Prince Charles and Camilla cancel Burma trip amid 'ethnic cleansing' of Rohingya Muslims

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have pulled out of a planned trip to Burma amid an international outcry over "ethnic cleansing" of Rohingya Muslims.

The royals will visit Singapore, Malaysia and India this autumn in an Asian tour on behalf of the British government, Clarence House has announced. But Burma was omitted from their schedule despite once forming part of the plans.

It had been widely speculated the heir to the throne and his wife would visit the south-east Asian country during their traditional autumn tour, despite violence and turmoil in parts of the nation.

Burma has faced widespread condemnation from the international community after more than half a million Rohingya Muslims fled to Bangladesh to escape a military operation described by the United Nations as "ethnic cleansing".

The crackdown was launched response to a series of deadly attacks on security posts by Rohingya insurgents.

The Prince and Duchess will make an 11-day trip starting in Singapore on October 30 before moving on to Malaysia and ending in India, Clarence House announced at a press briefing.

Scott Furssedonn-Wood, the Prince's deputy private secretary for foreign and Commonwealth affairs, said the visit was planned at the request of the Government.

He added: "Their royal highnesses are delighted to be returning to India, and to be visiting Singapore and Malaysia for the first time together."

The deputy private secretary said Charles and Camilla "will undertake nearly 50 engagements that showcase the breadth and depth of the United Kingdom's relationship with these key Commonwealth partners in advance of a Commonwealth summit in London next April".

Philip Malone, south-east Asia department director at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), was asked at the press briefing why and when Burma had been rejected.

He replied: "For a tour like this you look at a range of options and we decided to go with Singapore and Malaysia."

Pressed about when Burma was dropped from the tour, he said only: "These visits are planned over a number of months, preparations are made and you get to the point, working with Scott and his team here, where we decide on the ones that we will pursue for the visit."

Charles and Camilla met Burma's de facto leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi for talks at their official London home in May, before the country's military began the offensive on the Rohingya.

Ms Suu Kyi, whose position as state counsellor does not give her authority over the military, has faced international criticism for her failure to speak out against alleged human rights abuses including mass killings, gang rapes, and the burning of villages.

More than 500,000 of the persecuted minority have fled from Burma to Bangladeshi in the past month, with many facing desperate conditions in refugee camps.

Last month Britain suspended its training programme for the military in Burma because of the violence, and diplomatic relations have deteriorated.

Rights campaigners had argued against a royal visit to Burma.

“To have someone of Prince Charles’s stature go to visit the country would be seen as a reward, and giving legitimacy to the government and the military that are currently violating international law,” said Mark Farmaner, director of Burma Campaign UK.

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has called on Ms Suu Kyi to "show the leadership she is capable of to try to heal that terrible situation".

The Prince knew the Burmese leader's late husband Michael Aris, a Tibetan scholar who endured years without his wife when she was under house arrest during her fight to end military rule in her country.

Mr Aris, 53, died of prostate cancer in 1999 and later that year Charles became patron of the Michael Aris Memorial Trust for Tibetan and Himalayan Studies.

During their autumn tour, Charles and Camilla will be flown in the ministerial Voyager jet, a dual purpose refuelling aircraft that has also been refurbished to carry senior government ministers and members of the monarchy on official trips.

The Duchess will arrive in Singapore separately for the start of the tour after spending a few days on a private holiday.

This week 13 UK charities launched a major fundraising appeal to help provide food, medical care and shelter to Rohingya fleeing persecution in Burma.

The UK government pledged to match the first £3m donated by the public to the Disasters Emergency Committee appeal.

Rohingya Muslims have faced decades of persecution in Burma, where many of the Buddhist majority consider them illegal immigrants.