The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Kaladan Press: June 2, 2013 Chittagong, Bangladesh: The ministry of foreign affairs, under the direction of the government, already prepared a draft strategy paper on the Rohingya issue, putting forward a total of 25 proposals and sent the strategy paper to the relevant ministries for their opinion, foreign secretary (in-charge) Shahidul Haque told the reporters on May 24. “We are preparing the strategic paper at our own efforts on how to handle the Rohingya refugees and illegal intruders coming from Myanmar.” The foreign secretary more added, “We are waiting for feedback from the ministers concerned on the draft. After getting their views we will finalize it for our next course of actions.” A draft of the paper now awaits review by the inter-ministerial coordination body, prior to its approval by the cabinet soon. Replying to a question; Mr. Haque said the refugee issue will be discussed during the second, two-day Bangladesh-United States partnership dialogue, beg

By Jared Ferrie Christian Science Monitor: June 2, 2013 Ethnic Rohingya in Myanmar who are being held in squalid camps and even beaten have been told there's one way out: identify themselves as Bengali. It was just after 3 a.m. when the police kicked in Zia Ul Haq's door, then handcuffed and dragged him to the nearby railway tracks. Then the beatings began. Police with batons struck him and nine other Rohingya Muslims in handcuffs on the head and back, says Zia Ul Haq and three witnesses, some of whom also claim to have been beaten. "If you say you are Rohingya we will beat you," the officer told him. "You have to say you are a Bengali." To do so would be to deny what Zia Ul Haq and hundreds of thousands of other Muslims in westernMyanmar’s Rakhine State consider to be their ethnic identity. Instead of "Rohingya," the government and state authorities refer to them as "Bengali," a term suggesting they are i

By Dr. Habib Siddiqui Long time ago I learned never to say ‘never again’ when it comes to Myanmar’s savagery. The latest mayhem against the Muslims in the Shan state, far away from the western Rakhine state – bordering Bangladesh, once again shows that for this religious minority Myanmar is proving to be hell on earth. Seemingly, there is no conscientious Buddhist living inside this den of hatred and intolerance that is bold enough to challenge this status quo. Daw Suu Kyi, once darling of the West, has long shown her despicable hypocrisy when she tried to ignore the monumental crimes of her Buddhist people and the government against the Rohingyas of Myanmar, considered the worst persecuted people on earth.  For years the Rohingya people living in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine, formerly known as Arakan, have been subjected to ethnic cleansing practices, and denied every right enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Now that racial hatred and religiou

Scoop.co.nz  June 1, 2013 Press Release: United Nations Human Rights Commissioner Myanmar: UN expert urges Government to act on local regulations targeting Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine State GENEVA (31 May 2013) – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea Quintana, today said that the Government must respond unambiguously to the revival of a local order limiting the number of children that Rohingya Muslims can have to two. Contraventions can result in fines and prison sentences under section 188 of the Myanmar Penal Code. “This local order in the Northern Rakhine State townships of Buthidaung and Maungdaw is a clear-cut human rights violation targeting a particular ethnic and religious group,” Mr. Ojea Quintana said. “The Central Government must provide an unequivocal response.” The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, which Myanmar has ratified together with the Convention on

( Note  He Opted To Be Photographed Looking Down Upon His Audience ) Alders Ledge: June 1 2013 The Joseph Goebbels of Myanmar   ( The Darkness Visible  series) Joseph Goebbels portrayed my ancestors as rats in his infamous propagandist films. His news reels showed Jews as animals or portrayed us as a plague. This allowed Goebbels to make the quick leap from a disease to the supposed cure. That was why we were the rats, so that he could show Europe it was acceptable to exterminate us. Such is the power of repetitive and persistent propaganda. Through a position of power and influence the insanity of a few can become the reality of many. The "venerable", or maniacal, Wirathu has become to the 969 movement in Myanmar what Goebbels was to the Nazis. Much like the Nazis in Europe, 969 under the guidance of Wirathu has forced boycotts of Muslim shops and merchants along with an unofficial (yet forced) ban upon intermarriage between Buddhists and Muslims. Wir