Skip to main content

Myanmar panel urges more troops in Rakhine


April 29, 2013

Commission on deadly sectarian violence last year in western state also suggests limiting births of Rohingya Muslims.

A government-appointed commission has proposed to double the number of security forces in western Myanmar's Rakhine state to ease tensions there in the wake of deadly sectarian violence last year.

The report, released on Monday, also recommended the introduction of family planning programmes to stem population growth among minority Muslims, cited as a reason for increased hostility from Rakhine Buddhists in the area.

It emphasised, however, that if the government went ahead with a proposed family planning programme, it should "refrain from implementing non-voluntary measures which may be seen as discriminatory or that would be inconsistent with human rights standards".

The long-awaited report contained responses to the violence last June and October that killed nearly 200 people and left 140,000 homeless, mostly Rohingya Muslims in an area dominated by ethnic Buddhists.

The committee said it was unlikely the estimated 100,000 displaced Rohingya Muslims would be returned to their homes anytime soon, saying the widespread segregation of Buddhists and Muslims is a temporary fix that must be enforced for now.

The violence appeared to begin spontaneously, but by October had morphed into anti-Muslim pogroms across western Rakhine state that spread last month into central Myanmar.

'Ethnic cleansing'

President Thein Sein appointed the 27-member panel last year to investigate the causes of the conflict and recommend measures to prevent further violence.

The panel included former political prisoners, Christians, a Hindu, Muslims, and Rakhine Buddhists, but did not include any Rohingya Muslims.

Overcrowding, poor sanitation and malnutrition were said to be of critical concern particularly in camps for Rohingya whom the report referred to as "Bengalis", a reference to their reported South Asian roots.

Shwe Maung, a Rohingya member of parliament from Rakhine state, objected to the commission's terminology, saying that the word "Bengali" fails to reflect reality and people's sense of their own identity.

"The report is unfair," he said. "The usage and recommendations are similar to what Rakhine ethnic people have been demanding."

The report also calls for all ethnic groups to learn the Myanmar language.

Phil Robertson, the Human Rights Watch deputy Asia director, welcomed calls for more aid for the camps, but said the official report should have addressed allegations of authorities' involvement in ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.

"Doubling the number of security forces in [Rakhine] state without first ensuring implementation of reforms to end those forces' impunity is a potential disaster," he said.

Robertson said family planning initiatives could be problematic if they are not implemented carefully.

"It's quite chilling to start talking about limiting births of one particular group," he said.

Hate speech

The report also called for a crackdown on hate speech and stepped-up aid for the displaced ahead of monsoon rains expected in May, and urged the government to determine the citizenship status of all those living in Rakhine state.

The issue has posed a major challenge to the government of Thein Sein, who took office after a long-ruling military junta stepped down two years ago and has since embarked upon a series of reforms.

Most Rohingya are effectively stateless despite the fact that some have lived in Myanmar for generations. Predominantly Buddhist Myanmar does not include Rohingya as one of its 135 recognised ethnicities.

Last week, Human Rights Watch issued the most comprehensive and detailed account yet of what happened in Rakhine state last year.

The report accused authorities, including Buddhist monks, local politicians and government officials, and state security forces, of fomenting an organised campaign of "ethnic cleansing'' against the Rohingya.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Rohingya MP U Shwe Maung undergoes questioning

Rohingya MP U Shwe Maung By Kayleigh Long Myanmar Times February 07, 2014 Union Solidarity and Development Party MP U Shwe Maung has been questioned by police in Nay Pyi Taw over comments he made to Democratic Voice of Burma about possible police involvement in a fire that broke out in a Muslim village in Rakhine State late last month. More than a dozen homes were destroyed in the blaze at Du Chee Yar Tan West village near Maungdaw in northern Rakhine State on January 28. U Shwe Maung said the February 4 interrogation came at the behest of President U Thein Sein, who sent a letter to Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Speaker Thura U Shwe Mann requesting permission for police question the MP. The interview lasted about 90 minutes and was conducted at his USDP living quarters in Nay Pyi Taw. It focused on allegations that U Shwe Maung, a Rohingya, had defamed the state and police by saying that residents believed security forces were involved in starting the fire. ...

ERC representatives and Dr.Maung Zarni partook a seminar in Sweden

ERC Delegation Meet Dr. Zarni Mohamed Farooq ( Mayu Press) May 7, 2013 The Stockholm University of Sweden held a seminar on “Forum for Asian Studies” at William Olsson Hall, the department of geological science on 3rd May 2013. It depicts Rohingya tragedy and Human Right Eradication in western Burma. Burma (Myanmar) is a nation with ambition to make their name and discharge their White Man’s Burden, one of the world’s hottest assignments in the world of diplomats, development consultants, NGO experts and academic researchers, a lucrative ‘frontier’ market for investors, venture capitalists and multinationals, a must-go for both citizen-tourists and global luminaries. This lecture will critically discuss the rose-tinted view of reforms in Burma against the troubling realties as lived by the people of that country, including full-scale Rohingya genocide of 40 years, the 60-years of Burmese army’s un-ending internal colonial wars against the Christian Kachins, the Kare...

রোহিঙ্গা শরণার্থীদের কোনো ভবিষ্যৎ নেই

বাংলাদেশের আশ্রয়শিবিরে বসবাসকারী রোহিঙ্গা শরণার্থীদের কোনোই ভবিষ্যৎ নেই বলে মন্তব্য করেছেন রোহিঙ্গা বিষয়ক আইনজীবী রাজিয়া সুলতানা। তিনি এই আশ্রয়শিবিরকে চিড়িয়াখানার সঙ্গে তুলনা করেছেন এবং রোহিঙ্গাদের ফেরত পাঠানোর জন্য একটি উপযুক্ত কৌশল নির্ধারণের আহ্বান জানিয়েছেন। কয়েকদিন আগে যুক্তরাষ্ট্রের পররাষ্ট্র মন্ত্রণালয়ের ইন্টারন্যাশনাল ওমেন অব কারেজ এওয়ার্ড (আইডব্লিউসিএ) পুরস্কার পান রাজিয়া সুলতানা। সাহসিকতা দেখানোর জন্য সারা বিশ্ব থেকে বাছাই করা ১০ জন নারীকে এ পুরস্কার দেয়া হয়।  রাজিয়া সুলতানার একটি সাক্ষাৎকার নিয়েছে বার্তা সংস্থা রয়টার্স। তাতে তিনি রোহিঙ্গাদের পরিণতি নিয়ে হতাশা প্রকাশ করেন। রাজিয়া সুলতানা বলেন, মিয়ানমারের মুসলিম সংখ্যালঘু সম্প্রদায়ের রোহিঙ্গা শরণার্থীদের মধ্যে আশার অভাব রয়েছে। ২০১৭ সালের আগস্টে মিয়ানমারের সেনাবাহিনীর নৃশংস নির্যাতনের ফলে তারা পালিয়ে এসে বাংলাদেশে আশ্রয় নিতে বাধ্য হয়। রাজিয়া সুলতানা বলেন, এই আশ্রয় শিবিরে যত বেশি সময় শরণার্থীরা থাকবেন ততই পরিস্থিতির অবনতি ঘটতে থাকবে। ওই সাক্ষাৎকারে তিনি আরো বলেন, হ্যাঁ, এ কথা সত্য যে, শরণার্থীরা খাবার পাচ্ছে। কিন...