The Stateless Rohingya Blog

By DVB And REUTERS February 20, 2014 The human rights situation in Burma has improved, UN envoy Tomás Ojea Quintana said at Yangon Airport on Wednesday, speaking at a press conference that concluded a six-day visit to the country and also marked the end of his six-year mandate as the UN’s Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in the country. However, the Argentine diplomat criticised the Burmese government’s handling of the Rohingya crisis in Arakan State and said he has serious concerns over the impartiality of a government investigation into an alleged massacre of 48 Muslims in the village of Duchira Dan in Muangdaw Township between 9 and 13 January. Quintana noted that Burma had made strides in releasing prisoners of conscience, opening space for freedom of expression, the development of political freedom, and “important progress” in bringing an end to conflict with ethnic armed groups. But he called for a “change of mindset” within all levels of government to

 Rohingya refugees in Thailand are either deported or sent to other countries offering them asylum [Reuters] By Oman Tribune February 20, 2014  The news that Thailand has sent back 1,350 Rohingya Muslim refugees to Myanmar is shocking. They were among the 2,000 who braved the choppy seas to escape persecution to what they thought was the safety of Thailand. Their hopes have now been belied. This is happening at a time when all right-thinking people everywhere, fighting for the rights of those deprived of freedom and a life of self-respect and dignity, are calling for ways to end the suffering of the Rohingyas. The United Nations has described them as being among the world’s most persecuted people. There is no doubt that the Rohingyas have suffered a lot. Though living in Myanmar for more than a century, they have not been given citizenship. In every respect, they have been treated as second class citizens. In the mid-1990s, thousands of them fled persecution to Bangla