The Stateless Rohingya Blog

By Sarah Naeem Uddin  Centre Daily Times May 10, 2014 In many places in the world, little understanding, cooperation or compassion exists between faith groups. This month’s essay describes one of these places. Here in Centre County, Interfaith Initiative works “to foster compassion, charity and goodwill, and build a healthy interfaith community by promoting respect, understanding, cooperation and friendship among Centre County’s faith communities and their individual members.” Sarah Malone, IICC convener There are as many as 135 ethnic groups in Burma — the Kachin and Karen in the east and the Rohingya in the western state of Arakan, for example. Some of these groups face ethnic cleansing and persecution. The Rohingya, who compose only 4 percent of Burma’s population, are an ethnic Muslim minority from the state of Arakan in Burma, a predominantly Buddhist nation. The Rohingya are regarded by the United Nations as the most persecuted people in the world. Social exclu

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron greets the President of Myanmar Thein Sein in Downing Street, central London on July 15, 2013. By Mark Farmaner Huffington Post Director at Burma Campaign UK. It's a scenario used in endless Hollywood romantic comedies, and many of us will have had a friend in the same situation. Girl meets boy, or boy meets girl, falls hopelessly in love‎, but the friends say he/she isn't what they pretend to be, and don't approve. The friends get ignored, but their new love can't keep up the charade for ever, and their true nature starts to reveal itself. The girl/boy tries to convince themselves nothing is wrong, and put on a brave face to their friends, but deep inside, the doubts creep in. ‎This is pretty much the stage the British government has reached with President Thein Sein of Burma. Make no mistake, they are still doe-eyed, but deep inside, there are doubts, especially following events of the past four months. Pol