Updated

Myanmar has rejected what it calls "unbalanced comments" made by several Nobel Peace Prize winners calling for an end to the persecution of Rohingya Muslims.

The Nobel laureates including South Africa's Desmond Tutu, Iranian human rights activist Shirin Ebadi and former East Timor President Jose Ramos-Horta made the appeal following two conferences in the Norwegian capital last week. They called the situation of Rohingya in Myanmar "nothing less than genocide."

Myanmar's foreign ministry has issued a statement saying such comments turn a blind eye to efforts to rebuild trust between Buddhists and Muslims in Rakhine state.

In recent weeks, the plight of Rohingya has turned into a regional crisis when thousands landed on the shores of Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, with others still believed stranded at sea.