Updated

Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi says the communal violence threatening her country's fledgling reforms must be stopped by ensuring the "rule of law" so that clashing groups feel secure enough for dialogue.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate, on a visit to Japan, told reporters Wednesday that she objects to violence "committed by anybody against anybody" and that Buddhist-Muslim violence threatens Myanmar's progress toward greater democracy and economic growth.

Myanmar's government has been criticized for failing to prevent attacks mostly on minority Muslims by majority Buddhists. Sectarian violence in Rakhine state has killed hundreds and driven more than 100,000 Rohingya Muslims from their homes.

Suu Kyi described the stateless Rohingya's plight as a "sad state of affairs," adding that Myanmar must face up to the citizenship issue.