Myanmar and its Manufacturing Genocidal Racism towards Rohingya

Source maungzarni, 29 Nov

There was inter-ethnic solidarity for the Rohingya/Muslims of Arakan dating back to 17 May 1978, the year of the first state-sponsored campaign of terror and destruction against the Rohingyas.

"We, the Representatives of the peoples of Kachin, Karen, Palaung, Lahu, Shan and Wa, in deep sorrow, hereby express our heart-felt sympathy to the defenceless Muslims who fled to escape the compound racial and religious persecution by the Rangoon Government armed forces."

Read on the solidarity statement from 1978 in the attached full text (in 2 JPEG files).

Note the Ngagamin Operation (or King Dragon Operation) launched under the then Home Minister Brigadier Sein Lwin, known as the Butcher of Rangoon in 8.8.88 reached Sittwe in Feb 1978 - in fact on 11 Feb 1978, ironically one day before the Union Day, to celebrate Burma's ethnic diversity in unity!)

By the end of June 1978, over 200,000 - some say a quarter million - Rohingyas and other Muslims fled the country across the border into Bangladesh.

The Bangladeshi Government then led by General Zia Raman opened the border and let the Muslim refugees in to his country to escape the immediate violence, death and rape by the Burmese and Rakhine combined forces (local law enforcement in Rakhine state were made up primarily of Rakhine while senior commanders and administrators were Bama from Rangoon, starting with Home Minister Brigadier Sein Win in Rangoon and Western Command commander based in Sittwe).

Subsequently, Ne Win's Foreign Minister Tin Ohn was invited to Bangladesh capital where Bangladeshi senior officials veiled a threat of arming Rohingya refugees - number over 200,000 - if Burma did not take back their own nationals - Muslims from Arakan.

Bangladeshi general and PM Zia also traveled to Indonesia, Malaysia and other Muslim countries to rally support for the persecuted muslims in Arakan. 

Finally, Ne Win backed down and agreed to take the Musim refugees back from Bangladesh. 

By July and August UNHCR got involved in repatriating Rohingyas back to Arakan.

In the next 2-3 years, Ne Win and his anti-Muslim/anti-Rohingya deputies including Rakhine academics such as San Thar Aung (physics professor and director general of higher education) and Aye Kyaw (Australian-trained historian of nationalist movements in Burma) connived a legal strategy - and the result was the drafting of the 1982 Citizenship Act.

By Oct 1982, the draft was completed and Ne Win's legal adviser and clerk Dr Maung Maung (British and Dutch-trained lawyer and legal scholar who had a stint at Yale Law School) oversaw the whole legal campaign to strip the Rohingyas of nationality by a stroke of a legal pen. (Hitler and his legal advisers also enacted laws stripping the Jews of Germany of nationality and paving the way for the eventual physical destruction of the Jews as a national/ethnic/religious community in Germany and throughout Nazi-occupied Europe).

Like the Germans under Nazi rule who were told that the Jews were a threat to German nation, the Burmese public has been told a similar genocidal lie about the Rohingyas. (Myanmar Peace Center's Dr Min Zaw Oo is also playing the role of a Nazi-ish adviser, writing a series of delusional essays in Burmese framing the Rohingya issue in the larger equally delusional discourse of 'the War on Terror' - published in THE VOICE - portraying the helpless, half-starved Rohingya as an Islamic threat to "Buddhist" Burma!)

In 1978, the estimated population of the Rohingyas was 1.3 million.

In 2014, Khin Yi, Immigration Minister, former military intelligence and ex-police chief put the Rohingya population at 1.3 million.

Meanwhile the country's overall population is estimated to have grown from 26 millions in 1978 to about 50 million in 2014. 

Meanwhile the Burmese regime is telling the public that there is a Rohingya population explosion posing a serious demographic threat to the country, parading around in the Burmese official media some Rohingya family - perhaps rare exceptions - with 4 wives and 30 children (not exact number). 

(Khin Yin, Kyaw Yin Hlaing and Ban Ki-Moon's Special Envoy Vijay Nambia were lobbying the UN and governments around the world to drop the Rohingya's self-identity - Rohingya - and telling every official they meet 'Rohingya is a toxic name that will inflame popular opinion among ultra-nationalist "Buddhist" Rakhines, thereby making it difficult to resolve the 'sectarian conflict' - a verifiable distortion of the fact that it is the military - and successive military regimes since Ne Win - that initiated the campaign to destroy the Rohingya, both symbolically via the erasure of the name, the identity and history - and literally as a cohesive ethnic, religious and national group). 

This Zero Growth in population is the DIRECT result of a genocidal policy of Burma maintained since 1978. 

Ex-General Khin Nyunt also confirmed that there was NO IN-FLOW Muslims from "Bengali', only the fleeing of Arakan's Muslims across the borders into Bangladesh. He did so in his 'top secret' lecture, to a cadre of officiating Burmese brigadier generals at the then National Defense College, (Khin Nyunt was the founder of the notorious Na-Sa-Ka, Burmese equivalent of SS as far as the Rohingyas in Arakan). 

It is incredibly pathetic that the entire regime of Nwa Thein Sein - in fact all successive regimes of Bama generals - have been feeding the Burmese public this racist poison for the past nearly 40 years.

All genocidal atrocities are typically preceded by constructing a target community or people as 'viruses' 'threats' 'pests' 'illegals' etc. As Amartya Sen - who lived through violent racial and religion-justified killings in South Asia - Lahore - observed perceptively any otherwise good and peaceful people can be turned to a genocidal lot by carefully crafted state-manufactured propaganda. 

Every year the Burmese military regimes since Ne Win's era brought hundreds of Burmese senior and junior teachers to Civil Servant Training School at Hpaung Gyi where high ranking military officers, including Khin Nyunt, would come and spread lies, fear and hatred of the Rohingyas among the country's educators - teachers and other civil service members.

Tragically for those of us the 'good and informed Burmese', our country is populated by the good Buddhist public who have been thoroughly duped and brainwashed into behaving like the German Nazis in the Third Reich. 

The result of nearly 40 years of Burmese military's genocidal propaganda is that our country in 2014 is overwhelmingly genocidal and racist towards the Rohingyas. Hatred is never defeated by historical facts. Germans in the Allied- occupied Germany post-Hitler denied any knowledge of atrocities committed against 6 million Jews and another 4-5 millions Poles, 'gypsies', Russians, German communists, the disabled German, Jehovah Witnesses, etc. The American troops forced these defeated ordinary Germans to go and see - and remove by their hands - piles of hundreds of corpses in numerous concentration camps. Even then some Germans, both men and women, were seen laughing and giggling - before they entered these camps as if they were heading to a community picnic! Only when they saw first hand rotten corpses, gas chambers, charred bodies, etc. were they forced to accept that their nation was GENOCIDAL. 

No two genocides or cases of mass atrocities are exactly alike. 

But denial on the part of the perpetrators and perpetrating nations is an integral to all genocides. I was 15 feet behind (through the glass wall in the International Tribunal Chamber) Brother Number Two of Khmer Rouge - a Thammasat University (Bangkok)-trained law student and education minister - claiming his innocence and 'I was not aware of the atrocities' - during his closing statement. 

The Burmese public is of course going to deny that they are genocidally racist. Many a good people who know better keep to themselves against the overwhelmingly genocidal Burmese public sentiment towards the Rohingya. 

Back in 1978, other minorities such as Wa, Lahu, Kachin, Karen, Shan, Palaung, etc. dared express their solidarity and empathy for the persecuted Muslim minorities of Arakan.

Now in 2014, even the Kachin Independence Organization's spokesperson ex-Colonel James L. based in BKK denied any knowledge of Rohingya and denied showing any sympathy for the Rohingya. 

That IS the direct effect of Nazi-like anti-Rohingya propaganda by the Psychological Warfare Department of Ministry of Defense in Burma. 

The thought of Burma's good "Buddhists" turning Nazis really gives me chills down my spine. I hope it does for you too.

The latest News about Internal Displaced Muslim from Meiktila

Source Mmdedia, 26 Nov

 

On November 24 2014 at 11:00 am the MeiktilaTownship chairperson Oo Myo Hline accompanied  Township land Record Department Officer and Chairman of Min Gala Zayet  Ward held a meeting with the IDPs of Yan Myo Aung ward 10, 14 and 17. In that meeting They told that IDP camp will be closed very soon and IDPs people will need to leave the camp. They also told that there is no permission to build house on their own previous housing  plot and has permission to sold that land. Also said the IDPs themselves  need to find place to stay. 

UN passes resolution on Myanmar: Give Rohingyas citizenship

Source the independent, 23 Nov

UN passes resolution on Myanmar

The United Nations adopted a resolution Friday urging Myanmar to grant citizenship to its Rohingya Muslim minority, ramping up pressure on Yangon to scrap a controversial identity plan, reports AFP from the United States. The measure was adopted by consensus in the General Assembly's rights committee following some wrangling with countries from the 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which had sought stronger language.

The resolution expresses "serious concern" over the plight of the Rohingya in Rakhine state, where 140,000 people live in squalid camps after violence erupted between Buddhists and Muslims in 2012.

Under a controversial government-backed plan, the Rohingya would be forced to identify themselves as Bengali—a term seen as disparaging—in order to apply for citizenship. Those who refuse would be forced to live in camps.
Many in Myanmar's government and local Buddhists view Rohingya as illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh, but the community maintains its has ancestral roots in the country.

The resolution urges the government to protect the rights of all inhabitants of Rakhine state and allow "equal access to full citizenship for the Rohingya minority," to "allow self-identification" and ensure equal access to services.
Myanmar's representative voiced opposition to the use of term "Rohingya" in the resolution and warned this would stoke tensions in Rakhine state.

"Use of the word by the United Nations will draw strong resentment from the people of Myanmar, making the government's effort more difficult in addressing this issue," said the delegate.
The representative emphasized that the government was seeking to address the issue.
The measure drafted by the European Union now moves to the full Assembly, where it is likely to be adopted again by consensus. A vote is held if the country targeted by the resolution requests it.

Despite criticism of the Rohingya's treatment, the resolution welcomes "continued positive developments in Myanmar" toward reform and notes that the government is making efforts to address the "complex situation in Rakhine state."

It calls for an office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to open "without delay" in Myanmar.
Attacks by Buddhist mobs have left hundreds dead and 140,000 trapped in camps, and other Rohingya are fleeing the country. But this week, President Thein Sein called reports that the Rohingya are fleeing alleged torture a "media fabrication" during an interview with Voice of America.
Myanmar's ambassador on Friday said that language in the resolution referring to "attacks against Muslims and other religious minorities" are misleading and can only contribute to inciting hatred.

The Rohingya have emerged as a sensitive issue as Myanmar tries to move away from decades of repressive military rule toward democracy.
The resolution approved Friday also addresses international concerns over next year's presidential election, saying Myanmar should allow "all candidates to fairly contest" the vote.

There has been uncertainty over whether opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi could hold the presidency. A clause in the constitution bars anyone whose spouse or children are loyal to foreign countries from becoming president or vice president. Suu Kyi's two sons are British citizens, as was her late husband.

Burmese refugees pay up to $1,000 for official refugee status in Malaysia

Source the guardian, 21 Nov

See via Youtube

UN officials describing themselves as 'thieves' claim money from illegal trade goes to 'some top guys in the UN'

Rohingya Muslim refugees from Burma on a street near the UN high commissioner for refugees office in Delhi. Photograph: AFP/Getty

Burmese refugees and asylum seekers are paying up to $1,000 (£650) for UNHCR cards granting them official refugee status in Malaysia, an undercover al-Jazeera investigation has found.

Officials from the UN's refugee agency have been recorded openly describing themselves as "thieves" for brokering the illegal trade of registration documents.

"All the money from this activity goes into the pockets of some top guys in the UN," a UN translator claimed in al-Jazeera's current affairs programme 101 East. "We have been doing this … for a long time. We are thieves, and we look for thieves above us."

The programme's presenter, Steve Chao, posed as a priest in order to visit squalid detention centres in Malaysia's capital, Kuala Lumpur, where he interviewed dozens of refugees and asylum seekers, some of them Rohingya Muslims from Burma, for Malaysia's Unwanted, which was aired this week. Interviewees said they faced police harassment and exploitation, were forbidden to work or send their children to school, and lived in abysmal conditions: some refugees were beaten, chained or handcuffed, and many had not had any food for days.

Advertisement

About 150,000 refugees and asylum seekers are living in Malaysia – nearly all of them hailing from Burma – but because Malaysia is not party to the UN's 1951 Refugee Convention or the 1967 protocol recognising refugees, they are extremely vulnerable to abuse and maltreatment by authorities, rights groups say. All UN high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) services should normally be provided for free.

Malaysia was downgraded this year to the lowest rung on the US State Department's human trafficking index, which highlighted the country's poor human rights record and officials' complicity in trafficking those held in detention camps.

Malaysia's UNHCR mission – which sees more than 1,000 refugees and asylum seekers every day – is reportedly overwhelmed by the sheer number of those in need, with the leader of the mission, Richard Towle, comparing it to "an accident and emergency hospital".

"You make tough decisions all the time about triaging and prioritising who is the neediest of the people in an already needy group of people," he said.

A spokesperson for UNHCR Malaysia said the agency was aware of the claims and had a "zero-tolerance policy" regarding corruption. Resettlement operations were reportedly suspended earlier this year to investigate the claims.

"UNHCR is aware of some allegations of fraud arising from its operation in Malaysia," said a UN spokeswoman, Yante Ismail. "These are beginning to be treated with the seriousness they require under the organisation's rules and procedures."

Demolition of the Mosque of Yamethein Mandalay to build Buddhist Religious Building

Source Mmedia, 21 Nov

On 20th November 2014 at 8:00 am, it was started to destroy mosque building which is situated at the west part of Muslim ward, Ma Naw Hary road, Yamethein, Yamethein district, Mandalay Division, which build 350 years ago.  

It is know  the Buddhist Ma Ba Tha Chair person Monk Oo Sabdaw Ba Tha Ka announces that after abolishion of the Mosque building  they will replace with the Buddhist Religious building (Maha Wizaya) on the Place . 

Destroyed Mosque Phoro

A Birthday Letter Home to Australia from a Prisoner of Thailand

Source Phuketwan, 19 Nov

By Alan Morison

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Father of five and WWII veteran John Morison celebrates his 91st birthday on November 20 at home in Mount Gambier, Australia, but the passport of his son, Alan, is being held in Thailand.

Dear Dad,

Happy Birthday. I wish I could be there to wish you a great one, as I did last year when you turned 90 and the whole family gathered to celebrate.

This year I can't make it. Sadly, I am a prisoner of Thailand. My passport has been seized because I am being accused by the Royal Thai Navy of criminal defamation. I face possibly a long jail term.

The contentious paragraph we published on the Phuketwan news site in July last year was written by two Reuters news agency reporters who won a prestigious Pulitzer award for it and other paragraphs in an excellent series on the Rohingya boatpeople.

Strangely enough, the Royal Thai Navy is suing Phuketwan and not the Reuters authors, probably because we are a very small organisation and Reuters is a large one.

So I have surrendered my Australian passport. An application to have it returned so I could be there for your birthday was rejected. If the case drags on, as seems likely, I could be a prisoner of Thailand for the next few years, with the prospect of jail still to come.

I miss you, and I miss all the family.

I am telling you this in a letter, Dad, because I know your hearing is failing. I also know that my sisters have kept secret from you the fact that I am a prisoner of Thailand. They fear that the news would kill you.

If I'd been there today, I probably would have told you all about it, as gently as possible. So instead, I must write to let you know what a great father you've been all these many years, and that your sacrifices will never be forgotten.

You were one of those worker Dads my four sisters and I saw less often than we would have liked, from a generation where fathers worked and mothers did not, at least not in regular jobs.

You went to war, just like your father did and Mum's father did. Both of them clambered ashore at Gallipoli. One of them was wounded and sent home. The other went on to the Western front where he was gassed in the trenches. He survived, but the gas cut his life short.

Why did Australia go to two world wars? There are times when injustice simply must be confronted, I guess.

My brave Thai colleague, Chutima Sidasathian, who is also being sued by the Royal Thai Navy, has been confronting the unjust treatment of Burma's Rohingya boatpeople in Thailand for years now.

The two of us aim to continue doing that. We've told the Royal Thai Navy that if they want to stop us reporting on what's happening to the boatpeople, they will have to kill us.

We hope the Navy sees sense and instead of using Draconian laws against a small media organisation, turns their attention to the human traffickers, or to the Burmese Government driving the Rohingya into the sea. Sadly, that seems unlikely to happen soon.

I became more hopeful recently when the British government won back the passport of a human rights defender named Andy Hall, simply by asking the Thai courts. Andy has since travelled to Britain and to Burma and could spend Christmas at home with his folks.

For reasons they decline to explain, the Australian Government continues to reject my pleas to do the same in my case, even though officially, my passport is their property.

We've enjoyed enormous support from many sources. The United Nations human rights body, the European Union nations, Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, the International Commission of Jurists and many other organisations have spoke up in our defence.

The Australian Government, though, has said nothing.

Over the years, Dad, there were many times when you showed how much you cared. The time I remember most is back in the '60s, when I was conscripted to join the Australian Army.

I was young and not in favor of the Vietnam War, but being a journalist I wanted to go to see for myself what was happening in Asia. I volunteered.

Without telling me, you wrote many letters to the Minister for the Army, mostly pointing out that too many conscripts were being killed by the enemy.

I remember as a gawky 20-something walking into the minister's office in Canberra. He sat me down in front of a huge desk.

You know the first words he said to me? ''Private Morison,'' he said, ''your father obviously loves you a lot.''

The Army Minister was right. Everything you've done for me and the family before and since has proven his judgement to be correct. Your values have become ingrained in all of us.

It took me many years to get to Asia. Now I'm there, fighting a different kind of fight for freedom of the media and for the Rohingya, a group the UN describes as the most persecuted people in the world.

The problem would be solved if Burma could be persuaded not to push them into the sea. The Royal Thai Navy and the Australian Government could do a lot to end their misery, not by turning back the boats but by preventing them from sailing.

I'm still left to wonder, though, if my country will ever be willing to fight for them, and for me.

It may be some time before I see you again.

Love to all,

Alan.

Alan Morison's sisters may decide it's not safe yet for John Morison to be told what's happening to his son. The trial of Alan Morison and Chutima Sidasathian for criminal defamation does not resume until July next year. If the case is lost, appeals are expected to take several more years.

What Others Say

The Australian Government

Former Ambassador to Thailand, James Wise: ''Normally, we take up issues like yours with our host government only after the person affected asks us to do so (especially when the case already has a high profile and we can be confident that the host government is aware of it). We would not want to cut across your own plans for managing the way you want to respond to the allegations against you - because, ultimately, how you manage your affairs is your business, not ours.''

United Nations

''Criminal prosecution for defamation has a chilling effect on freedom of the press,'' said Ravina Shamdasani, the spokesperson for the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. ''International standards are clear that imprisonment is never an appropriate penalty for defamation.''

Human Rights Watch

''The Thai navy's lawsuit is a reckless attempt to curtail journalists' reporting on alleged human trafficking by its officers,'' said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. ''Unless the government withdraws the case, its impact will be felt far beyond those reporting on abuses against the Rohingya - and could have a choking effect on all investigative reporting in Thailand.''

Reporters Without Borders

"It is intolerable that journalists are being prosecuted for just doing their job by relaying information of general interest that had already been made public," Reporters Without Borders said. "Bringing charges under the controversial Computers Crimes Act in a defamation case is indicative of the critical state of freedom of information in Thailand and amounts to an attempt to gag the media. We support these journalists, who are facing a jail term, and we call for the immediate withdrawal of these proceedings."

Committee to Protect Journalists

''Rather than shooting the messenger, the Royal Thai Navy would be better suited launching an internal investigation into the serious allegations of abuse that have been raised,'' said Shawn Crispin, CPJ's senior Southeast Asia representative. ''This type of legal intimidation aims ultimately at discouraging media reporting on allegations of serious human rights abuses.''

Chris Lewa, director of the rights group the Arakan Project

''Thanks to the fair investigative reporting by the Phuketwan journalists, the involvement of various Thai agencies in the massive smuggling and trafficking operations of Rohingya refugees and their related miseries is no more a secret. Rights groups should unite to call on Thailand to quash these defamation charges.''

Phuketwan

''We wish the Royal Thai Navy would clear its reputation by explaining precisely what is happening to the Rohingya in the Andaman Sea and in Thailand,'' Phuketwan said in a statement released in response to the charges. ''By instead using a controversial law against us, the Navy is, we believe, acting out of character.''

Bangkok Post

The action makes the navy look like a bully, and gives the impression the admirals would like to intimidate the media. Instead of defending the navy's honor, the criminal defamation suit holds it to question. Instead of silencing the media about the story - concerning the navy's role in the mistreatment of Rohingya boatpeople - the lawsuit repeats it, to more people and at greater length.

CNN

Morison said: "The navy's action over one paragraph has created a perfect storm. If the navy proceeds with the case, the Rohingya issue is now tied up in their action against media under a controversial law."

TIME

In the meantime, calmer seas mean that even more Rohingya are expected to attempt the treacherous journey in the weeks ahead. Nothing could gladden the traffickers more.

Reuters

Barb Burg, Reuters' (former) global head of communications: ''Our story was fair and balanced and Reuters has not been accused of criminal libel.''

Bill Barnett (The Phuket Insider)

The issues which have drawn Phuketwan into this fray are profound and disturbing. There should be no need to wax over reality and respect needs to be given to those who stand up for the helpless who cannot help themselves.

Andrew Drummond (Investigative Journalist)

We should all support journalists who are doing a difficult job here under laws which best suit a totalitarian state.

Excellence in Human Rights Reporting, Investigative Reporting awards

In 2010 the Phuketwan team shared the Society of Publishers in Asia Award for Excellence in Investigative Reporting and a second Award for Excellence in Human Rights Reporting, both with the South China Morning Post newspaper. Judges said of the Excellence in Investigative Reporting award: ''An excellent series that uncovered serious government abuses and had a material impact in correcting them. Exclusivity. Strong reporting. Hard-hitting piece with international implications.''

Of the Excellence in Human Rights Reporting award, the judges said: ''Excellent investigative work that exposed serious human rights abuses of oppressed people. Intrepid reporting of a hidden subject. This is a high-caliber series buttressed by solid on-the-ground reporting and great pictures. All militaries are challenging subjects for investigative reporters and Thailand's is no exception. The team clearly went to great lengths to get sources, break news, and provide the details that prodded the government into action.''

Other stories

Myanmar Army’s Major Tun Hlaing Zaw Says His Salary Increased After Killing Three Rohingyas

Source RB, 20 Nov

Maungdaw, Arakan – Myanmar Army's Major Tun Hlaing Zaw based in Northern Maungdaw Township in Arakan State, an in-charge of military outpost no. 12 based in Ywat Nyo Taung village and an officer of Battalion 551, said he is enjoying the salary increment after killing three Rohingyas recently.

On November 7, 2014 60 years old Shamshu s/o Sayed Alam was arrested by Major Tun Hlaing Zaw without any reason. He was killed and reportedly another two Rohingyas were killed by Major Tun Hlaing Zaw. Shamshu was reportedly an innocent old man who had been serving as chef for 15 years at the previous Na-Sa-Ka and current Border Guard Police (BGP) outpost based in Ywat Nyo Taung village. 

After killing three Rohingyas, Major Tun Hlaing Zaw is openly threatening the local Rohingyas by saying "If I arrest someone, he can be alive for a week only. Now I'm getting 50,000 Kyat salary increment in my monthly salary. I have a plan to kill hundred more." according local Rohingya residents. 

The alcoholic Major has been roaming surrounding villages with his unruly behaviors. On November 17, 2014 at 5 pm, his six soldiers went to Kyar Gaung Taung village and scrutinized passers-by without any reason. While doing so a 19 year old, Nur Mamed s/o Nurul Islam from Yay Khal Gyaung Kwa Sone village was going back to his home on a motor-bike. The soldiers stopped him and pulled him down and beat inhumanely. They said that going by motor-bike in front of them is disrespecting them. Nur Mamed was severely injured and couldn't go back home driving his motor-bike. He had to go back home with the help of a villager and until now he is under medical treatment. 

The soldiers have been reported to have brought three dogs. The dogs have bitten two goats owned by a Rohingya while the soldiers were going to Yay Khal Gyaung Kwa Soe village. The owner of the goats wasn't informed although the goats had injuries. The soldiers took the goats to the village administrator's house and cooked both goats and "ate like ogres", according to an eyewitness. 

As Major Tun Hlaing Zaw has been committing many crimes against humanity. Every night raiding houses. Most of the men are unable to sleep in their houses. They flee to the jungle at night.

Boatpeople Spotted Between Phuket and Krabi as Riddle of Missing Rohingya Grows

Source Phuketwan, 17 Nov

What appears to be a Rohingya boat off the coast between Krabi and Phuket Photo by supplied By Chutima Sidasathian and Alan Morison PHUKET: A vessel believed to be crammed with up to 100 Rohingya has been sighted off the coast of Krabi, near Phuket in Thailand, as the mystery over the whereabouts of thousands of boatpeople deepens. The rickety boat was sighted off the mainland, heading for Koh Yao Yai, a small island that is home to several five-star resorts, between Krabi and Phuket.  Fishing trawlers and a network of small civilian vessels inform local district chiefs of sightings that are usually relayed to Thailand's Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation, which oversees safety at sea.  ''We think it was definitely a Rohingya boat,'' an official said. ''But we lost contact with it quickly.'' As many as 12,000 members of the Muslim minority in Burma are reported to have fled to sea to avoid persecution since October 15 but only a few hundred have fetched up along Thailand's Andaman Sea coast, alarming activists who fear something has gone amiss.  ''Where are they?'' Chris Lewa of the Arakan Project, which plots migration across the Bay of Bengal, told Reuters on Saturday. ''We have become very concerned.'' Back in 2009, Phuketwan journalists discovered that boatloads of Rohingya were being towed out to sea by the Thai military and left without engines or sails. Hundreds perished at sea before survivors washed ashore in India and Indonesia.  Five years on, there is no suggestion of a similar occurrence. But the families of the thousands who are now missing have no clue as to their fate.  Many could be being kept by traffickers in secret jungle camps in mangrove-covered islands along the shores of the Thai provinces of Phang Nga and Ranong, close to the border with Burma, where more than 500 boatpeople from Burma (Myanmar) and Bangladesh have been apprehended in recent weeks.  Almost all of those men, women and children have been taken into custody by local officials, working with Buddhist, Christian and Muslim volunteers to halt the flow of human trafficking victims through Thailand.  With each newly-discovered batch of boatpeople comes an extended debate about whether the unwanted arrivals are human trafficking victims or merely illegal immigrants.  Police and welfare organisations are reluctant to treat the arrivals as trafficked victims because funds and government accommodation are limited. By categorising the Rohingya as ''Burmese'' under laws that allow Thailand to deal more easily with unwanted arrivals from neighboring Burma, Laos and Cambodia, officials can quickly truck the apprehended groups back to the border where they are often delivered straight into the arms of human traffickers again.  The Rohingya, stateless in Burma, are denied all rights and being driven from Rakhine state by hateful Buddhist neighbors. It's ironic that only as unwanted captives in neighboring Thailand can they achieve their aim of being categorised as Burmese citizens. Along the coast, district authorities and village chiefs have formed networks among fishing boats to alert them to the presence of boatpeople fleeing Burma and Bangladesh.  Officials from the Department of Special Investigations and the Internal Security Operational Command in Bangkok recently visited the Andaman provinces to assess levels of human trafficking.  Of a boatload of 259 men, women and children who were apprehended near the town of Kaper, 80 Bangladeshis have been sent for processing through a court in Ranong while the other 219 are to be deported as ''Burmese Muslims.''  Burma does not accept the Rohingya as citizens so they cannot return. These people are destined for human traffickers. Of 86 people being held in the nearby town of Kuraburi, 12 categorised as ''Burmese Muslims'' are being sent to Immigration in Phang Nga while the others, all Bangladeshis, are to appear in Phang Nga court as illegal immigrants.  As trafficking networks grow along the region's Indian Ocean coastline, growing numbers of men from Bangladesh are also being enticed onto boats in search of better jobs in Malaysia.  Bangladeshi authorities are holding five Thais who have been accused of human trafficking and other arrests have been made in Thailand.  Boatpeople Apprehended in Thailand, Sailing Season 2014-2015 September 23 37 boat people at Takaupa, categorised as illegal immigrants. Sentenced to 20 days in jail, now held by Immigration for deportation October 11 53 boatpeople at Takaupa, categorised as victims of human trafficking, held in shelters at Ranong, Songkhla and Phang Nga October 13 81 boatpeople at Takaupa, categorised as victims of human trafficking, held in shelters at Ranong, Songkhla and Phang Nga October 24 boatpeople at Suksamran, categorised as illegal immigrants, sent to Ranong Immigration October 78 boatpeople at Suksamran, Twelve ''Burmese Muslims'' sent to Ranong Immigration, Bangladeshis passed to court system November 8 299 (overnight suddenly reduced to 259) boatpeople at Kaper. 80 Bangladeshis sent Ranong court, 179 ''Burmese Muslims'' at Ranong Immigration November 11 86 boat people at Kuraburi, 12 ''Burmese Muslims'' to Phang Nga Immigration, Bangladeshis to Phang Nga

Queensland Rohingyas appeal world leaders of the G-20 Summit

Source Kaladan Press, 16 Nov

The Queensland Rohingya community gathered in front of King George Square in Brisbane, Australia on November 15, to rise the problem and situation of Rohingyas, facing in Burma to the world leaders who attend the G-20 Summit to solve their status in Burma, said Noor Zaman, the President Queensland Rohingya Community Inc.

The Queensland Rohingya community gathered in front of King George Square in Brisbane, Australia

"We – Queensland Rohingya community Inc- gathered here to appeal to the world leaders of the G-20 Summit in Brisbane, Australia about the Rohingyas who are living in northern Arakan with several discriminations of basic Human Rights – education, health, rape, genocide, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrest,  movement, land confiscation, marriage and forced labor," said the Noor Zaman.

The political reforms today in Burma have yielded little for the Rohingya. Under the Burmese Citizenship law Act 1982, our people are not recognised as one of the 135 national races of Burma. We are stateless people in our own country. President Thein Sein openly stated in July 2012 there are two options for the Rohingya people. One option is to resettle them in a third country; and the other option is for the UNHCR to build a refugee camp in the country -our motherland, said Kefayet Ullah, the Secretary, Queensland Rohingya Community Inc.

The Queensland Rohingya community Inc requested to the world leaders and its guest Burmese President Thein Sein to stop its persecution policies of the Rohingya people before accept input from the Burmese government as a model developing country at the G-20 Summit, according to their press statement.

The statement urged the world leaders to save the Rohingya community in northern Arakan, Burma with following demands:- stop the ethnic cleansing of Rohingya community in Burma; to find a permanent solution for the stateless Rohingyas and refugees; to investigate massacres in Burma; to break Ms. Aung San Su Kyi silence on the plight of Rohingya people and stand for true and meaningful democratic reforms and human rights; to call international intervention in Burma; to impose new sanctions against Burma; to stop the ongoing crimes against humanity in Burma; to take necessary action to rebuild the burnt Rohingya villages without any conditions; to take action against the Burmese regime forcing the Rohingya to change their identity and threats to force Rohingya to register as Bengalis; to pressure to include and recognize the Rohingya as citizens under the Burmese Citizenship law 1982 and provide appropriate protection under that legislation; to monitor closely the situation of ethnic cleansing of Rohingyas, according to the statement.

Kyaw Zwar Minn, Myanmar's Ambassador to UK, France, Scandinavia and Ireland, acknowledged the long-persecuted Muslim minority Rohingya "are people" on November 13, in an exclusive interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour. But, we [do] not accept the title… the 'Rohingya'. While Amanpour highlighted that even the U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki Moon urged Myanmar to let the ethnic group be called whatever they want, the Ambassador said, "Of course", it will take time to accept the term "Rohingya" by Myanmar government and its people.

A Historic Moment with President Obama and Team: ethnic Rohingya are not illegal immigrants

By Rohingya MP, 14 Nov

US President Barack Obama said that ethnic Rohingya are not illegal immigrants, they are from here (Myanmar), they have been living her...e for a long long time ago and they need to be accepted as citizens of Myanmar.

President Obama had a roundtable meeting with fifteen representatives, including me, from civil society and community at US Embassy in Yangon on Friday, 14-11-14. The Representatives
discussed from different perspectives.

For the sake of peace and development of Rakhine State and Myanmar as a whole, I discussed about 140,000 IDPs of Rakhine State (caused by 2012 violences), human rights violations because of different faith and race including Rohingya. Myanmar citizenship cards contain race and religion name although there is no specific description about it in Myanmar citizenship law. Thus, citizenship card becomes not only an ID but also a license to be discriminated against race & religion. Therefore, citizenship card without race & religion and with national identity will be better for all people of Myanmar specially ethnic minorities. I explained that we Rohingya people are not illegal immigrants but indigenous people of Arakan. We have been living peacefully with Rakhine, Kaman and other ethnics for several centuries. Therefore, we enjoyed with full citizenship rights since we got independence in 1948. According to 1982 Citizenship Law of Myanmar, we are already in Myanmar before 1823, which is a reference year of eligibility for bona-fide citizenship and we have strong evidences for that. But our people are denied for citizens' fundamental rights. The worst is Rohingya are accused as illegal immigrants and a threat to the Union. As a community representative, I highlighted a number of key messages on behalf of Rohingya community. Rohingya want to enjoy with full-fledged citizenship rights, be good citizens of the Union and work for peace and development of Rakhine State and Myanmar. I requested President Obama to help to restore our rights in cooperation with our Myanmar President H.E U Thein Sein.

In response to a discussion of a participant, President Obama said that ethnic Rohingya are not illegal immigrants, they are from here (Myanmar), they have been living here for a long long time ago and they need to be accepted as citizens of Myanmar.

During the discussion, President Obama urged all people of Myanmar to work under National Identity "Myanmar" for development of Myanmar. There should be no violence and discrimination because of different faith and race. Everyone must be able to enjoy with their faith and culture. President explained diversity of New York lifestyle. President also explained that H.E urged to Myanmar President H.E U Thein Sein all ethnic groups treated equally in democracy, only one ethnic group should not be protected and all must be accepted as citizens of Myanmar. There are many more discussions by other representatives. 

President Obama & Team includes Amb. Susan Rice (National Security Advisor), Ben Rhodes (Assistant to President and Deputy National Security Advisor) and Derek Mitchell (US Ambassador to Myanmar). Our Team includes U Aung Myo Min (Equality Myanmar), U Kyaw Min Swe (Interim Press Council), U Reverend Samson (Kachin Baptist Network), Daw Saw Khin Tint (Rakhine Literature and Culture Association), Daw Nwe Zin Win (Pyi Gyi Khin), U Bo Bo Aung (Dawei Development Association), Daw Nge Nge Aye Maung (Association of Myanmar Disabled Women Affairs), Daw Khin Lay (Triangle Women Support Group), U Thein Aung (Action Labor Rights), U Nay Phone Latt (Myanmar ICT for Development), U Lian H. Sakhong, Burma Center for Ethnic Studies), U win Nyi Nyi Zaw (People's Alliance for Credible Elections Group), Dr. Kyaw Thu (Paung Ku), Daw Wai Wai Lwin (BadeiDha Moe)

The moment with President Obama and Team on Friday, 2:15 PM to 3:15 PM, 14-11-14, Yangon, Myanmar, is wonderful and historic for all of us.

Shwe Maung (a.k.a Abdul Razak)
Pyithu Hluttaw Representative
Buthidaung Constituency
Myanmar
Date: November 18, 2014 See More

Obama Says 'Rohingya,' Displeasing Myanmar Hosts

Source abcnews, 14 Nov

U.S. President Barack Obama, right, stops at the memorial to the Independence Martys, where the first Burmese flag was raised, during his tour of the Secretariat Building with Than Myint-U, left, founder and president of Yangon Heritage Trust, Friday, Nov. 14, 2014 in Yangon, Myanmar. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

The Associated Press

Myanmar's minority Rohingya Muslims are among the most persecuted people on earth, and advocates of their cause were hoping President Barack Obama would not only press the issue during his visit this week — they were hoping he would simply say their name.

On Friday, the last day of his trip, he finally did — uttering the word publicly for the first time on his three-day visit at a news conference with opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

"Discrimination against the Rohingya or any other religious minority does not express the kind of country that Burma over the long term wants to be," Obama said, in response to a reporter's question about the status of reforms in Myanmar, also known as Burma.

Myanmar's government views the estimated 1.3 million Rohingya — living in dire, segregated conditions in western Rakhine state — not as citizens, but as illegal migrants from Bangladesh encroaching on scarce land. For that reason, they say the Rohingya ethnicity does not exist.

In a bid to draw attention to the issue, the U.S. advocacy group United to End Genocide launched a social media campaign titled #JustSayTheirName, and thousands of people have signed an online petition and tweeted photos of themselves holding placards with the slogan on social media.

During a private meeting with President Thein Sein on Thursday which focused largely on the Rohingya's plight and a need for constitutional reforms ahead of 2015 elections, Obama used the word "Rohingya" multiple times and did so purposefully, according to a senior U.S. official who spoke only on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to comment by name.

But in his public opening statement, Obama did not specifically mention the Rohingya, referring only to the "terrible violence in Rakhine state."

During his last trip in 2012, Obama employed the word in a speech at the University of Yangon as he pressed Myanmar's leaders to end violence and consider granting them citizenship. Supporters applauded the move. Myanmar's government bristled.

The United Nations describes the Rohingya as one of the world's most persecuted minorities, and human rights groups say they comprise one of the world's largest stateless groups. Over the past two years, their plight has deteriorated markedly, with 140,000 trapped in crowded, unsanitary camps and more than 100,000 more fleeing as refugees in flimsy boats. Hundreds have been killed in mob attacks, and an unknown number have died at sea.

Although many Rohingya arrived in Myanmar generations ago, the government and most residents of Rakhine state insist they are ethnic Bengalis from Bangladesh — which also denies them citizenship. In Myanmar, neither 'Rohingya' nor 'Bengali' are counted as one of the 135 officially recognized ethnic groups.

Since the start of this year, Myanmar's government has stepped up pressure on foreign officials not to use the word "Rohingya."

Police find second group of Rohingya refugees north of Phuket

Source Phuketgazette, 15 Nov

1 / 3 Kuraburi police detained 86 Rohingya refugees believed to have been smuggled to Thailand from Myanmar by a human-trafficking ring. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

2 / 3   All 86 refugees taken into custody on Wednesday were taken to Kuraburi Community Hall for further questioning and health checkups. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

3 / 3 All 86 refugees taken into custody on Wednesday were taken to Kuraburi Community Hall for further questioning and health checkups. Photo: Kritsada Mueanhawong

•     

• PHUKET: A second group of 86 Rohingya refugees believed to have been smuggled to Thailand from Myanmar were taken into to custody by police north of Phuket on Wednesday.
  
  The refugees were detained in a rubber plantation in Kuraburi, Phang Nga province, after police were informed by local residents that a large group of Rohingya were hiding in the plantation.
  
  "We believe this second group of refugees was brought here by human traffickers in a large fishing boat and were ordered to wait in the plantation until a third party took them to Malaysia," said Kuraburi Police Acting Superintendent Winai Kongkaew.
  
  Last Saturday police took into custody 80 Bangladeshi and 219 Rohingya, smuggled into Thailand in a modified trawling vessel.
  
  It is thought this second group of refugees could be from another bogus trawler – one of three that was spotted off the Ranong coast earlier this week flying Thai flags (story here).
  
  After questioning the 86 refugees, police discovered that a Thai human-trafficking gang had been involved in smuggling them into the country.
  
  "From questioning the refugees, it appears that the traffickers ran away after being tipped off that we were coming to arrest them," Lt Col Winai said.
  
  An informed source said on Wednesday that more than 10 big Thai-based agents were involved in smuggling Rohingya from Myanmar to third countries (storyhere).
  
  "We know that in addition to collecting 30,000 baht from each refugee, the human-trafficking gangs also get another 60,000 baht per person from potential employers in the third country," Col Winai explained.
  
  All 86 refugees taken into custody on Wednesday were taken to Kuraburi Community Hall for further questioning and health checkups.
  
  "We will expand our investigations to try and track down and arrest the human trafficking gangs still operating in this area," Lt Col Winai said.

  - See more at: http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Police-find-second-group-Rohingya-refugees-north/39478#ad-image-0

Ban Ki-Moon flip-flops on Rohingya identity

Source DVB, 

A photo posted by government spokesman Zaw Htay (Hmuu Zaw) on 13 November 2014, accompanying an exchange between a Burmese reporter and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon at the 25th ASEAN Summit, highlights a conversation between Thein Sein and a Dutch MP in September, in which the president says that "no ethnic nationality in Burma can accept these people being recognised as an ethnic group," urging "not [to] refer to them as the Rohingya." (Photo: Hmuu Zaw Facebook)

• By ALEX BOOKBINDER
•  UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon met with a select group of local reporters today at the 25^th ASEAN Summit in Naypyidaw, where he toned down earlier statements supporting the UN's recognition of the term "Rohingya," a move that appears to have been calculated to avoid a backlash from the Burmese government and media.

Addressing the government's "Action Plan" for Arakan State, he said he was confident that the government "can be successful in addressing the complex problems in Rakhine [Arakan] so that all communities can look forward to a safe, dignified and hopeful future," adding that  "The UN stands ready to help in these efforts."

A leaked draft of the controversial Rakhine Action Plan, which was seen by the media at the end of September, contained clauses that, if implemented, could potentially see hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas and other Muslims face indefinite detention and eventual expulsion from Burma if they fail to meet stringent requirements qualifying them for Burmese citizenship.

Related Stories

•  Arakan leader criticises Ban's 'Rohingya' comments
•  Obama touches down in Naypyidaw
•  UN sec-gen urges Rohingya rights

On Wednesday, the Secretary-General unambiguously declared that "the United Nations uses that word [Rohingya] based on the rights of minorities," implicitly criticising government policy forcing them to identify as "Bengalis" if they desire citizenship rights currently denied to them under Burma's 1982 citizenship law.

But in an apparent about-face on Thursday, Ban said that "focusing on the issue of terminology will not solve the problem," claiming that "these problems can only be solved through political solutions and both humanitarian and development assistance to those who are suffering and in need."

His statement on Thursday took ethnic Arakanese grievances into account, observing that "both communities [in Arakan State] have suffered violations of their rights," clarifying that "the UN is concerned about the well being of all peoples."

"It is time to alleviate the fears of the two communities: by that I mean both the Rakhine community and what you call the Rohingyas or Bengalis, and to address their grievances and uphold their human rights," he said. "Failure to do so, as we have seen in other parts of the world, can magnify inter-communal tensions and sow the seeds for future instability."

His earlier show of support for Rohingya rights to self-identification was met by vociferous questioning from Burmese reporters at the conference, who dedicated the majority of a question-and-answer session following his address to the subject.

On Thursday, Presidential spokesman Zaw Htay posted an exchange on his Facebook page between a Burmese reporter and the Secretary-General at the Wednesday conference, in which he was asked for his opinion on a proposal to "DNA test" Rohingyas to determine if the name "Bengali" was "scientific."

Maung Maung Ohn, the Chief Minister of Arakan State, penned Ban a refutation letter on Thursday asserting that "lending the stature of your office to this highly volatile debate…  can have a lasting detrimental impact on our ability to do the work needed on the ground to bring the communities together."

Although Ban's wavering on the question of Rohingya identity sets a questionable precedent for the UN's acceptance of the erosion of basic rights in Burma, the organisation does not accept the Rakhine Action Plan's more worrying components.

"The UN is aware of the draft plan which includes some controversial elements and challenges," Stephane Dujarric, the Secretary-General's spokesman, told DVB. "Concerns have been raised and the UN will continue making efforts to have the authorities ensure that any framework for Rakhine will abide by international norms and standards."

Flood and landslides in Cameron Highlands of Malaysia claimed five lives

MERHROM press released, 12 Nov

Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM) is deeply sad over the muddy flood and landslides in Cameron Highlands that claimed five lives and caused over 90 victims from 28 families to be evacuated.

 

We strongly support the act of the Malaysian government to take action against those responsible for the incident. In regards to the 4000 Rohingya in Cameron Highlands, we do not have any information that they are working there. If yes, maybe the number is very small. We hope the government will thoroughly investigate the identity of the person who claimed themselves as Rohingya because they can be a Bangladeshi or other ethnic from Myanmar itself.  We can help the government at any time in the identification process of Rohingya refugees and Asylum Seekers in Cameron Highlands or other places in Malaysia.

 

We also hope the UNHCR will be very careful in their identification process as there are cases where other ethnic from Myanmar were identified as Rohingya in their UNHCR cards. This has a serious impact on the Rohingya community in Malaysia when this non-Rohingya who carried UNHCR card that identify them as Rohingya involved in crime activities. This will bring bad reputation for the Stateless Rohingya refugees. Therefore we really hope the UNHCR will review their identification process. We also hope the UNHCR to be equal in the registration of refugees and asylum seekers as very little number of Stateless Rohingya get registered with UNHCR and resettled in the third country compared to other ethnic who are citizen of Myanmar. Due to the failure of registration with UNHCR, many Rohingya asylum seekers are forced to use fake UNCHR cards in order to survive.

 

The Rohingya faces various kinds of prosecutions from the Myanmar government. The Rohingya became the victims of Genocide and have to flee from or homeland to save our lives. In this situation we will always obey the national laws and regulations of the country who give us protection. Currently lots of Rohingya have been arrested, tortured and killed due to allegation by the Myanmar government that they were involve with Al-Qaeda and ISIS.

 

We hope the Prime Minister of Malaysia YAB Dato' Sri Najib Tun Razak, Asean Leaders and the World Leaders will raise the Rohingya's plight during the 25^th ASEAN SUMMIT in Myanmar that take place today and tomorrow. As the theme for the 2014 ASEAN Chairmanship is "Moving Forward in Unity to a Peaceful and Prosperous Community", Myanmar government must stop its continuous prosecutions and Genocide towards ethnic minority Rohingya in order to achieve a Peaceful and Prosperous Community. If not, Myanmar will continuously giving problem to its neighboring countries and to the world at large.

 

We hope the President Barack Obama and the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will raise the Rohingya's plight during the two days meeting. We hope both President Barack Obama and Ban Ki Moon will conduct a special meeting with Myanmar government to end prosecutions and Genocide towards minority Rohingya.  

 

We hope for the continuous support from the Malaysian government, Asean countries, United Nations and the International Communities at large to save the remaining Rohingya.

 

 

Sincerely,

Zafar Ahmad Bin Abdul Ghani

President

Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM)

Tel No: +6016-6827287

Blog: www.merhrom.wordpress.com