arakan journal, march 2011

8/7/2019 Arakan Journal, March 2011

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VOLUM E.3, I SSUE.3

MARCH 2011

w w w. r o h i n g y a . o rg E-mail : arakaneditor @ yahoo.com

: info @ rohingya.org

The possibility existsthat some of thesehuman rights violationsmay entail categories ofcrimes against humanityor war crimes in Burma.

TOMAS OJEA QUINTANA ,UN RIGHTS ENVOY


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News and Analysis of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation, Arakan ( Burma ) www.rohingya.org

2 ARAKAN VOLUME. 3 ISSUE. 3 MARCH 2011

IN THIS ISSUSE EDITORIAL : AN ABSURD ACT OFDISCRIMINATION 2

COVER STORY - 12TH DEATH ANNIVERSARYOF BROTHER SHABBIR HUSSEIN 3

ENC WELCOMES FOUNDING OF UNFC 4

MUSLIM PRIME MINISTERS AND MINISTERSOF ARAKANESE KINGDOM 5

THAILAND TOWED ROHINGYAS OUT TO SEAAGAIN, REPORT VOYAGERS 7

PUBLIC STATEMENT OF AMNESTYINTERNATIONAL THAILAND/INDIA/INDONESIA:ROHINGYAS AT RISK NEED PROTECTION 9

UN OFFICIAL URGES INQUIRY INTOBURMA RIGHTS ABUSES 10

COLLECTION OF FAMILY LISTS ANDPHOTOGRAPHS RESUMES IN MAUNGDAW 11 TORTURE RESULTS IN LOSS OF EYE,BROKEN HAND FOR ROHINGYA MAN 11

BANGLADESH ARMY DESTROYS POPPY FIELDSALONG BURMA-BANGLADESH BORDER 12

NASAKA COMMANDER DECEIVESVILLAGERS IN MAUNGDAW 13

PRESS TV (IRAN): MYANMAR MUSLIMSFACE PERSECUTION 13 AUTHORITY COLLECTS TOLLS FROMRELIGIOUS DEVOTEES IN MAUNGDAW 14

ROHINGYA PROBLEM AND SOLUTION 16

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Not a single Rohingya minister was inducted in thenine member minister of Arakan State government though half of the population of Arakan is Rohingya. It is an open insult tothe Muslims of Arakan. This is the new governments new crime committed against the Rohingyas of Arakan. We areshocked,outraged and dismayed for it. Moreover we condemnit. Before and during the elections they promised many thingsand now they are doing nothing. Sayagyi U Razzak was educa-tion minister in the cabinet of Bogyoke Aung San`s provisionalgovernment. He was assassinated along with Aung San. In U

Nus government there were always two Muslim ministers. They were U Rachid and U Khin Maung Latt (Abdul Latif).During the NuTin government or AFPFL (Clean) government URachid and Mr. Sultan Mahmud were the Muslim ministers. And Mr. Sultan Ahmed, Mr. Abdul Gaffer and Mr. Abul Basher were parliamentary secretaries with the power of deputy ministers. Mr. Sultan Mahmud was from Akyab (Sittwe)township of Arakan and was Health Minister. Mr. Sultan Ahmed was a native of Maungdaw township of Arakan, andserved as parliamentary secretary from 1947 to 1958. Mr Abdul Gaffer and Mr. Abul Basher were from Buthidaung township of Arakan. Sayagyi U Ka was Education Minister of

the Caretaker Government of Gen. Ne Win. The British Burma Municipal Act was extended to Akyabon 1st October 1874. The committee was consisted of six officials and five non- officials. This body was responsible for and managed police, roads, hospital, conservancy, beggarsand water supply within the limit of the town. The committeeas newly constituted in 1882 was relieved of charges for po-lice and was entrusted with additional responsibilities andpowers in respect of schools, hospital, vaccination and similar charges. The committee consisted of three officers - theDeputy Commissioner was president, the Civil Surgeon was vice president and the Executive Engineer - two membersnominated by the government and twelve members electedfrom the public: European-2, Muslim-4, Buddhist-4 andHindu-2. Thus the British had given equal right to Muslims andBuddhists of Arakan.

In the history of Arakan there were many Muslim primeministers, ministers, judges and high officials appointed by the kings of Arakan. But the Muslims were neglected andignored by the Burmese military governments since 1962.

Cont. P. 3

AN ABSURD ACT OF DISCRIMINATION


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From P. 2 EDITORIAL They are ungrateful toward the Muslims of Arakan in particular and the Muslims of Burma in general . It recalls me one instance from the history of Burma:

While the Burmese king Anawrahta(1044 - 1077)was ruling the Burmese people from Pagan the Mon king Manuha was ruling the Mon people from Thaton, the then port city. An Arab ship was wrecked. And two young Muslimbrothers escaped from the jaws of the death with the help of broken planks. The abbot of the royal Buddhist monas-tery found them at the seashore, took them to the monastery and adopted them. They were Byawi and Byatta. Oneday the monk and the two Muslim brothers found a death body of a Muslim saint in the deep forest. The monk wasfurious when he came to know that the death body of the saint [zawzi] was eaten by the two brothers. They grew up

mighty with the strength of fighting the elephants. The king was afraid of their strength and looking for a chance tokill them. He had trapped Byawi as the daughter of the kings Prime Minister was found in the arms of Byawi, Byattaescaped to Pagan and took shelter at the court of the King Anawrahta. With the help of Byatta, King Anawrahta con-quered Thaton and Manuha was taken prisoner of war. Byatta was married to a woman of Popa from where he hadto carry magnolia [sagawa] flowers seven times a day to the Palace at Pagan. He had two sons in the service of theking. With their help the king won the battle with Chinese. On their return journey from China, the two sons of Byatta,Shwe Pyine Gyi and Shwe Pying Ngay were beheaded by the king Anawrahta because they refused to put bricks on theconstruction of a Buddhist Pagoda as they were Muslims. It shows that from the very beginning the Burmese wereungrateful toward Muslims. Anawrahta was killed by a mysterious mad buffalo. ##

Brother Shabbir Hussein wasborn on 18 April 1941 in a respect-able Rohingya family at Ponyolic

village under Buthidaung township,Arakan,Burma. His father was lateMaster Ahamadur Rahman and themother was late Salima Khatun.Late Shabbir Hussein had his earlyschooling at his native village, andhad his middle and high schooleducation at Buthidaung and Akyab(Sittwe). Having matriculated fromAkyab Government High School in1959 he joined Intermediate Collegeat Kyauk Pru; then he continued hisstudies in Arts and ScienceUniversity of Rangoon from 1962until he secured his B.A degree witheconomics and political science in1965. With a vision he attended theBasic Military Training of theUniversity Training Crops (UTC) in1962-65.

In his student life he partici-pated in various social welfare andcultural activities and joined manysocio-political Organisations. Hewas a Central Executive Committeemember of Muslim StudentsAssociation (MSA) and DanyaWaddy Students Association (DSA)at Kyauk Pru College from 1959-1962. Late Shabbir Hussein wasGeneral Secretary of the RangoonUniversity Rohingya Students

Organisation from 1961 to 1964 aswell as Central Committee member ofthe Rangoon University Muslim

Students Association (RUMSA) from1962 to 1964.After his graduation, Shabbir

Hussein joined the Ministry of TradeCorporation in Burma and worked astownship trade manager until hejoined the underground freedommovement of Rohingya IndependenceForce (RIF) in 1969. He actively playeda key role when the members of theRIF and Rohingya National LiberationParty (RNLP) were working together inthe interest of the Rohingya people.

In 1973 the name of the Organi-sation was changed to RohingyaPatriotic Front (RPF), under the lead-ership of late Mohammed Jafar Habib;and served as a Central Committeemember in his various capacities,including In-charge of TrainingCentre, Secretary for Publicity andInformation and Secretary for ForeignAffairs. In 1975 when substantialquantity of youths and educatedRohingyas who joined RPF went un-derground, it was he who successfullyimparted them basic military training.Almost all present day Rohingyaleaders got basic military trainingfrom him. It will remain as a milestonein the history of Rohingya freedommovement.

In 1984 Shabbir Hussain becamethe President of RPF. When RPF anda faction of Rohingya SolidarityOrganisation (RSO) led by NurulIslam merged into a broad basedorganization of the Arakan RohingyaIslamic Front (ARIF), he was electedas its Chairman, in the first RohingyaNational Council (RNC) convened in1987; and he was elected Vice-President in the next term.During the course of his struggle, hehad visited a number of countries toattend various seminars andconferences, Cont. P. 4

COVER STORY

12th Death Anniversary of Brother Shabbir Hussein

LATE BR. SABBIR HUSSEIN


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From P. 3 and also for lobbying and campaigningfor the rights and freedom of the oppressed andpersecuted Rohingya people.Late Shabbir Hussein haddevoted his whole life in the Rohingya freedommovement giving remarkable contributions at the serviceof the Rohingya people. He was a qualified trainer, a

good commander and a prudent leader. Above all, hetried hard for the complete unity of the Rohingya people,even while he had been suffering mysterious diseases,until his death. As a Rohingya he seemed to have madethe best use of the last moment of his life. He died on 25

January 1998 with liver serosis while serving as the Vice-President of ARIF. Although it is12 years now that hepassed away, he remains a living memory in the hearts,minds and history of the Rohingyas. ##

L ate Br. Shabbir Husein with Karen LeadersLate Br. Shabbir Husein with ABMU President

U Tin Maung That (a) U Razaak

A two-day quarterly meeting of the Ethnic Nationalities Council (ENC) at anundisclosed venue along the Thai-Burma border which concluded yesterday hadwelcomed last months formation of another ethnic alliance, United Nationalities Fed-eral Council (UNFC), according to sources returning from the meeting.

The ENC, as a proponent for political and social action, has been weak on themilitary part of the struggle, a participant told the meeting. The emergence of analliance that will focus its efforts on military actions therefore is to be welcomed.

Nevertheless, the two sides must meet to discuss and agree on a commonstrategy. The best course is a merger, said another participant. But the next bestthing would be common goal (s) and diverse actions. Common goals, diverseactions was a principle introduced by the late Chao Tzang Yawnghwe (1939-2004),who was the principal adviser to the grouping.

The ENC was formed in 2001. The UNFC came into being on 16 February, theresult of the Border Guard Force (BGF) program, which aimed to combine all the

diverse armed groups that had concluded ceasefire pacts with Naypyitaw under acentral command. It has 11 member organizations, of which 2 are from the ceasefire groups: Kachin IndependenceOrganization (KIO) and the New Mon State Party (NMSP).

The other group Shan State Progress Party / Shan State Army (SSPP / SSA) better known as the SSA North,that had initially agreed to become a member of its military wing but not of its political wing, later backed off. We arefor a state-based setup, Col Perng Fa, leader of the SSPP / SSA delegation later told SHAN. Since we cannot acceptthe UNFCs indifference to the concept, its better to be just an associate partner for the time being.

The SSA North meanwhile is under heavy military pressure by the Burma Army to surrender. Bloody clasheshave begun since Sunday in Monghsu and Tangyan townships. ##

ENC Welcomes Founding of UNFC Wednesday, 16 March 2011 18:59 S.H.A.N.

C h ao T z a n g Ya w n g h w e


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AFK JILANIAccording to Daulat Kazi," The

king made Ashraf Khan his ChiefMinister and the commander of hisarmy. One day the king Thiri

Thudama ( Salim Shah-II ) went onhunting expedition with his army.The king with his army stayed therefor four months. The chief ministerreturned to his court with thepermission of the king. When AshrafKhan sat in the court the Mughal, thePathans and numerous Hindus sat inrows. Asharaf Khan was like fullmoon in its sixteen parts." AsharafKhan was virtually in charge ofconducting all state affairs.(MissingLinks in Arakan History By S.N.Goshal P-258.)Sri Bara Thakur wasthe Lasker Wazir or war minister or

defence minister of the kingNarapatigyi (1638-1645 A.D.) The warminister Sri Bara Thakur was blessedwith a son by praying to God.

MAGAN Thakur was the son ofSri Bara Thakur. Alaol Writes, Hewas the famous Magan whopossessed excellent qualities, hewas extremely handsome, and thereis no end of his virtues. His generos-ity was known throughout thecountry, he was born in the family ofSiddiq and he was a Sheik and hewas well known in the world by hisgood birth and good deeds. He wasan Alim himself and was learned andhe recognized merit. He broughtlearned men of his country andhonored them." Sri Bara Thakur wasthe war minister of the king. Bybegging to God he got the offspringin the morning. Because he wasobtained by praying or begging, hewas given the name asMagan. "Thakur was the official titlegiven by the king. The princess wasextremely pretty and polite, the kingbrought up his daughter with greatcare.

Seeing the tender age of theprincess the king was thinking as towhom the guardianship of theprincess was to be given. The kingmade Magan Thakur the guardian ofprincess because he was a greatvirtuous man When the king died theprincess became the chief queen.She appointed her guardian theprime minister of the kingdom."

The fact is that the king Narapati-gyi had no son, but only a daughter.

When the king became old, heappointed Magan Thakur, who was aminister, and who belonged to a goodArab family, guardian of his daughter.After the kings death she was marriedto Thado Minthara, the nephew of theking, i.e. the king`s daughter wasmarried to her cousin. Thado Mintharabecame king and the king`s daughterbecame the chief queen of thekingdom. Magan Thakur became thechief or prime minister of thekingdom. But the king Thado Mintharadied in 1652 and was succeed by hisminor son Sanda Thudama (1652-1684).Sanda Thudama was a minorand the queen ruled the country asregent.

She gave her guardian MaganThakur the authority to rule the coun-

try on her and her sons behalf and hewas promoted to be the chief ministeror Prime Minister of the kingdom.Magan Thakur ordered Alaol to com-pose epic work Padmavati, which thepoet completed in 1651 during thereign of Thado Minthara. MaganThakur later ordered to compose Sai-ful Mulk Badiujjamal. Alaol began thework, but before completing the bookMagan Thakur died and thecomposition of the book remainedincomplete.

After the death of Magan ThakurSayyid Musa was appointed Prime

Minister of Arakan.Sayyid Musaremained in this office for about adecade under the king SandaThudama. Alaol received patronagefrom him and at his order completedthe composition of Saiful MulkBadiujjamal. He completed the book in1669-70A.D.

The next Muslim prime ministerof Arakan was Nabaraj Majalis. Heordered Alaol to compose the famousPersian book Sikandearnama ofNizami Ganjabi. Once the Prime Minis-ter sat in the assembly of learnedmen, arranged foods and drinks for

the guests. Those present in the as-sembly praised the Prime Minister forhis good deeds, particularly theconstruction of Mosques and excava-tion of tanks. In reply Nabaraj Majlissaid that mosques and tanks were notpermanent. In old days great men didthese beneficial works, but they didnot last.Only books have lasted,books pleased the readers, booksimpart education. Illiterate peoplebecame learned by reading books;

books andpoets arehonored notonly in theirown countrybut also outside, andbooks lastuntil the dayof resurrec-tion. Theb o o kSikandeamawas com-pleted byShah Alaol in 1673 AD.

Nabaraj Majlis was so importanta personality that he administeredthe coronation oath to the kingSanda Thudama. Shah Alaol says

about this: The great religious kinghad a Prime Minister known asNabaraj MAJLIS. Now I will tell some-thing about Majlis. When the kingdied, the crown prince came to sit onthe throne. Outside the throne, hestood facing the east.

The Majlis wore his dress andstanding before the prince and ad-vised him, "Treat the people as yoursons, do not deceive upon the peo-ple, be just in religious and legal mat-ters, do not allow the strong to op-press the weak, you should be kind,truthful and religious, behave well to

the good people and destroy thewicked, always be generous and donot vacillate or be restless, do notharm anybody for past fault, and headvised the king in many other mat-ters. The king agreed to abide by hisadvice and follow his admonition.Then the king saluted Nabaraj Majlisand then others of his family.

Sayyid Muhammad Khan was aminister of the king SandaThudama. Alaol says: He was aking of kings, owner of huge wealthand his chief war minister wasSayyid Muhammad. His body is blue

and his face is like a full moon. Hespeaks smilingly and he is learned inmany subjects, in Arabic, Persian,Indian and Maghi languages. He is agood singer and remains busy withmusic day and night. Many scholarsadorn his court and remain busydiscussing philosophical subjects. Iattend his court and he brings meup giving food and drinks.

Cont. P. 6

Muslim Prime Ministers and Ministers of Arakanese Kingdom

A.F.K. JILANI


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From P. 5 He keeps me obliged tohim by giving salt, grin and betel-nut.He shows me favour and I attend hiscourt as a member of his assembly. idiscuss many tales about religioussubjects and I related to him themost fascinating story of Sapta Pai-kar." At his request Alaol composed

the Haft Paikar in 1660 A.D.Sri Manta Sulaiman was aminister of the king SandraThudama. At his request, Alaolcomposed Tuhfa and completed theunfinished Satimaina Lor Chandrani.He says as follows about the ministerSrimanta Sulaiman in his LorChandani: "Srimanta Sulaiman is avery virtuous man and he brings upvirtuous foreigners with care. Hebecame extremely glad to receive meand always entertains me with foodand clothes. Learned people alwaysdiscuss in his assembly onphilosophical subjects. Once he satin his court and discussed onvarious subjects . By chance the storyof Lor Chandrani came up for discus-sion. The poem remainedincomplete, and if completed,readers and hearers will be happy....considering this the great Sulaimanordered me to complete the book. Athis order Alaol composed the poemin Bengali verses. "Sri MantaSuleiman was a amatya or minister,and he was a finance minister.

We can say that Burhanuddinwas the first Lashkar Wazir (defenceor War minister) of Arakan. His nameis found in Nasirullah KhondkarShariatnamah. In giving his geneal-ogy the poet writes;" He was patient,heroic and there was no end of hishonour. His name was Hamid-uddin,the intelligent. In Bangalah of Gour,he was a great minister. His son Burhanuddin was virtuous andeminent in using arms. By chance heleft the country and with relativessettled in the country of Rosaang( Arakan). In those days there was nohorse and horseman in Roshang.

Seeing him with horse and elephantthe king appointed him the LashkarWazir." Nasrullah Khondkar wrotehis book in 1749/50, and as he wasthe 7th descendant of Burhanuddin,the latter was alive about the last ofthe 16th century.

There might be more Muslimministers. So far we get the names ofeight Muslim ministers of Arakan,four of them were Prime Ministers.

The new so-call civilian govern-ment of Burma failed to includeMuslim minister in the centralgovernment cabinet and no singleRohingya Muslim minister is includedin Arakan State ministers. For theinformation of the readers the list ofthe Arakan State Ministers is givenbelow as stated in the New Light ofMyanmar dated. 15 February 2011.

1) Defence Services Personnel Hlut-taw Representative Col Htein Lin, 2) UKyaw Khin of Yanbye Township Con-stituency (2), 3) U Kyaw Thein ofMraukU Township Constituency (2),4) U Soe Aye of Gwa Township Con-stituency (2), 5) U Mya Aung ofMaungtaw Township Constituency (2),6) U Tha Luche of Sittway TownshipConstituency (1), 7) Dr Aung KyawMin of Taunggup Township Constitue-ncy 2), 8) U Aung Than Tin of Pon-nagyu Town-ship Constituency (2)and 9) U Hla Han of ThandweTownship Constituency (1). to thenomination of State Ministers.

The elected Chief Minister ofthe Arakan State nominated ChinNational Representative U Ko KoNaing for State Minister for NationalRaces Affairs. The State Hluttawapproved the nomination andappointment of U Ko Ko Naing.

As the Rohingya are excluded in theministerial body of Rakhine State,Rohingyas are left out from theRakhine State affairs. The Rohingyashould seek for the restoration ofMayu district out of Rakhine Stateas the Elected Democratic Govern-ment of the Hon'ble Prime MinisterU Nu had created Mayu FrontierDistrict in 1961 for the Rohingyaswelfare and developments underCentral Government. ##

Source: Prof. Dr. Abdul Karim, "The Rohingyas: A Short Account of their History and Culture", Printed at Sonali Art Press, Chittagong,Bangladesh in 2000.

Haran Lay/ The Irrawaddy


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12 February 2011, Kaladan NewsChittagong, Bangladesh. Rohingyaboat voyagers were set adrift in anengineless boat on the high seas bythe Thai Navy, according to a mem-ber of a boatload of ninety-oneRohingya males that drifted ashoreon remote islands in Indian territory.

The 91 voyagers were found invillages on the Car Nicobar Islands,police officials have told the News ofIndia Service. All of them werestarving and 25 of them have beenadmitted to hospital.

They reached the main city ofPort Blair on Thursday, where theywill be questioned by securityagencies, according to SeniorPolice Officer George Lalu.

The voyagers said they weretrying to enter Malaysia illegallythrough Thailand with the help ofagents before they were caught bythe Thai Navy. They had been atsea without food or water for morethan a week, said the doctors fromthe local hospital.

"We were kept in a dark roomwith minimum food [in Thailand].After nearly seven-to-eight days theyset us adrift on the open sea in anengineless boat with minimal rationsand water," one of the voyagers toldpolice officials.

However, Thai authorities havedenied that they have forced any ofthe Rohingya onto the high sea in anengineless boat. We hadintercepted a group of 91 Rohingyain Songkhla Province in earlyJanuary, but we deported them afterthe proper formalities werecompleted, said a Thai official inSongkhla. They were sent back byboat to Myanmar.

Although its against humani-tarian grounds, the illegal entry offoreigners must come under the(Thai) legal framework. This is to

prevent a similar problem fromoccurring again in the future,Kantang District Officer VisitTungpong said.In December 2008, nearly 300Rohingya were rescued from theAndaman Sea after the engines wereremoved from their boats and theywere towed out to sea by the ThaiNavy. Thousands of Rohingya aMuslim minority group living mostly

in Northern Arakan State have fled

Burma to escape persecution. Anestimated 200,000 Rohingya live inrefugee camps in Bangladesh. Manyof themespecially those living inunofficial campsattempt to escapepoor conditions by attempting toreach Southeast Asia by sea.

Some immigration offices insouthern Thailand acknowledge thatthey have Rohingya boatpeople incustody, but officials at theImmigration Centre at Ranong, onthe Thai-Burma border, deny everyholding a boatload of 91 Rohingyamales.

On the popular internationalholiday island of Phuket, where aboatload of 68 voyagers landed a fewdays ago, immigration officers saythey are continuing to hold 33Rohingyas, but have sent 35 othersnorth to the neighboring province ofPhang Nga. However, theimmigration officials in Phang Ngasaid they have no knowledge of thegroup.

In the southern city ofSongkhla, where immigration offi-cials acknowledge they are holding67 males from the second boatloadof Rohingya to reach southern Thai-land recently, nine under-age malesare being given special protection bylocal social development authorities,an immigration spokeswoman said.The whereabouts of the entire firstboatload of 91, which arrived insouthern Thailand on January 23,and 35 of the 68 from the Phuketboatload, remains a mystery today.

A reliable source has told

Phuketwan, a web-based newsgroup, that the 91 Rohingya from thefirst boatload that arrived on thecoast of Trang on January 22 weretrucked north to Ranong, but thatthey were described in paperwork as''Burmese from the south [ofThailand].''

A reliable source has saidthat the 67 in the second boatloadwere at one stage on their way northto Ranong, but their bus turned backwhen authorities in Ranong reportedthat journalists were waiting to greetthem.Voyagers on one boatload that

landed in Thailand last month aresaid to have asked local people, ''Isthis Malaysia?'' Muslim-majorityMalaysia is believed to be thepreferred destination for the would-be refugees.

Hundreds of Rohingya arebelieved to have perished when theThai military covertly towed boatsout to international waters andreleased them, with no power andlittle food or water, in January2009.Rohingya are persecuted inBurma and likely to be treated badlyby the junta government if they arereturned. UNHCR spokesman AndrejMahecic last week reiterated a callfor access to the Rohingya beingheld in Thailand.

''We would like to assesswhether there are people amongthem who might be refugees andmight be in need of internationalprotection,'' he said. Human RightsWatch issued a statement onFebruary 2, 2011, Cont. P. 8

Thailand towed Rohingyas out to sea again, report voyagers


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From P. 7 urging the Thaigovernment to give the UnitedNations refugee agency unhinderedaccess to 211 detained ethnicRohingya asylum-seekers todetermine whether they qualify forrefugee status or not, but just over aweek later more than 90 turned of the

voyagers turned up in the Andamanand Nicobar Islands and have beenwithout food and water for more thana weekIs this just a coincidence?asked the Bangkok Pundit, Or in-stead of granting access to HRWwere the Rohingya dumped at sea?

The Lawyers' Council ofThailand (LCT) released a statementdemanding the government totackle Rohingya traffickingorganizations after 68 Rohingyawere arrested in Phuket last week,and 158 in Trang and Satunprovinces were arrested last month.The LCT, described as the Thaiequivalent of a bar association,issued their statement a week afterHuman Rights Watch (HRW) urgedthe government to allow UN accessto determine whether any of the de-tainees were seeking refugee status.

The council calls on the Thaigovernment to allow refugee-relatedorganizations to access and providesupport [to Rohingya], and in caseswhere they are victims of human orlabor trafficking, the Ministry ofSocial Development and HumanSecurity and other concerneddepartments must intervene anddeliver necessary assistance.

illegally deport Rohingya peopleand that it seriously prosecutehuman trafficking gangs, even whilethe status and location of the 226Rohingya is currently unclear amidconflicting reports of transfers and

possible human rights abuses by theThai authorities, much like the case in2009.

''This whole exercise is like amassive game of hiding the peanutunder the ever-moving coconut shells- and only the Thais know where thepeanut is,'' HRW spokesperson PhilRobertson said.The mysterious land-ing of 91 men on the remote Andamanand Nicobar Islands at the weekendclosely followed the arrival of 226would-be refugees on the holidayisland of Phuket along Thailand'ssouthern coast.

Were these the same 91 menwho arrived in Thailand on January22,the first in a new wave of perse-cuted Rohingya boatpeople sailing

south from Burma and Bangladesh?And have they been ''pushed back''into peril on the open sea by theThai military? Thai Immigrationofficials said no, and claim those 91are still in captivity in Thailand, but

being held as ''Burmese from thesouth, not Rohingya.Two aid organizations have

sent representatives who are nowtrying to interview the distant islandcastaways to clarify whether theyhave been mistreated in contraven-tion of international laws, or are aseparate boatload with the sameprecise number of voyagers as theboat that landed in southern Thai-land on January 22. Maybe yes,maybe no, imply senior Thaiofficials in the Ministry of ForeignAffairs, who have concededprivately to two NGOs that there hasbeen at least one recent''deportation'' of boatpeople fromThailand.

Yet even the officers wespoke to in the Royal Thai Navy andImmigration agree that it's time theThai Government clarified its policyto end their own confusion andfrustration, according to Phuket-wan. Human Rights Watch spokes-person Phil Robertson says the ThaiGovernment has the responsibilityto be open and honest about whathas happened to all of the recentlyarrived would-be refugees.

''The Thai government shouldbe much more transparent on howmany Rohingya are being detained,and provide details on who theindividuals are, which immigrationdetention centers they are in, andwhat special measures are beingtaken to protect children under 18,who should not be locked up withadults. Cont. P. 9

A Thai gunner aims at the Rohingya refugees at the high-seas; the refugees raisetheir hands and ask for mercy.

Hungry and dehydrated Rohingya Boat people from the sea.


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From P. 8 Immigration officialsin the southern city of Songkhla saythat 58 of the boatload of 67 thatarrived on January 23 are still beingheld in detention there. They also saythat nine boys, all aged under 15, havebeen separated from the men and arenow being cared for by social welfareauthorities.

Songkhla officials also saythey could provide documentation thatwould show they sent the 91 men fromthe first boatload north to the Thai-Burma border Immigration Centre inRanong.

The United Nations refugeeagency (UNHCR) has been grantedaccess to 135 would-be refugees most likely Rohingya who have beenheld in Thailand by the ForeignMinistry since January 2010.

Ms. Kitty McKinsey, SeniorRegional Public Information Officer,UNHCR Bureau for Asia and thePacific, says of the 135 nowacknowledged as being held inThailand: ''We are getting goodcooperation.

A UNHCR team is expected to

head for the southern centre ofSongkhla next week to talk to 58men and nine boys who arrived onthe coast of southern Thailand onJanuary 23, the second of threeboats to reach Phuket or theAndaman coast within nine days.

Nine boys aged under 15 fromthe second boat have been takeninto the care of the Ministry ofSocial Development and HumanSecurity. One was previously saidto be 12 years old.

The UNHCR will interview the boat-people in Songkhla, as well asothers being held at present inPhuket and the neighboringprovince of Phang Nga, todetermine whether they are fromBurma or Bangladesh. There's apresumption that all Rohingya arerefugees,'' Ms. McKinsey said.However, Rohingya are officiallyprohibited from applying in Thailandfor refugee status.

Officials of the UN HighCommissioner for Refugees remain''gravely concerned'' about mediareports that a boatload of 91possible asylum seekers in theremote Andaman and NicobarIslands may have begun their mostrecent voyage involuntarily fromThailand. ##

PUBLIC STATEMENT OF AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL AI Index: ASA 01/004/2011 17 February 2011

Thailand/India/Indonesia: Rohingyas at risk need protectionHundreds of Rohingyas fleeing systematic persecution in Myanmar require immediate assistance from Thailand,India, and Indonesia.

A group of 91 persons believed to be Rohingyas, who landed on the Andaman Islands, India, in early February2011, claim that the Thai navy put them out to sea in January 2011 in an engineless boat with limited food andwater. Thai authorities, however, claim that they returned 91 persons detained in Thailand to Myanmar in lateJanuary 2011. Amnesty International called on the government of Thailand to institute a prompt, independent andtransparent investigation into how Thai authorities treated this group.

Thai authorities have detained hundreds of individuals claiming to be Rohingyas, including children, since January2011. A further 129 persons claiming to be Rohingya arrived in Aceh, Indonesia on 17 February 2011. TheRohingya, who live in Myanmars Rakhine State, suffer from systematic persecution, including forced labour,forced eviction, land confiscation, and severe restrictions on freedom of movement. The Myanmar governmentrefuses to grant them citizenship, rendering them stateless, in violation of their international rights. ManyRohingyas have fled to Bangladesh, and have tried to seek work in other countries.

In late 2008 and early 2009, Thai security forces pushed hundreds of Rohingyas to sea in unseaworthy boats. Someof the Rohingyas subsequently died at sea. A number of those rescued are detained and remain with indeterminatestatus on the Andaman Islands, India without a proper assessment of their protection needs.

Amnesty called on the governments of Thailand, India and Indonesia to act on their obligations under internationalhuman rights and customary international law, including by giving persons claiming to be Rohingyas on theirterritory access to full and fair refugee determination procedures, and to grant the United Nations refugee agency,

UNHCR access to them.

Amnesty International emphasized that the Rohingya would be at risk of human rights violations if returned toMyanmar. No Rohingyas, or other asylum seekers, should be returned to Myanmar against their will if they have awell founded fear of persecution.

Amnesty International has urged Myanmar to stop the systematic persecution of the Rohingyas. Amnesty Interna-tional has also urged Myanmars neighbours to provide the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) immediate access to allRohingyas in their territory and to ratify the UN Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, its 1967 Protocol,and the UN Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons.

Public Document International Secretariat, Amnesty International, 1 Easton St., London WC1X 0DW, UK www.amnesty.org


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UN OFFICIAL URGES INQUIRY INTO BURMA RIGHTS ABUBy LALIT K JHA,Thur sday, March 10, 2011, THE IRRAWADDY

Quintana, who hasn't visitedBurma since February of last year,said his requests for a visa to returnto the country to examine thepost-election situation have beenrepeatedly rejected by the Burmesegovernment. Since the Nov. 7 elec-tion, he has expressed concern overrestrictions on parliamentarians'freedom of expression.

The report also noted that2,189 prisoners of conscience remainin detention in Burma as of January2011, and urged the Burmese militaryjunta to immediately release allpolitical prisoners.

Another area of concern isgrowing tensions between the re-gime and ethnic armed groups. Thereport said that the Kachin wereexcluded from the political process,while the Wa and Mongla groupsrefused to participate. There are re-ports of cease-fire groups re-armingin anticipation of resumptionof renewed conflict.

The report also highlighted theBurmese regime's failure to

adequately guarantee the basic rightof citizens to an education, despiteburgeoning revenue from exports ofresources.

Myanmar must take appropriatemeasures towards full realization ofthe right to education to the maximumof the available resources, the report,noting that multi-billion-dollar profitsfrom natural gas sales to Thailandhave not been used to improve theeducational infrastructure in thecountry.

A r g u i n g t h a t t h e n e wgovernment must prioritize theeconomic, social and cultural rights ofcitizens, the report said there will haveto be fundamental changes to how thegovernment manages its budget.

Observing that funds from thesale of natural gas are estimated toaccount for 70 percent of thecountrys total foreign exchangereserves, with sales totaling around$3 billion annually, the report said thatif these funds had been included inthe state budget, they would haveaccounted for 57 percent of total

budget revenue.Instead, they contributed

less than 1 percent of total budgetrevenue, with much of this revenuer e p o r t e d l y n e v e r e n t e r i n gMyanmar, the report said, demand-ing that these funds need to beincluded in the governmentsbudget and managed transparentlywith proper checks and balances.

UN Said Burma BurdensIts Neighbourhood Countries

Increasing numbers ofBurmese asylum-seekers inSoutheast Asian states is evidencethat Burmas domestic crises arehaving a negative impact on theregion, a top UN official has saidaccording to Reuters andDemocratic Voice of Burma.

Tomas Ojeas Quintana, theUNs special rapporteur to Burma,made the remarks after a visit toMalaysia, which has become hometo some 84,800 registered refugeesand asylum-seekers. Cont. P. 11

One year after first recommending that theUnited Nations establish a Commission of Inquiry(CoI) on war crimes and crimes against humanity inBurma, Toms Ojea Quintana, the UN's SpecialRapporteur on human rights in the country, hasreiterated his call in a new report.

In a progress report submitted to the UNGeneral Assembly on March 7 and released to thepress on Wednesday, Quintana said the humanrights situation in Burma remains serious, but alsonotes that last year's election offers opportunitiesfor positive developments, provided the govern-ment demonstrates the necessary political will.

The report, which suggested the establish-ment of a CoI as one option among others, alsopointed out that while it is the role of Burmeseauthorities to undertake measures to improve thehuman rights situation in Burma, that responsibility

falls to the international community if they fail to doso.While the Government has responded that

allegations of violations of human rights areinvestigated already by competent authorities, inthe context of the gross and systematic nature ofhuman rights violations in Myanmar [Burma] over aperiod of many years, the Special Rapporteurreiterates that it is essential for investigations ofhuman rights violations to be conducted in an inde-pendent, impartial and credible manner, withoutdelay, the 20-page report said.

In this photo taken on March 15, 2010, Toms Ojea Quintana,United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma, ar-rives at a news conference after his speech at the Human RightsCouncil in Geneva. (Photo: Reuters)


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From P. 10 He spoke of an extra-territorial dimension to the humanrights problem in Myanmar [Burma]as more and more people leave thecountry in search of better liveli-hoods.

Countries in the region have aparticular interest in persuading theGovernment of Myanmar to takenecessary measures for the improve-ment of its human rights situation,he stressed.

The comments will likely attractthe attention of the Association ofSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN)bloc, which has to date kept out ofBurmese domestic affairs as part ofits cornerstone non-interferencepolicy. How much further it will go tomaintain that is debatable, as heavyfighting in Burmas border regionscombines with rampant state-sanctioned human rights abuses to

fuel a heavy spill-over intoneighbouring countries.Thailand is already home to

nine camps housing nearly 150,000refugees from Burma, and has beenheavily criticised in recent months as

it seeks to contain increasingnumbers by encouraging many toreturn, despite stability across theborder remaining highly question-able. But with Thailand reliant onBurma for some 30 percent of itsenergy needs, it has stopped short ofany substantial criticism of theregime. Indeed alongside the 84,000-odd registered Burmese in Malaysiaare hundreds of thousands ofadditional migrants from Burma whoremain unregistered and, facing theperennial threat of deportation , livein a constant state of limbo.Similarly, in Bangladesh, of thenearly 400,000 refugees fromBurmas Muslim Rohingyacommunity that have fled persecu-tion in Arakan state, only 22,000 areregistered by the UNs refugeeagency, and their burden on thecountrys already stretchedresources is evident.

Quintanas comments comeamid a resurgence of the debate overwhether Western nations shouldmaintain sanctions on Burma thatare aimed at pressuring the regime

into improving its human rightsrecord. It follows a study by theopposition National League forDemocracy (NLD) in which theyclaimed the embargo wasnt hurtingBurmese civilians.

Tan Sri Razali Ismail, a formerUN special envoy to Burma,yesterday (Feb. 24, 2011) howevercalled for the lifting of sanctions,saying that Burma has to begin toprosper and blaming the countryspathetic agricultural output on theWests blockade. They are nowimporting rice, which is ridiculous,he told the Second Asian MediationAssociation conference held inMalaysia this week, adding that hedisagreed with opposition leaderAung San Suu Kyi who insisted onsanctions.

The Malaysian national, whohas in the past represented KualaLumpur in ASEAN, said however thatSoutheast Asia should have anindependent mediation unit to handleregional crises, something thatcritics of the bloc have long calledfor. ##

Collection of Family Lists and Photographs Resumes in Maungdaw 21 February 2011 Kaladan NewsMaungdaw, Arakan State: SinceFebruary 15, local Nasaka personnel,along with Village Peace andDevelopment Council (VPDC)personnel of Maung Nama Village,

have again started collecting familylists and taking photographs ofRohingya villagers in Maung NamaVillage of Maungdaw Township. Theauthorities are collecting 2,500 kyatsper family for family group photo-graphs, 3,000 kyats to add newbornsto the family lists, and 3,0005,000kyats to delete deceased familymembers from the lists. To change

a new one, the villagers must pay6,000 kyats.Authorities also tookphotographs of mosques and Maqtab(Primary Arabic Schools) from allfour sides, then required 15,000kyats per location, said a religiousleader from the locality.

They do not list newborn infamily lists if the child is more thanseven-months old, and also do notlist women who are married to menfrom other Nasaka areas within thetownship. They also too decline tolist the children from such couples,even if the couples were married withpermission from the concernedauthorities.

However, they list women who aremarried to men within the sameNasaka area after taking 25,000 kyats.Before marriage, the women werelisted with their parents, but aftermarriage, her husband wants his wifeto be listed on his family list. If thetactics of the Nasaka continue,Rohingya youths will not able tomarry girls from other towns or fromother Nasaka areas within the sametownships. The authorities takefamily lists and photographs ofRohingya people once or twice peryear. What is the main objective ofthis? asked a youth from thelocality. ##

Torture results in loss of eye, broken hand for Rohingya man Tuesday, 15 February 2011 Kaladan

Maungdaw, Arakan State: A Rohingya man lost an eyeand suffered a broken hand after being tortured by theBurma Border Security Force (Nasaka) on February 12,according to a Nasaka aide posted at the entry and exitpoint of Maungdaw. Mard Karim, the Rohingya who wasarrested from Block Number 5, where he had been hidingfor alleged drug trafficking since February 8, wastortured day and night after his arrest. During the inter-rogation inside the Nasaka camp, Mard Karim lost oneeye and received a broken hand. After causing him tolose his eye, the Nasaka personnel sent him to Maung-daw General Hospital, said a local from Fayazi Para.

He is in very critical condition now in the hospital

where he is taking treatments. The doctor said he needsmore special treatments to save his life. Alternately, aRakhine, Nyi Nyi Htun, the son of Ba Htun, who hailsfrom Block Number 3, was arrested with Yaba[methamphetamine] tablets and one Bangladeshi mobilephone. He was sent to jail for one year only, whereasMard Karim, who is suspected of drug trafficking,suffered a broken hand and lost one eye, said a localpolitician from Maungdaw. Mard Karim was arrestedwithout any evidence, but Nyi Nyi Htun was arrested andcaught red-handed, but the system of authority reacteddifferently to the two men. Why? ##


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Bangladesh Army destroys poppy fields along Burma-Bangladesh borderFriday, 25 February 2011 21:48 Kaladan Press

Chittagong, Bangladesh: The Bangla-desh Army, along with a joint team, de-stroyed seven poppy plantations during

a drive in remote areas of Remacry ofTanchhi Upazila in Bandarban, near theBurma border on February 23, accord-ing to an officer from the border.

A joint team of the army, BorderGuard Bangladesh (BGB), NarcoticsControl Department, and the policeconducted the drive at Karaikashan,Ivaanman Jhiri. The authorities choppeddown the poppy plants before burningthem, the officer said.Officials related to the drive said it ispredominantly Burmese militant outfitsthat lure Bangladeshi hill tribe peopleinto growing poppies.

Regional Commander Brig. Gen.Md Emdadul Hoque, Hill Tracts DistrictParishad Chairman Kyi Thu Hla, DeputyCommissioner Mijanur Rahman, andSuperintendent of Police Kamrul Ahsanwere also with the team. Army RumaZone Commander Lt. Col. Wasim,leading the drive, said the 14-day-longdrive started on February 19 and theoperation will continue to clean up areasbetween Remacry and Bhalupara.

The Team distributed vegetableseeds and musical instruments to thehill tribe people in remote areas ofBandarban close to the Burma border todiscourage poppy cultivation andencourage the preservation of indige-nous culture.

A total of 29 hill tribe familiesreceived seeds and instruments atRemacry of Bandarban.The army haddestroyed a total of 122 poppy gardensin 2010 throughout these areas.

On July 29, 2010, Bandarban HillDistrict security forces in Bangladeshseized 15 arms along with ammunitionfrom remote areas of the district, anddestroyed about 20 acres of poppyfields in Sangu Reserved Areas underthe Ruma, Alikadam, and ThanchiSecurity Zones of Bandarban HillDistrict of Bangladesh near the Burmaborder. The poppy fields were preparedduring the cleaning of lands for cultiva-tion by Mru hill tribes and other localpeople on the outskirts of the forest.

The Mru and local people weresupported by the insurgent group, theArakan Liberation Party (ALP), said anaide of the BDR on condition ofanonymity. At least 27 secret places

were raided. During the raidsfirearms were recovered and poppywas destroyed.

Poppy fields on 18 bighas ofland were destroyed by law enforce-ment agencies during threeseparate drives in ShahbazpurUnion under Shibganj Upazila inChapainawabganj District. Poppyfields in villages near the Burmaborders, in addition to poppy plantsand seeds, were last destroyed inKhulna City during the first week ofMarch 2009.

So far, 35 poppy fields on 100acres owned by insurgent groupsfrom Burma have been destroyed bythe army and the BDR along theBangladesh-Burma border areassince February 17, 2008. The insur-gent groups of Burma recruit local

people to grow the poppy in re-mote areas. Such operations arelaunched annually to destroypoppy fields and to protect theminority people from illegal cultiva-tion. On the night of February 24,2007, security personnel of thearmy and the BDR raided Alikadamand arrested three Burmesemigrants (Rakhine) and destroyedthe poppy crop. They alsodestroyed nine huts during theoperation, according to a sourcefrom Nykhonchari in BandarbanDistrict, Chittagong Hill Tracts(CHT). Sources say that a perma-nent army camp is required in theborder area to provide indigenouspeople with alternative work sothat they do not indulge in poppycultivation . ##

World Leaders Stand in Line for the Anointed One / Haran Lay/ The Irrawaddy


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Nasaka Commander Deceives Villagers in MaungdawMonday, 21 February 2011, Kaladan News

Maungdaw, Arakan State: The Nasakacommander of Sector number 7 ofAlaythan Kyaw village in MaungdawTownship gave permission tovillagers to make a stepladder for theirmosque after taking a bribe, but laterthe permission was rescinded. Thevillagers were cheated by thecommander, said a localbusinessman.

On February 13, Major Sein Win,the Burmas Border Security Force(Nasaka) Commander of Sector No. 7of Aleythan Kyaw Village ofMaungdaw Township gave verbalpermission to the local villagers tomake a stepladder for a mosquewhich is established in the compound

of Aley Than Kyaw Madrasa aftertaking 100,000 Kyats.

As a result, on February 14, the

local villagers immediately boughtsand, bricks, and cement from themarket to build the stepladder for themosque.

However, on February 15, onlyone day later, the stepladder wascompletely destroyed after a Sarapa(Military Intelligence) officer was sentto the mosque.

The Nasaka commander sentthe Sarapa officer to the mosque todestroy the ladder as if he did notknow anything about the matter. Noone has capability to do anythingwithout the knowledge of the

commander, said a schoolteacher.

In addition, the Sarapa officeralso fined the villagers the cost of 15cement bags. A cement bag is beingsold for 8,000 kyats in the market.According to a villager, the Sarapaofficer told them that if he did notfine the villagers, he would besacked from his job.

After knowing about thissituation, the people of the world canunderstand how Rohingya villagersof northern Arakan State, Burma, aresubject to seemingly endlessoppression and deceit, said a traderfrom the locality. ##

PRESS TV ( IRAN) MYANMAR MUSLIMS FACE PERSECUTION Friday, 25 February 2011

Waves of ethnic Muslims haveattempted to flee by boats in theface of systematic oppression bythe Myanmar government since thebeginning of this year, a reportsays.

Known as the Rohingya, theyhave been given the label of one ofthe most persecuted peoples in the

world, a Press TV correspondentreported.The government of Myanmar

refuses to recognize them. Theysay the Rohingya are not nativeand classify them as illegalmigrants, although they have livedin Myanmar for generations.Communities living in the Rakhinestate of Myanmar are reportedlymade to work against their will,often evicted from their homes andseverely restricted in movement,ownership and opportunities.

Whether one is an educatedRohingya with a proper job, or oneis an illegal migrant or at the lowerend if the economic strata, it does-nt matter, the discrimination isacross the board, BenjaminZawacki of Amnesty Internationaltold Press TV.

Those attempting to escapeface discrimination and inhumanetreatment by immigration authori-ties of receiving countries.

Recent groups of refugees have driftedashore to India, Indonesia and Thai-land.

There were a number of Rohingyas,ninety-one in fact, who washed up onthe Nicobar Islands in India, claiming tohave been put out to sea by Thaiauthorities, in a boat that wasunsea-worthy, without an engine,Zawacki stated.

But at the same time, the Thaiauthorities are claiming that the samenumber of people, ninety-one Rohin-

An additional 129 men claiming to beRohingya washed ashore toIndonesia in February. In neighbour-ing Bangladesh, they mostly end upas illegal migrants with over200,000 such registered cases. InThailand, they experience poorconditions with limited opportunitiesand lack of recognition as refugees.

Leading human rights groupshave called upon governmentsreceiving the refugees to grant themfull rights towards the refugeeverification process. ## Source:Burma Net News

The Burmese government has said it will take back ethnic Rohingyas who havefled to neighbouring countries. But it will only do so if they identify themselvesas Bengalis, as it refuses to recognise the Rohingyas as one of its officialminorities. Tens of thousands of Rohingyas have left Burma in recent yearsand washed up in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia even in Sri Lanka .


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Friday, 18 February 2011, Kaladan NewsMaungdaw, Arakan State: An officer from the Traffic

Police Department collected tolls from religious devoteesin Maungdaw yesterday, according to a village elder fromMaungdaw.Sub-Inspector Thaung Htay of the Traffic Po-lice ordered Hindu religious devotees to pay tolls for thedistrict head officers car petrol, the elder said.

Every truck must pay for two gallons of petrol forthe district head officers car, the elder explained. TheHindu community from Maungdaw and Buthidaung make

a pilgrimage to Kyaukpandu in southern Maungdawonce a year for religious programs with trucks. Theyoften stay overnight there, said a Hindu devotee fromMaungdaw. Every year, we organize this religious tour,but this year we are facing new tolls from traffic offi-cers. The officer was asking us to pay for two gallonsof petrol. He mentioned a private petrol shop. We had topay the money to the shop and get a receipt for the po-lice officer. This year, we lost 50,000 Kyats as the offi-cer ordered petrol for ten trucks. ##

From P. 15 problem warrants international responsibility to protect with individual responsibility of theperpetrators.

Despite being a people who participated in all elections held in Burma from 1946 ( British colonial period )to November 2010 elections including SPDCs 2008 referendum-- and who, in exercise of their right of franchise,voted their representatives to parliaments and different levels of administration in Burma, are now perfidiouslyrejected and denied citizenship to become potential or actual victims of massive atrocities. This is jungle behaviourunknown to any civilizations, international law and practices. On the other hand, they are unwanted by Burmasneighbours who subject them to arrest, intimidation, harassment, and, above all, push back to Burma and pushout to the high sea to die, while Article 14 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights say, Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution .

So the most pertinent right in this connection is their right to stay and live without disturbance in theircountry which, today, constitutes customary international law, reflecting the traditional position that the natural place for an individual is the territory of the State of nationality on his homeland.

By all legal standards the Rohingya, who have natural and spiritual attachment with their homeland of Arakan,are an integral part of the Burma Society. Their problem is a manmade tragedy -- created by the racist Burmeseautocratic regime and reinforced by the local xenophobes -- having political and humanitarian dimensions ofregional and international concern.

A permanent solution should be found out with the concerted efforts of the international community. Unlessthe root causes of the Rohingya problem, their displacement and marginalization are dealt with effectively there canbe no genuine, long-term solution.

The issue of statelessness also needs to be dealt with concretely. Food security, economic and socialdevelopment, respect for the religion and culture, freedom of movement, political participation, property ownership,access to schools and livelihood opportunities, and the right to marry are some of the key issues to be dealt with.On the whole, Burma is the most important element of equation which should bear the brunt of the responsibility. UNhas a duty to protect international peace and security and as such, it should timely and effectively take an initiativeas its former Secretary General Boutros Boutros Ghali assured at the time of Rohingya refugee influx intoBangladesh in 1978: U.N. would endeavour to achieve a political solution to the crisis not merely for the time being but for future as well. For the purpose of a permanent solution to the Rohingya problem:

The citizenship and ethnic rights of the Rohingyas should be recognized in an unequivocal term; they should be able to co-exist as equal in Arakan; and, as an ethnic group, their rights and privileges must be guaranteed on par with other national groups of the Union of Burma. Given the hostile attitude of the Rakhines (towards Rohingyas) rejecting to share power with the Rohingya people in Arakan on the principle of parity, a Rohingya Autonomous State should be granted in their traditional homeland in North Arakan, in the interest of peace and security,

development, and peaceful co-existence in Burma.Meanwhile, the following immediate measures are of paramount importance:1. Effective international pressure needs to be mounted on the Burmese regime demanding to immediately end

its discrimination, human rights violations and abuses against the Rohingyas.2. The Rohingya boat people crisis calls for a regional solution where the role of ASEAN is vital; and

Bangladesh, India and Burmas neighbours in ASEAN seeking solution should force the regime to createcondition conducive for the peaceful living of the Rohingya people which requires their rights to berespected with due tolerance in Burma.

3. The international community should influence the Burma opposition groups or democratic forces, includingethnic nationalities forums, to accommodate the Rohingya people in their numerous alliances with duerespect and open-mindedness.

4. The democratic and political process in Burma should be inclusive, and Rohingya should be a part of itensuring them the right of equal footing in all national activities in the country. ###

Authority collects tolls from religious devotees in Maungdaw


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From P. 16 the Thai Prime Minister Abhisitpromised to bring those responsible to account. Despitethis, in January 2011, Thai security forces again outra-geously and forcibly pushed back to sea 91 ethnicRohingya asylum seekers, in an engineless boat withlittle food and water, who were later rescued by theIndonesian fishermen.

Aspect of the Rohingya Problem:The Rohingya problem has political and humanitarianaspects. They are one of the most persecuted, forgotten,voiceless, least wanted and underrepresented peoples inthe world. They were made stateless in 1982, and deemedto be illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. The Rohingyasare victims of institutionalized persecution and have beenrendered stateless by Burmas 1982 Citizenship lawsRohingyas are believed to be subjected to the most harshrestrictions and reprisals in Myanmar. 2 Besides,Rohingyas are listed as one of the ten worldspopulations in most danger of extinction. 3 Special Rapporteuer Paulo Sergio Pinheiro stated, I amparticularly concerned that Muslim minority in Rakhine

(Arakan) State remained excessively restricted and thevast majority of them remained defacto stateless. 4 Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights inBurma Tomas Ojea Quintana stated, Despite being in thisregion for generations, this (Rohingya) population isstateless. This population is not recognized by theGovernment as one of he ethnic groups of the Union ofMyanmar and is subject to discrimination. Without havingthe citizenship, this Muslims of North Rakhine cannotparticipate in the active life as they should. Their accessto health care, education and employment is very limited.Their movement in the country is restricted. They need toobtain permission from the authorities to get married.They cannot obtain birth certificate for their children.However the Government allowed them to participate inthe referendum on the adoption of the new Constitution,and for this reason provided them with temporaryregistration cards. What is more significant than the pos-sibility to vote for the Constitution of a Nation to showthat one belongs to the Nation? If this population wasconsidered apt to give its views on the adoption of theConstitution, then it should be granted all otherprivileges, including the citizenship, which recognizedethnic groups, citizens of Myanmar do enjoy in theUnion. 5Rohingyas dilemma:

In an effort to deny the Rohingyas of their ethnicrights and due share in Arakan/Burma, the Burmeseregime and vested interest groups in Arakan are trying to

obliterate the Rohingya historicity. The regime has re-jected the existence of Rohingyas as an ethnic group inBurma.

2. Amnesty International: Rohingya Minority: FundamentalRights Denied, 2004.

3. Statement of MSF dated 26 th November 2006. 4. Extract from Statement by Special Rapporteur Paulo

Pinheiro to the 61 st Session of the UN Commission on5. Statement of Special Rapporteur Tomas Ojea Quintana in

the 10 th Session of Human Rights Council in March 2009. Human Rights. Item 9, Geneva 29, March 2005 .

The Buddhist Rakhine Arakanese also reject them asan ethnic group in Arakan. This unmerited view hasgreatly influenced most of the leaders of the Burmademocracy movement and ethnic peoples, and are re-luctant to accommodate Rohingyas in their numerousalliances thus excluding them from the countryspolitical and democratic process. Consequently, theRohingyas are in catch-22 without internationalprotection in the absence of national protection.Xenophobia against Rohingyas:

The Rohingyas are not tolerated in Burmabecause of their ethnicity and religion, and also for theirskin and south-Asian appearance. Racist disdain forthe Rohingya by the Burmese authorities wasexemplified recently in Burmese diplomatic correspon-dence which characterized the Rohingya as ugly asogres. This ought to be beyond the tolerance ofinternational civil society. 6

Like Ne Win Senior General Than Shwe extremelyhates the Rohingyas. In April 1994 while ordering to killover 400 ethnic Rohingyas from Buthidaung andMaungdaw townships in retaliation for attacks byRohingya rebels, he commanded Gen Win Myint, the

commander of the Western Regional Command,Eliminate them! Dont even leave an infant alive! Theyare just kala [a degrading term for people of Indiandescent], not human! Sentence them to the maximumimprisonment ! 7 This condescension is an inhumanact of international crime, let alone his crime againsthumanity of murder.

Despite the historicity of their contribution, richculture and ethnic identity in Arakan, and theirrecognition as an ethnic group by the Burmaparliamentary government (1948-62), the ruling Burmeseregime and xenophobes in Arakan reject the Rohingyasof their right to nationality with preconceived and politi-cally motivated idea. Some of the Rakhine xenophobesare carrying out systematic campaigns of vilificationagainst the Rohingyas. For instance, Dr. Aye Chan(Japan) spitefully characterized the Rohingya as influxviruses in Arakan; Dr. Aye Kyaw (USA) abhorrentlylabelled them as floating people; and U Khin MaugSaw (Germany) vilely called them illegal foreignBengalis.

SOLUTION TO THE ROHINGYA PROBLEMThe long standing Rohingya problem is an

issue of religious, ethnic and political persecution to ridArakan of the Muslim population . It is an ethnic cleansing ; and the violations of human rights againstthem are systematic and widespread that amount to

crimes against humanity with international jurisdic-tion. The Rohingyas are both an ethnic and a religiousgroup and are as such, protected by the GenocideConvention. Thus the Rohingya Cont. P. 14

6. Human Rights Watch, 2009, Burma Perilous Plight BurmasRohingya Take to the Seas. Asia Pacific Refugee rightsNetwork (APRRN): Joint NGO Statement for a RegionalSolution for Rohingya :6 March 2009.

7. Than Shwe, the Trembling Dictator, by Aung Htut inIrrawaddy dated March 5,2011.


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ROHINGYA PROBLEM AND SOLUTIONBy Nurul IslamROHINGYA PROBLEMThe Rohingya problem is one of the long-standing and

deep-rooted problems of ethnic, religious and political persecution. It is a systematic elimination of an ethnicMuslim community from their ancestral homeland ofArakan. The problem is a manmade tragedy deeplyentrenched in fanaticism, religious bigotry, hatred andxenophobia, fortified with Burmese regimes policies ofBurmanization, de-Muslimization, exclusion and exter-mination of the ethnic Rohingya population with intentto turn Arakan into a Muslim-free Burmanized Buddhistregion. Thus their problem is a forcible dispossessionof their land and their expulsion from their homeland, inthe most inhuman manner, by use of force and applica-tion of black laws.Human Rights Violations against Rohingyas:All the peoples of Burma are suffering at the hands ofthe military regime and the Rohingyas are the worstvictims. In addition to forced labour, forced relocation,expulsion, rape, land confiscation, arbitrary arrests,torture, extrajudicial killings, relentless taxation andextortion on daily basis, the Rohingyas are singled outspecifically and face further worst levels ofdiscrimination. In particular, Rohingyas are deniedcitizenship rendering them stateless in their own home-land. They are instead treated as temporary residents,and as a result face the following abuses:Severe restrictions on movement: Rohingyas

have to obtain specific permission to travel from onevillage to another and from a village to a town causinga serious impact on their access to employment, educa-tion and health care as well as on all their activities.Even their MPs are not spared from this humiliation. On29th July 2005, U Kyaw Min (alias) Shamsul AnwarulHaque, a Rohingya M.P. of National Democratic Partyfor Human Rights (NDPHR), elected in 1990 electionsfrom Buthidaung, was sentenced to 47 years in jail,while his wife and three children were sentenced to 17years each for travelling and residing in Rangoon.Severe restrictions on marriage: Specialpermission must be obtained for marriage normally onhuge bribe, and without it the application is oftendelayed or denied. Marriage permission is, off and on,opened and closed. Hundreds of applications are pend-ing permission for a long period of time; and the

impatient couples who married without permission areeither serving jail terms or have left the country .Severe restriction on education: Rohingyaboys and girls are deprived of their right to education.There are still Rohingya villages without primaryschools. The Rohingya students are severely restrictedto pursue higher studies in colleges and universities.This marginalized community have become the mostilliterate section within Burmas population withilliteracy rate running 85%.

Restriction on trade and business : They arerestricted to carry on trade and business and have noemployment opportunity -- including access togovernment service-- with no source of income to live on.

Their malnutrition rate runs at 60%.Extortion and food insecurity: Rohingyas faceconstant demands for money from NaSaKa border secu-rity force, army, police and other repressive functionar-ies. The regime is creating food insecurity and starvingthe Rohingya minority group by creating an artificial pricehike in rice and other essential foods. 1Religious persecution: The Rohingyas are deniedpermission to build new mosques and madrassas (religious Schools) or renovate or extend the existingones. Some mosques and religious institutions have beenclosed down. Unwarranted restrictions are imposed oncongregations. Many villagers are imprisoned for makinginevitably necessary minor repair works to mosques.

Rohingya refugees:From 1948, an estimated 1.5 million Rohingyas fleeingpersecution in Burma are living in Diaspora particularlyin Bangladesh, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Thailand andMalaysia. Bangladesh is the first country of asylum formost Rohingya refugees. About 28,000 registeredRohingya refugees are now living in two UN camps inCoxs Bazar District in squalid condition, while over250,000 undocumented refugees live outside the camps invulnerable situation.There were two major exoduses of Rohingya intoBangladesh, one in 1978 and the other in 1991-92, eachexodus with more than 2,50,000 people. Although manywere repatriated involuntarily to Burma, some laterreturned to Bangladesh along with new groups escapingtyranny, where they face severe poverty, strainedrelations with the local people; and crackdowns, arrestand push back by the authorities. In recent years, someof them died of starvation as they were not allowed to goout of their makeshift camps to work for livelihood. Thoseliving in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Thailand and other coun-tries face various humanitarian crisesRohingya boat people:Endless persecution in Burma and the unwelcomingattitudes of neighbouring Bangladesh prompted manyRohingyas to seek refuge elsewhere. For few years,thousands of Rohingya made perilous journey, inrackety boats, to escape persecution and imposedpoverty, in search of protection in Southeast Asian

region. Between December 18 and 30, 2008, Thai navy hadintercepted more than 1,000 Rohingya boat people onThai territorial waters, abused and pushed out to highsea. n boats without engines and sufficient supplies.According to survivors, more than 500 were drowned.Some of them were rescued and/or detained in Sri Lanka,India, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia. Eventually, inresponse to international concerns, Cont. P. 15

1. Voice of America (VOA), Washington, 22 September 2005.

arakan journal, march 2011

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