 26 Aug 2025

DMG Newsroom

26 August 2025, Maungdaw

A mourning ceremony was held on Monday to mark the eighth anniversary of the killing of Hindus from Khamaungseik and Yebawkya villages in northern Maungdaw Township by the Muslim armed group Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA).

The mourning ceremony was attended by about 300 people, including family members, Hindu religious leaders, Buddhist monks, and local authorities of the United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA), who offered prayers in accordance with Hindu religious rites.

"The mourning ceremony was held near the memorial stone with the names of the deceased. The main purpose was to remember what happened at that time and to pray for the deceased," said a local man in Maungdaw.

ARSA attacked more than 30 Border Guard posts in Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Rathedaung on August 25, 2017, prompting the Myanmar military to launch a counter-offensive that drove more than 700,000 Muslims to Bangladesh amid a campaign of widespread violence carried out by the Myanmar military.

During the 2017 conflict, Hindus in the Maungdaw region were massacred by ARSA members, resulting in the deaths of 113 Hindus, including men, women, and children.

A few days after the violence, the bodies of Hindus were discovered in four mass graves, and some family members are still missing.

Hindus say the international community and human rights activists have not given as much attention to the killings of Hindus as they have to the violence against Muslims.

"I would like to tell human rights activists not to be arrogant. I would like to ask human rights activists to honestly recognise all victims of violence, regardless of race or religion," said a young Hindu woman in Yangon.

Local people in Arakan State say that while all different ethnic groups have been affected by the conflict, the international focus on one side only raises questions about justice and makes it difficult to see the full truth of the conflict.

"Hindus live in every township in Arakan State," aid a Rathedaung resident who studies Arakan politics. "Hindus live peacefully with the Arakanese and there have been no problems. The ARSA killed some Hindus for no reason. They are weak in seeking justice for the Hindus who were killed."