A letter from Muslim Rohingya

Muslims' daily life in Yangon, Myanmar (illustration)

Last Friday, six volunteers of Indonesian Red Cross (PMI) had a chance to visit the refugee camp in Kaung Dok Ja of Sittwe, Rakhine, the center of the conflict between ethnic Rohingya and Buddhist Rakhine, as reported by Muhammad Hafil from Republika.

The refugees, coming out from their tents, welcomed the team escorted by local securities. According to official data from Myanmar Red Cross Society (MRCS), the number of refugees living in Kaung Dok Ja is 1,363 people. They greeted PMI by saying "Assalamualaikum".

Any where the volunteers went, the refugees tailed them. Then one of the refugees asked a member of PMI whether they spoke in the similar language. The member said that they spoke in English.

The person then handed something to the member. It was a letter in English written in obsolete paper. The letter says, "It has been so long that we have not got any change. We are looking forward to getting our own freedom. Are not we human beings? Although the world is at peace, why are we full of stress? We are not refugees..."

It seems that community of Muslim Rohingya in Myanmar conducts many efforts to tell the world about their condition. They want to be heard. And one of them is delivering letter to foreign people visiting refugee camp in Rakhine. Would the world listen then?

Source here

Comments

Amnesty International's T. Kumar to Speak at the Islamic Society of North America's Convention

Amnesty International's T. Kumar to Speak at the Islamic Society of North America's Convention Advocacy Director T. Kumar to Speak on Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar (Burma) Contact: Carolyn Lang, clang@aiusa.org, 202-675-8759 /EINPresswire.com/ (Washington, D.C.) -- Amnesty International Advocacy Director T. Kumar will address the Islamic Society of North America's 49th Annual Convention "One Nation Under God: Striving for the Common Good," in regards to the minority community of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar (Burma) on Saturday, September 1, at 11:30 am at the Washington DC Convention Center.

American Buddhists Promote 969 Movement With Website

Irrawaddy News: July 9, 2013 A group of American Buddhists has launched an English-language website promoting the 969 movement, in response to negative media surrounding the ultra-nationalist Buddhist campaign in Burma. The website aims to dispel “myths” about the movement, with a letter from nationalist monk Wirathu to a Time magazine reporter whose article about 969 was banned in Burma. “We’re not officially endorsed by Ven Wirathu at this time but will send a delegation to his monastery soon,” a spokesperson for the site said via email, adding that the group would create a nonprofit to coordinate “969 activities worldwide in response to religious oppression.”

Rohingya Activist Nominated for Human Rights Award

PHR congratulates Zaw Min Htut, a Burmese Rohingya activist, on his nomination for the 2011 US State Department Human Rights Defenders Award . Zaw Min Htut has been working for Rohingyas’ rights through the Burmese Rohingya Association of Japan since he fled Burma in 1998. Prior to that he was a student activist in Burma, and was detained for his participation in protests in 1996. In Japan, Zaw Min Htut has organized protests at the Burmese embassy and has written books on the history of Rohingya.

The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Search This Blog