A protestor demonstrates near Shwedagon pagoda in Rangoon on 15
October 2012. (DVB)
By Aye Nai
Two locals from the Arakan capital Sittwe have been sentenced to
three months in jail for staging an unauthorised protest against a Turkish
government-backed plan to build housing for displaced Rohingyas.
“We learnt that Nyo Aye and Kyaw Soe were each sentenced to three
months in prison by the court around noon today [Tuesday],” said Khine Pray
Soe, general secretary of the Rakhine Nationalities Development, adding that
they had repeatedly requested permission to stage a protest from the
authorities.
“They sought permission with local authorities to demand that [the
government] only build houses for those who are verified as citizens under the
1982 Citizenship Law,” said Khine Pray Soe, referring to the legislation which
renders most Muslim Rohingyas stateless.
It followed reports in March that the Turkish government had
offered to help build 5,000 houses for Rohingya Muslims, who bore the brunt of
two bouts of ethno-religious clashes with Arakanese Buddhists in 2012. Hundreds
of Arakanese protested the move, which they said would provide permanent
settlements for the Rohingya – who they view as illegal Bengali immigrants and
want expelled from the state.
The government subsequently backed down and rejected the housing
plan, with a government spokesperson accusing non-displaced Rohingyas of
“sneaking” into camps at night in order to obtain housing assistance from
Turkey.
But 22 Arakanese locals from Sittwe, Kyaukphyu and Buthidaung
townships were later charged underArticle 18 of the Peaceful Assembly and
Peaceful Procession Law for their role in leading the protests.
International aid groups and foreign governments have been treated
with suspicion by many Arakanese Buddhists, who believe they are biased in
favour of the Rohingya, and have openly blocked the delivery of lifesaving aid
to the Muslim minority.
The Turkish government has been seen as particularly controversial
due to its links with the Organization for Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which
sparked nationwide protests last year after it offered to set up a humanitarian
liaison office in Sittwe.
UN agencies also faced a furious backlash over plans to relocate
Rohingya ahead of the rainy season, even though thousands of fragile
settlements were at risk of being swept away by the tides.
Some 150,000 people, mostly Muslim Rohingyas, were displaced
during two bouts of sectarian riots in Arakan state last year, which exposed
deep-rooted fissures in the restive state.
The 800,000 Rohingya Muslims, who have been described as one of
the world’s most persecuted minorities by the UN, were stripped of citizenship
by the former military junta and are denied basic rights, including freedom to
travel, marry and access education.
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