UN Security Council plans to meet amid fears for Myanmar Rohingya after coup

120,000 members of ethnic minority in Myanmar are effectively confined to camps

Rohingya refugees carry children and walk with their belongings to be relocated to to the island of Bhasan Char, in Chattogram, Bangladesh, Friday, January 29, 2021. File photo / AP Photo

The UN fears the coup in Myanmar will make the plight of about 600,000 Rohingya Muslims still in the country worse, a UN spokesman said on Monday.

The Security Council said it planned to discuss the latest developments on Tuesday.

Myanmar's military seized power on Monday in a coup against the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was detained along with other political leaders.

In 2017, a Myanmar military operation in Rakhine state on an anti-terrorist pretext sent more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fleeing into Bangladesh, where they remain in refugee camps.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres and western states accused the Myanmar military of ethnic cleansing, which it denied.

"There are about 600,000 Rohingya, those who remain in Rakhine state, including 120,000 people who are effectively confined to camps - they cannot move freely and have extremely limited access to basic health and education services," UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

"So, our fear is that the events may make the situation worse for them."

The 15-member UN Security Council plans to discuss Myanmar in a closed meeting, diplomats said.

"We want to address the long-term threats to peace and security, of course working closely with Myanmar's Asia and Asean neighbours," Britain's UN ambassador Barbara Woodward, president of the council for February, said.

China, backed by Russia, shielded Myanmar from any significant council action after 2017.

Beijing and Moscow are council veto powers along with France, Britain and the United States.

China's UN mission told Reuters on Monday it hoped to find out more about the latest developments in Myanmar from the Tuesday briefing.

"It's also our hope that any move of the council would be conducive to the stability of Myanmar rather than making the situation more complicated," a representative of the Chinese mission said.

The Myanmar army said it had detained Ms Suu Kyi and others in response to "election fraud", handing power to military chief Min Aung Hlaing and imposing a state of emergency for one year.

The UN called for the release of all those detained, Mr Dujarric said.

He said Mr Guterres' special envoy on Myanmar, Christine Schraner Burgener, "remains actively engaged" and is likely to brief the Security Council.

The UN has long had a presence in Myanmar. Security Council envoys travelled there in April 2018 and met separately with Ms Suu Kyi and Min Aung Hlaing following the repression of the Rohingya.

Myanmar military coup - in pictures

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  Myanmar nationals in Japan demonstrate against the military coup that took place in their home country on Monday, February 1, 2021. Getty Images

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  A Myanmar national in Japan holds up a portrait of Aung San Suu Kyi during a protest held in front of the United Nations University in Tokyo. EPA

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  People hold up images of Myanmar's de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi at a protest outside Maynmar's embassy in Bangkok, Thailand. Getty Images

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  NLD supporters shout slogans outside Myanmar's embassy during a rally after the military seized power from a democratically elected civilian government and arrested its leader Aung San Suu Kyi, in Bangkok, Thailand. Reuters

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  People use their smartphones to live stream a protest outside Myanmar's embassy in Bangkok, Thailand. Getty Images

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  This screengrab provided via AFPTV and taken from a broadcast by Myanmar Radio and Television (MRTV) in Myanmar shows the announcement of a one-year state of emergency in the country. AFP

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  A screen grab from Myanmar state television footage shows Myanmar Acting President Myint Swe (R) and General Min Aung Hlaing (L) as they attend a meeting. Reuters

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  A military helicopter flies in Naypyitaw, Myanmar. EPA

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  Cars pass police sitting in trucks along a road in Yangon, as Myanmar's military detained the country's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the country's president in a coup. AFP

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  Policemen sit inside trucks parked on a road in the downtown area of Yangon, Myanmar. AP

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  Myanmar military supporters riding a vehicle wave a military flag as they go around Yangon, Myanmar. AP

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  People wave flags as they ride on a vehicle in Yangon, Myanmar. Reuters

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  A view of Shwedagon Pagoda, a Buddhist religious landmark in Yangon, as Myanmar's military detained the country's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the country's president in a coup. AFP

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  Myanmar soldiers are seen inside City Hall in Yangon, Myanmar. Reuters

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  A woman leaves her house while being escorted by soldiers (unseen) at an unidentified location in Myanmar, in this picture obtained from social media. Reuters

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  A demonstrator prepares to throw a rock towards riot police during a protest outside the Embassy of Myanmar in Bangkok, Thailand. Andre Malerba/Bloomberg

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  A Thai pro-democracy protestor confronts riot police in Bangkok, in the area where Myanmar migrants were demonstrating after Myanmar's military detained the country's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the country's president in a coup. AFP

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  A group of Myanmar activists hold the portrait of Aung San Suu Kyi during a protest outside the United Nation university in Tokyo following a military coup in the country by a general after arresting civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other senior officials. AFP

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  Anti-Thai government protester wields a traffic cone at riot police during a clash at a rally for Myanmar's democracy outside the embassy, in Bangkok, Thailand. Reuters