Rohingyas should be allowed to live

Source Arabnews, 5 Mar

 

ONE fails to understand the unperturbed attitude with which regional and international leaders and organizations are treating the unrelenting onslaught against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, also known as Burma. Numbers speak of atrocities where every violent act is prelude to greater violence and ethnic cleansing. Yet, Western governments' normalization with the Myanmar regime continues unabated, regional leaders are as gutless as ever and even human rights organizations seem compelled by habitual urges to issue statements lacking meaningful, decisive and coordinated calls for action.

 Meanwhile the 'boat people' remain on their own. On Feb. 26, fishermen discovered a rickety wooden boat floating randomly at sea, nearly 25 km off the coast of Indonesia's northern province of Aceh. The Associated Press and other media reported there were 121 people on board including children who were extremely weak, dehydrated and nearly starved. They were Rohingya refugees who preferred to take their chances at sea rather than stay in Myanmar. To understand the decision of a parent to risk his child's life in a tumultuous sea would require understanding of the greater risks awaiting them at home.

 Reporting for Voice of America from Jakarta, Kate Lamb cited a moderate estimate of the outcome of communal violence in the Arakan state, which left hundreds of Rohingya Muslims dead, thousands of homes burned and nearly 115,000 displaced. The number is likely to be higher at all fronts. Many fleeing Rohingya perished at sea or disappeared to be never seen again. Harrowing stories are told and reported of families separating and boats sinking. There are documented events in which various regional navies and border police sent back refugees after they successfully braved the deadly journey to other countries — Thailand, Indonesia, Bangladesh and elsewhere. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) reported that nearly 13,000 Rohingya refugees attempted to leave Myanmar on smugglers' boats in the Bay of Bengal in 2012. At least 500 of them drowned.

 Who are the Rohingyas? Myanmar officials and media wish to simply see the Rohingyas as 'illegal Bengali immigrants,' a credulous reading of history at best. The intentions of this inaccurate classification, however, are truly sinister for it is meant to provide a legal clearance to forcefully deport the Rohingya population. Myanmar President Then Sein had in fact made an 'offer' to the UN last year that he was willing to send the Rohingya people "to any other country willing to accept them." The UN declined.

 Rohingya Muslims, however, are native to the state of "Rohang," officially known as Rakhine or Arakan. If one is to seek historical accuracy, not only are the Rohingya people native to Myanmar, it was in fact Burma that occupied Rakhine in the 1700s. Over the years, especially in the first half of the 20th century, the original inhabitants of Arakan were joined by cheap or forced labor from Bengal and India, who permanently settled there. For decades, tension brewed between Buddhists and Muslims in the region. Naturally, a majority backed by a military junta is likely to prevail over a minority without any serious regional or international backers. Without much balance of power to be mentioned, the Rohingya population of Arakan, estimated at nearly 800,000, subsisted between the nightmare of having no legal status (as they are still denied citizenship), little or no rights, and the occasional ethnic purges carried out by their Buddhist neighbors with the support of their government, army and police. The worst of such violence in recent years took place between June and October of last year. Buddhists also paid a heavy price for the clashes, but the stateless Rohingyas, being isolated and defenseless, were the ones to carry the heaviest death toll and destruction.

 And just when "calm" is reported — as in returning to the status quo of utter discrimination and political alienation of the Rohingyas — violence erupts once more, and every time the diameters of the conflict grow bigger. In late February, an angry Buddhist mob attacked non-Rohingya Muslim schools, shops and homes in the capital Rangoon, regional and international media reported. The cause of the violence was a rumor that the Muslim community is planning to build a mosque.

 What is taking place in Arakan is most dangerous, not only because of the magnitude of the atrocities and the perpetual suffering of the Rohingya people, which are often described as the world's most persecuted people. Other layers of danger also exist that threaten to widen the parameters of the conflict throughout the Southeast Asia region, bringing instability to already unstable border areas, and, of course, as was the case recently, take the conflict from an ethnic one to a purely religious one. In a region of a unique mix of ethnicities and religions, the plight of the Rohingyas could become the trigger that would set already fractious parts of the region ablaze.

 Although the plight of the Rohingya people have in recent months crossed the line from the terrible, but hidden tragedy into a recurring media topic, it is still facing many hurdles that must be overcome in order for some action to be taken. While the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has been making major economic leaps forward, it remains politically ineffective, with little interest in issues pertaining to human rights. Under the guise of its commitment to "non-interference" and disproportionate attention to the festering territorial disputes in the South China Sea, ASEAN seems unaware that the Rohingya people even exist. Worst, ASEAN leaders were reportedly in agreement that Myanmar should chair their 2014 summit, as a reward for superficial reforms undertaken by Rangoon to ease its political isolation and open up its market beyond China and few other countries.
Meanwhile, Western countries, led by the United States are clamoring to divide the large Myanmar economic cake amongst themselves, and are saying next to nothing about the current human rights records of Rangoon. The minor democratic reforms in Myanmar seem, after all, a pretext to allow the country back to Western arms. And the race to Rangoon has indeed begun, unhindered by the continued persecution of the Rohingya people. On Feb. 26, Myanmar's President Sein met in Oslo with Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg in a "landmark" visit. They spoke economy, of course, for Myanmar has plenty to offer. And regarding the conflict in Arakan, Jens Stoltenberg unambiguously declared it to be an internal Burmese affair, reducing it to most belittling statements. In regards to 'disagreements' over citizenship, he said, "We have encouraged dialogue, but we will not demand that Burma's government give citizenship to the Rohingyas." Moreover, to reward Sein for his supposedly bold democratic reforms, Norway took the lead by waving off nearly half of its debt and other countries followed suit, including Japan which dropped $ 3 billion last year.

 While one is used to official hypocrisy, whether by ASEAN or Western governments, many are still scratching their heads over the unforgivable silence of democracy advocate and Noble Peace Prize recipient Aung San Suu Kyi. Luckily, others are speaking out. Bangladesh's Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus, along with former Timor-Leste President Ramos-Horta had both recently spoke with decisive terms in support of the persecuted Rohingya people.

"The minority Muslim Rohingyas continue to suffer unspeakable persecution, with more than 1,000 killed and hundreds of thousands displaced from their homes just in recent months, apparently with the complicity and protection of security forces," the Nobel laureates wrote in the Huffington Post on Feb. 20. They criticized the prejudicial Citizenship Law of 1982 and called for granting the Rohingya people full citizenship.

 The perpetual suffering of the Rohingya people must end. They deserve that they be given their due rights and dignity. They are weary of crossing unforgiving seas and walking harsh terrains seeking mere survival. More voices must join those who are speaking out in support of their rights. ASEAN must break away from its silence and tediously guarded policies and Western countries must be confronted by their own civil societies: No normalization with Rangoon when innocent men, women and children are being burned alive in their own homes. This injustice needs to be known to the world and serious, organized and determined efforts must follow to bring the persecution of the Rohingya people to an end.

Email: ramzybaroud@hotmail.com

 

2,600 tonnes of aid delivered to Myanmar Muslims

Source Gulfnews, 4 Mar

 

Burma: The Khalifa Bin Zayed Humanitarian Foundation (KZHF) has distributed another 2,600 tonnes of food aid to Myanmar Muslims, completing its third and last phase of the urgent aid totalling 5,200 tonnes of relief items among 850,000 beneficiaries.

As per directives of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the assistance was purchased from the local markets of Myanmar in cooperation and coordination with the Embassy of Kuwait to be shipped by sea to "Rakhine (Arakan)" for distribution among the affectees there.

The aid included basic food items in addition to the distribution of clothes among men, women and children in order to alleviate their sufferings, injustice and persecution they have suffered from.

Secrete killings increase in Maungdaw

Source Kaladan Press, 2 Mar

Maungdaw, Arakan State: Secrete killings of Rohingya community is going increased in Maungdaw since beginning of 2013, according to an officer from Maungdaw, who didn't want to named.

The dead body of Sayed Ullah on the ground

"There are more than 13 Rohingyas and one Rakhine were killed by unknown miscreants, but most of Rohingya believed the killing was made by security forces, Natala villagers and case-fire arms group – Rakhine."

The authority also didn't able to find out or arrest, the killers of innocence people- Rohingyas and Rakhine-and the situation in northern Arakan seen, Rohingyas are sufferer and facing so many harassment but some Rohingyas stand to fight for their rights and some leaves their home land, the officer said.

Sayed Ullah (35), son of Mohamed Siddique hailed from Udaung village under Burma border security force (Nasaka) area 8, Maungdaw is a Rohingya – betel leaves farmer – was killed in his betel leaves farm house on March 1 at about 10:00pm, was found on March 2, morning, according to a village administration office member.

"The betel leaves farm house is near the mountain side and Natala village ( Rakhine) and the Rohingya community believed he was killed by Natala villagers as there were only moving two kind of people – Rakhine (Natala) and security personnel."

Some of his colleagues –watching their farms- saw some Natala villagers were rounding near Sayed's farms and heard some voice but they were not able to check Sayed's farms as it is too dark, said one of Sayed colleague.

In the morning, his colleagues found Sayed was dead, laying on the ground with dagger wounded.

Police personnel from Alaythan Kyaw went to the spot after getting information, but the police didn't do anything and not released the dead body nor to send to the hospital.

Later, the dead body was released to Sayed's family to take to their home where they will bury in the village graveyard. But, the relatives had to pay money to the village administration officer ( Rakhine) to do this, said an elder from the village.

Similarly, Abdul Rahaman, son of Abdul Hakhim hailed from Kiliadaung village was killed by unknown miscreants while he was watching his cow and buffalo in the grassing ground on February 28, according to a watch dog of killing Rohingya in Northern Arakan.

"The Rohingyas are killing one by one each day in daytimes or night, in the field or villages but nobody care of Rohingya killing even the law enforcement and no one was arrest since the New Year (2013) started."

Besides, Two Rohingyas on February 26, by Natalan Villagers, four Rohingya minor children from one family on February 9 by unknown, four Rohingyas killed inside custody of Nasaka camp under area number 5 and one Rohingya on January 28 by army personnel of LIBs 352. One Rakhine killed on February 9 by unknown. The authority are arresting Rohingya community for this Rakhine with false allegation and no action for so many Rohingyas were killed in the same times –later and before. It seen, the Rohingya community from northern Arakan are not human being, no law and order for them, no need to follow the basic Human rights, according to a politician from Maungdaw.

"Burma well-known politician and rights activist said "Law and order need to restore in northern Arakan". Yes, it need for people from northern Arakan - Rohingya and Rakhine- to stay peacefully, but now it look, only for Rakhine not for Rohingya."

Indian Coast Guard Ships rescued 108 Rohingyas from Andaman Sea

Source webindia, 2 Mar

 

Indian Coast Guard Ship C-145 and Aruna Asaf Ali in a precise and crisp operation rescued 108 precious human lives during an operation which lasted night of February 28 and early hours of March 1 from high seas.

'The operation was initially launched, in response of panic calls requesting CG assistance raised by M/s Punj Lloyd, Mumbai complaining illegal entry by some unknown people onboard barge Gunpati, which was being towed from Myanmar to Mumbai,' Commandant SSN Bajpai, Chief Staff Officer (Operations) of A & N Coast Guard region told UNI today.

Commandant Bajpai added that Tug Star Jakarta which was towing unmanned barge Ganpati from Myanmar to Mumbai reported illegal entry of about 15 people onboard barge Ganpati and presence of some boats in vicinity on February 28 at 1620 hours.

'On receipt of the information, Interceptor Boat C-145 under the command of Comdt(JG) SR Nagendrgan was pressed into action and ship sailed out within 30 minutes from Diglipur. The ship intercepted Tug Star Jakarta at 2100 hours and embarked Coast Guard Boarding Team onboard barge Ganpati. After boarding the vessel,it was found that barge had 108 Myanmarese who were at sea since February 15 and had no food and water for past 07 days. Condition of the personnel was critical due to severe dehydration and starvation and required immediate medical aid & evacuation. It was also reported one 03 year old boy had expired on February 28 and was given burial at sea by Myanmarese,' the Coast Guard Commandant added. Considering urgency of rescuing large number of people, ICGS Aruna Asaf Ali under the command of Comdt MS Gill, was also directed to rush for rendering assistance.

The officers and men of CG ships C-145 and Aruna Asaf Ali battled rough seas during overnight operation and successfully rescued 108 Myanmarese from barge Ganpati. The rescued Myanmarese were provided much needed food, water and first Aid by Coast Guard ships.

'Considering seriousness of the situation, all nodes of the Coast Guard were put on to higher state of preparedness throughout the night. The Operations team at Regional Headquarters and District Headquarters of Coast Guard effectively coordinated for accomplishment of the mission. All the rescued personnel were brought to Diglipur and handed over to local police for providing further medical aid,' Commandant SSN Bajpai added. UNI SKR BM RD 1818 NNNN

Fishermen Rescue 63 Rohingya Asylum Seekers Off Indonesia

Source  Jakartaglobe, 1 Mar

 

Fishermen in western Indonesia rescued more than 60 ethnic Rohingya asylum-seekers from Myanmar found adrift in a wooden boat, police said Friday, in the second such arrival this week.

The vessel with no engine had 23 children on board and was found drifting off the eastern coast of Sumatra island near the province of Aceh.

"Fishermen found the boat with 63 Rohingya late Thursday afternoon around 160 kilometers [100 miles] from the coastal town of Idi Rayeuk. They then towed the boat to shore," East Aceh district police chief Muhajir told AFP.

"All we know is they are from Myanmar. We don't know where exactly the boat sailed from as they're too tired and hungry to be interviewed and we're having problems communicating," said Muhajir.

The asylum-seekers were being held in an immigration office in the nearby town of Langsa, and were likely to be transferred to a detention center, Muhajir said.

Fishermen in Sumatra rescued 121 Rohingya on Tuesday, with one claiming Thai authorities had shot at them and taken their food and petrol supplies to sabotage their boat as they crossed Thai waters.

Thai authorities are cracking down on Rohingya refugees entering the country, turning around a boat in January with 200 Rohingya in its waters, pushing them towards a third country.

"Considering the situation in Myanmar and Thailand, we're expecting to find more Rohingya in boats around here," Muhajir said.

The UN considers the Rohingya, a stateless Muslim ethnic group, one of the most persecuted minorities in the world, and Myanmar views its roughly 800,000 Rohingya as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, denying them citizenship.

Buddhist-Muslim unrest in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine has left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced since June 2012.

Agence France-Presse

More than 100 Rohingya rescued off Indonesian coast

Source DVB, 27 February 2013

Rohingya people from Burma wait inside a police truck for identification by immigration personnel in Lhokseumawe, Indonesia on 27 February 2013. (Reuters)

 

 

Fishermen have rescued more than 100 ethnic Rohingya asylum seekers from Burma who were found drifting in a wooden boat off western Indonesia, an official said Wednesday.

The 121 Rohingya, including six women and two children, were found adrift late Tuesday by fishermen around 25 kilometres (15 miles) from the village of Cot Trueng, on the northernmost tip of Sumatra island in Aceh province.

"Their boat ran out of petrol as they tried to sail from Myanmar [Burma] to Thailand," village chief Mukhtar Samsyah told AFP , adding that they had fled Burma to escape sectarian conflict.

He said the Rohingya were found in a weak condition but had recovered after being given food, water and a place to sleep.

"They've all been sent to an immigration detention centre in Lhokseumawe city," he said.

The UN considers the Rohingya, a stateless Muslim ethnic group, one of the most persecuted minorities in the world, while Burma views its roughly 800,000 Rohingya as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants, denying them citizenship.

According to government statistics, Buddhist-Muslim unrest in Arakan has left at least 180 people dead and more than 110,000 displaced since June 2012.

Almost 6,000 Rohingya fleeing the violence have illegally entered Thai waters since October, the Thai army said earlier this month.

In late January, Thailand's navy blocked more than 200 Rohingya boat people from entering the kingdom as part of a new crackdown on the refugees, under which they will be given food and water but barred from landing if their boat is seaworthy.

The tougher stance came after Thai authorities said they were investigating allegations that army officials were involved in the trafficking of Rohingya.

UN High Commissioner for Refugees says regional effort needed to reduce Indian Ocean death toll

Source Reilefweb, 26 Feb

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres, today reiterated his call for countries in the Asia Pacific region to work together to tackle a recent increase in lives being lost among people smuggled by boat in the Indian Ocean.

Based on media and other accounts, almost 500 people perished at sea during 2012 after their boats broke down or capsized – making the Indian Ocean one of the deadliest regions in the world for people fleeing their country by boat or being trafficked by smugglers.

"This is an alarmingly high number of lives lost, and begs a far more concerted effort by countries of the region both with regard to addressing the causes and to preventing lives being lost," Guterres said. "Push-backs, denial of disembarkation, and boats adrift for weeks will not solve a regional problem that clearly needs better, more joined-up, and more compassionate approaches by everyone. UNHCR is offering its expertise to help find answers. I urge everyone to make use of next month's gathering in Jakarta to seek better solutions in a coordinated way."

UNHCR will be facilitating a regional meeting in mid-March in Indonesia on irregular movements by sea in the Asia-Pacific.

On 22 February UNHCR voiced its concern about the large number of deaths at sea in the Indian Ocean in recent months, including from an incident in mid-February in which more than 30 people were picked up off the east coast of Sri Lanka – reportedly after some 90 of their fellow passengers had died during a journey of several weeks from the Bay of Bengal. UNHCR is seeking access to the survivors to assess their international protection needs.Those on board may be Rohingya from western Myanmar's Rakhine state or from refugee camps and makeshift sites in Bangladesh

END

For more information on this topic, please contact:

In Bangkok: Vivian Tan on mobile +66 818 270 280
In Geneva: Babar Baloch on mobile +41 79 557 9106

Rapes by Burmese security forces 'may cause more strife' in troubled region

Source guardian, 26 Feb

 

Teenage victim describes how at least 13 women were raped overnight in Arakan state, which has been focus of ethnic riots

 

Over 90,000 Rohingya refugees have been displaced due to violence between Muslim Rohingya and Rakhine Buddhists in Burma, and many are seeking help in Bangladesh. Video from June 2012. Link to video: Rohingya refugees leave Burma to seek help in Bangladesh

At least 13 women, including teenagers, have been subjected to prolonged rape by Burmese security forces in a remote village in the western state of Arakan. Human rights groups have warned that the incident threatens to trigger further violence in a region where several waves of ethno-religious rioting since June last year have killed more than 1,000 people.

The women all belong to the Muslim Rohingya minority, which has borne the brunt of fighting between Muslim and Buddhist communities. One victim, an 18-year-old girl who cannot be named for security reasons, described how a group of uniformed soldiers from Burma's border security unit, known locally as NaSaKa, entered her house in northern Maungdaw township shortly after midnight on 20 February.

"They took us separately to different places and tortured and raped us," she said, referring also to her mother and younger sister, 15. The ordeal lasted until dawn, she said. "They came in and out of the house at least 15 times. They also beat my mother with a gun and dragged her outside to the road and beat her to the ground."

According to the victim, 13 people in the village were assaulted. Chris Lewa, head of the Arakan Project, which has monitoring teams in Maungdaw township, said she had separately confirmed that at least 11 people were raped that night.

The incident comes eight months after the rape of a 26-year-old Buddhist woman by three Rohingya men triggered fierce rioting across Arakan state , and a state of emergency remains in place. Arakanese and Rohingya communities have clashed a number of times. Animosity toward the Muslim group is widespread among Arakanese, many of whom consider them to be illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

"Sexual violence by Nasaka against Rohingya women has been documented for many years," says Matthew Smith, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, adding that prosecutions are rare for rapes committed by security forces.

Khin Ohmar, founder of the Women's League of Burma, said that such ordeals terrorise the community. "I've heard of cases where rape survivors are kicked out of their village because the village head is so scared of retribution if they complain to the Burma army."

Rohingya Muslim women and boys cross the Naf river into Bangladesh to escape sectarian violence in Arakan state, Burma, in June 2012. Photograph: Munir Uz Zaman/AFP/Getty Images

She said that incidents like these happen "every time the army moves into remote areas", and that punishment is normally just transferral to another area "where rape continues but with different women". She thinks that the 20 February incident probably had its roots in "ethno-centric chauvinism and hatred" of the Rohingya.

Following the attacks, villagers fled into nearby forests and across the border into Bangladesh, said Lewa. The victim told the Guardian that she and the other women had received treatment at a local clinic. The extent of their injuries is unclear, although one 19-year-old woman is believed to be in a critical condition.

The protracted violence in Arakan state has left deep scars for communities on both sides. The UN estimates the number of people displaced since June to be around 120,000, the majority Rohingya.

There are fears however that the violence, which initially pitted Rohingya against Arakanese, is increasingly being demarcated along religious lines. Rioting broke out in Rangoon this week after a row over what local Buddhists claimed was the illegal construction of a mosque. The Norway-based Democratic Voice of Burma news organisation also reported last week that the government had placed a ban on all Muslims leaving the Arakanese town of Thandwe, although no official statement has been made.

Buddhist and Muslim communities in Arakan state have now been segregated. In the state capital of Sittwe, all but one Muslim district was razed and emptied last year; the last remaining quarter, Aung Mingalar, whose population swelled from 5,000 to 8,000 residents after fighting broke out, is now guarded by soldiers.

Following a visit to several camps for the displaced this month, UN envoy Tomas Quintana spoke of his concern about aid distribution and freedom of movement. Despite government assurances that displaced Rohingya could eventually return to their homes, Quintana said that stakeholders in Arakan state believed "the current settlements will become permanent".

The medical charity Médecins sans Frontières (MSF) has warned that its staff have received threats from local Arakanese when attempting to get aid to the Rohingya. "It's just awful intimidation and threats of violence from a small but vocal group, through phone calls and on social media," said Peter Paul de Groote, Head of Mission for MSF in Burma.

"Formal permission for access is not the main problem. A big obstacle for MSF is not having enough staff – doctors and other essential personnel are scared to work in Rakhine [Arakan] state." He added that with monsoon season approaching, "we can expect a real humanitarian problem".

OIC summit ignores Rohingya issue

Source thedailystar, 27 feb

We have learned that the 164-pragraph Final Communiqué discussed all the contentious issues facing the member states of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) in its 12th summit held in the first week of February in Cairo recently. It is said that the summit focused on five areas: conflicts and disputes in the Islamic world; ways to combat religious intolerance and Islamophobia; humanitarian issues in the Islamic world; economic and trade cooperation between member states and promoting scientific and technological cooperation between Islamic countries.

However, we expected that the plight of the Rohingyas in Myanmar would be included in the agenda as a humanitarian issue but unfortunately it was ignored. Though the 4th Extraordinary OIC Summit held in Makkah in August 2012 dwelt on the issue and adopted a separate resolution on the situation of the Rohingyas calling upon the Myanmar regime to cease all kinds of discrimination against the minority community and ensure human rights. But it appears the resolution failed to make any significant improvement in the affected areas.

It is observed that Myanmar is not responding sincerely to the calls of Bangladesh in this connection.

We want a strong OIC which will play an effective role in solving crises in the Muslim world including the Rohingya issue.

70 Rohingyas languish in detention in Srilanka with nowhere to go

Source Sundaytimes, 24 Feb

 

A severely persecuted minority in Myanmar which fears repatriation while no other country wants them�

By Skanda Gunasekara.��Pic by Nilan Maligaspe

The Government is burdened with the task of feeding and clothing 70 Rohingya people whom no country wants to accept as their citizens.�The 68 men and two boys aged 12 and 14 years are from the State of "Rohang" in Myanmar, and are commonly referred to as Rohingya Muslims. The United Nations (UN) says they are one of the most persecuted minority people in Myanmar, and many have fled across the border to either Bangladesh or Thailand. The Sino-Tibetans are the majority population in Myanmar.

Some of the Rohingya people at the Mirihana detention centre.

The first batch of 37 Rohingya people have remained in the Mirihana Detention Centre since February 2, Controller General of Immigration and Emigration told the Sunday Times. A further batch of 33 was lodged there a week ago, following their rescue from the high seas, he said. The Centre comes under his purview.

These "people with nowhere to go" are clothed and fed at State expense, until relevant State agencies work to resolve their citizenship status. An External Affairs Ministry (EAM) source who spoke on grounds of anonymity, said they had raised issue with the Myanmar embassy in Colombo about the status of the 70 persons. "We have had no response to our first inquiry about the 37 or the 33 who were rescued thereafter," he said. Hence, the EAM brought the matter to the attention of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Other diplomats in Colombo said the move was not surprising, as the Yangon government did not recognise the Rohingyas.

UNHCR's acting resident representative in Colombo, Jenniger Pagonis told the Sunday Times, "we have now sought permission to interview those in detention. This is to determine whether they are indeed Myanmar nationals. However, we have learnt from other accounts, that they do not wish to return to their country."

The saga of the 33 "persons with nowhere to go" came after the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) received a radio signal that a fishing craft had rescued a fisherman from a boat in distress. SLN spokesman P.K. Warnakulasuriya said "We immediately dispatched SLNS Sagara, and rescued 32 persons from the high seas, 250 nautical miles off Sri Lanka's east coast, returning to Galle after a nine-and-half-hour voyage." The survivors were then handed over to the Police.

The Police found they had a communications problem, as none of them spoke English. Helping out was the Ven. Maligawila Assagi Thera of the Gnanobasa Temple at Lower Dickson Road, Galle, acting as interpreter, through whom the Police were able to piece together a story with several gaps.

Only a few among the 33 spoke a little Burmese. They told Ven. Assagi that their boat began to drift after the engines failed. They had food stocks only for a month, but they had drifted for a further five weeks. Whenever someone died, they had thrown the body overboard. The count was 98 including two organisers of the voyage. While some claimed they were headed for Malaysia, it was later established that their destination was Australia.

Ven Assagi Thera told the Sunday Times, "the survivors are all labourers with Grade 4 education at most. After leaving Myanmar, they claimed they were spotted by the Thai Navy, forcing them to change course. They had planned to complete their voyage in 20 to 25 days."

Galle Magistrate U.S. Kalansuriya ordered the 17 survivors sent to the Detention Centre, when produced by the police. "Our role was over when we sent them to the Centre," Police spokesman Senior Superintendent Prashantha Jayakody said. �On February 2, the SLN rescued another 138 persons from the high seas, of who, 37 were Rohingyas.

(Additional reporting by�D.G.Sugathapala)

 

 

MP hits back at official denial of Rohingya

Source DVB, 22 Feb

 

 22 February 2013

Shwe Maung represents Buthidaung constituency in northern Arakan state. (DVB)

 

 

A member of parliament has fired back at claims that Rohingya Muslims do not exist in Burma, after a senior government minister allegedly accused the group of fabricating its history in a parliamentary discussion on Wednesday.

It follows media reports that the Deputy Immigration Minister, Kyaw Kyaw Win, on Wednesday formally denied the existence of a Rohingya race in Burma, referring to a stateless Muslim minority isolated near the Bangladeshi border.

But Shwe Maung, who is a native Rohingya, slammed the allegations, quoted in the English-language version of Burma's state media outlet the New Light of Myanmar, as historically and factually inaccurate.

"We should not simply deny there are no Rohingya, if we do that it would be irresponsible, we need a study," said the MP, who represents Buthidaung constituency in northern Arakan state.

Shwe Maung is one of only two Rohingya MPs in parliament, both of whom represent the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) in Maungdaw district. In recent months, he has played an increasingly vocal role in defending the stateless minority, which is broadly viewed as "illegal Bengali immigrants" and denied citizenship by the government.

It follows two bouts of vicious sectarian clashes between Arakanese Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya in western Burma last year, which prompted senior politicians – many from the military and USDP – to call for the group to be exiled to a third country.

But Shwe Maung told DVB that he is leading a parliamentary initiative, along with two other MPs from Maungdaw district, to promote the rights of Rohingyas. He explained that they have called on the speaker of the lower house of parliament, Shwe Mann, to set up an investigative commission to establish whether or not Rohingyas exist in Burma.

"We [also] shared a separate report with our colleagues and MPs and I've received a lot of positive and constructive remarks," he said. "We focused on the facts and documents, especially printed by government media and the ministry of information. Based on that most of the MPs are impressed and agree that there are Rohingya [in Burma]."

Shwe Maung cited historical research carried out prior to the British colonisation of Burma in 1824, which formally recognised some 30,000 "Rohingya" Muslims living in Arakan state. Both Burma's first president and prime minister, Sao Shwe Thaik and U Nu respectively, reportedly recognised the Rohingya as one of the country's "indigenous races".

They were later stripped of their citizenship by former military dictator Ne Win.

"During my recent visit to Sittwe I have seen a lot of families with birth certificates with the ethnic name Rohingya, but still [some are] denying [them]," he said, dismissing allegations that "Bengalis" are migrating into Arakan state.

"People are not coming in, people are going out," he said. "In [our language] Burmese Rakhine Muslims are called Rohingya – they are the Muslim people who live in Arakan."

He also accused the English-version of the New Light of misrepresenting Wednesday's parliamentary discussion.

"[Kyaw Kyaw Win] did not mention there is no Rohingya in Myanmar, but it appeared in the [English-language] media," Shwe Muang.

In fact, the Burmese version of the New Light, quoted Kyaw Kyaw Win as saying "there have been cross-border relations since the ancient times", although he added that Arakanese Muslims were not recognised as natives in the 1973 census. But many government representatives, including the President's Office Director Zaw Htay, seized the opportunity to slate the Rohingya on social media.

Although Shwe Maung's increasingly vocal activism represents a significant shift in the USDP's notorious reputation for silencing dissent, some analysts question its implications for Burma's political transition.

"I think it says more about the USDP, which is a party that people joined because it gave them a position of influence rather than a party with a particular ideology," Mark Farmaner from Burma Campaign UK told DVB.

"I don't think it says much about parliament, which is constitutionally almost powerless. I think it can give people a voice they didn't have before; and some MPs are using that to represent their constituents whereas others are using it to promote their own self-interests."

Farmaner added that it was "unfortunate" that Aung San Suu Kyi's party – the National League for Democracy (NLD) – has still failed to come out more strongly on the Rohingya issue.

But Shwe Maung insists that he will continue to "carry the voices of his constituents" to parliament. He added that he is not necessarily pushing for Rohingyas to be recognised as "indigenous peoples" in Burma, but that their basic human rights must be respected.

"For the time being the most important thing is the people. People are living with a lack of food, they cannot move, they cannot access the market, they cannot access aid from the international community."

More than 125,000 people, mostly from the Rohingya minority, were uprooted in last year's violence and many are still denied humanitarian aid.

Tags: Arakan state, parliament, rohingya

Rohingyas not ‘illegal immigrants’ in Myanmar, say Nobel laureates

Source Mizzima, 21 Feb

 

The charge that the Rohingya are illegal immigrants to Myanmar is false, say Jose Ramos-Horta and Muhammed Yunus, respectively the 1996 and 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winners. "There is evidence that the Rohingya have been in present-day Myanmar since the 8th century," they said, writing for the Huffington Post. "It is incontrovertible that Muslim communities have existed in [Rakhine] State since the 15th century, added to by descendants of Bengalis migrating to Arakan [Rakhine] during colonial times."

The comments by Ramos-Horta, the former President of Timor-Leste, and Bangladeshi banker and philanthropist Yunus are sure to raise eyebrows in Myanmar where historical facts surrounding the origin of the Rohingya community are hotly contested.

"The minority Muslim Rohingya continue to suffer unspeakable persecution, with more than 1,000 killed and hundreds of thousands displaced from their homes just in recent months, apparently with the complicity and protection of security forces," the laureates wrote.

Ramos-Horta and Yunus also criticized Myanmar's 1982 Citizenship Law which failed to recognize the Rohingyas as citizens of the country, and condemned the travel, marriage and reproduction restrictions imposed on the Rohingyas by the State. The pair called for the Myanmar government to protect the Rohingyas and welcome them as full citizens of the country.

The outspoken support for the Muslim Rohingya minority group comes in stark contrast to the silence and refusal to become embroiled in the situation of a fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureate—Myanmar's own Aung San Suu Kyi.

It also contrasts with a comment made by Deputy Immigration and Population Minister Kyaw Kyaw Win who, speaking at the House of Representatives in Naypyitaw on Thursday, said that "there is no so-called Rohingya ethnic race in Myanmar," according to a report in the state-run media.