In six months, more than 600 Muslims were arrested across the country

Source RFA, 10 June

2022 On May 21st, I saw the survivors of a boat capsized near Shwe Saingyan Beach, Pathein Township, Irrawaddy Division

 Photo: HANDOUT / ANONYMOUS / AFP

From December 2021 to early June this year, more than 600 Muslims have been arrested throughout Myanmar, including Rakhine State.

According to data collected by RFA based on statements from the Rakhine State Military Council and reports from local media, last December 270 Muslims, 24 in January 135 in February 14 in March 35 in April In May, 124 people were arrested for a total of 602 people.

Muslims to Malaysia by waterways, Trying to travel illegally by land, Rakhine sea, Ann Township Checkpoint, Yangon, He was arrested in places like Irrawaddy.

A Muslim from Maungdaw Township, who did not want to be named for security reasons, said that he tried to sell everything he owned to send his daughter to Malaysia, but was arrested on the way and almost lost his life.

"Because our family can't afford it, we have agreed that I will marry a man who is in Malaysia. Will I take my daughter? Will I take it? Will you pay half of the travel expenses? I will send it. I don't have fifty hundred thousand. I will sell my farm. I will sell my house. I will sell what I have and let her go. I ran out of property and was arrested. I have died. Now I have reached the end of my life."

On November 29th, his daughter was stranded on a boat with 228 people in the sea 17 miles northwest of Mayu Island near Sittwe. They were arrested en masse.

109 of them were sentenced on December 14 by the Maungdaw District Court to the maximum penalty of five years in prison under Section-13(1) of the 1947 Immigration Recent Provisions Act. The rest of the minors were released.

Muslims are finding it difficult to live in the refugee camps and villages, so they sell what they have as mortgages and travel to Malaysia.

They also said that if a person goes from Maungdaw Township to Malaysia, it costs 90,000,000 and if it goes from Sittwe Township, it costs 70,000,000.

I don't have to pay that money all at once, but when I get from Maungdaw to Sittong, 20,000,000 kyats. 30,000,000 if you come to Yangon from the war. 10 lakhs from Yangon to Myawati 10,000,000 from Myawady to Thailand. When you arrive at the Malaysian border from Thailand, you have to pay 20,000,000 in one step. He also said that if he is arrested on the road, he will not get the money back.

A Muslim from Kyauk Phyu Township who did not want to be named said that there are few jobs for Muslims in Rakhine State and they do not have the right to move freely.

"It's easy for people to be trafficked because our livelihood is difficult. The problem in Rakhine is that there is no freedom of movement. Economically, there are few employment opportunities when looking for food. I live in the refugee camp, so I can't go outside. Because of that, they ended up sacrificing their lives. If you die, the earth If you live, they will leave as Shwe Hyo."

He said that there are people who have been arrested on the road while taking such a risk and have gone missing without any information or even died.

Last May 21, a boat capsized near Shwe Sainyan Beach in Pathein Township, Ayeyarwady Region, and many Muslims drowned as a result of heavy rain and wind while leaving Rakhine from Rakhine State. There were about 90 Muslims in the boat. Of these, 17 Muslim corpses and more than 20 survivors, including a broker, were found on May 22 at the Shwe Taingyan beach. May 24 On the 25th, eight Muslim bodies were found on the beach in Gu Township, Rakhine State. RFA has not been able to independently confirm the whereabouts of the 40 missing Muslims.

2022 Seeing the Rohingya who were arrested in Khotaung Island, southern Thailand on June 4 (Photo: HANDOUT / ROYAL THAI NAVY / AFP)

In addition, 59 Muslims from Myanmar and Bangladesh were arrested on June 4 by Thai authorities on Khotaung Island in Sattun District, southern Thailand. The Thai authorities discovered that the Muslims had arrived in Malaysia after they were put off the boat. On June 7, Human Rights Watch (HRW) asked the Thai government to help them as refugees.

U Tin Hlaing, a Muslim from Sakkyen Pyin village in Sittwe Township, who works to prevent human trafficking, told RFA that there are also victims of human trafficking who try to leave for other countries.

"I made a video of the traffickers beating the children to see how pitiful some of the children are. And that's their mother, I sent it to my father. If you want your son to live, the remaining money to pay is 30,000,000. 50 20 10 Send the money, There are such types of typos. The parents are also in the refugee camp. There is no money to pay. If there is no more, what do they do? I sold the food production book. Finally, they have no place to stay. There will be no more food. Because their children don't die. We have seen such situations."

In the midst of these conditions, young Muslims are fleeing and leaving abroad.

RFA tried to contact the Rakhine Military Council regarding the situation of Muslims in Rakhine State, but they did not answer the phone.

In addition to this, RFA contacted General Zaw Min Tun, who is allowed to speak on the Military Council, to ask about this by phone several times from June 8th to 10th, but he has not yet received an answer.

"In the entire country of Myanmar, all other people have the right to travel by road, water, etc., but the Rohingyas do not even have the right to use ordinary land or water. "

Ko Ne San Lwin, the co-founder of the Rohingya Liberation Coalition, pointed out that these events are the consequence of the violation of Rohingya's basic rights in the region.

"If you can work and eat freely in your area, If it was peaceful, no one would be moving. In the whole of Myanmar, all other people use land, road, They have the right to travel by waterways, but the Rohingyas have the right to travel by land. They don't even have access to waterways. The right to work and eat in Rakhine, the homeland of the Rohingya. The fact that basic rights such as the right to move around are being prevented is a major violation of human rights."

In Rakhine State, since 2012, the war, forest Due to ethnic conflicts in townships such as Kyauk Phyu, many Muslims have fled to refugee camps.

In 2017, Buthidaung, More than 700,000 Muslims had to flee to Bangladesh due to the army's clearing of Maungdaw townships.