The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Rohingya women are pictured at the Thae Chaung camp for internally displaced people in Sittwe, Arakan State, on April 22, 2014. (Photo: Reuters) By Lawi Weng The Irrawaddy August 22, 2014 RANGOON — Buddhist Arakanese leaders are considering a proposal that would see Rohingya Muslims without documentation proving their right to citizenship detained in camps. The plan will be discussed publicly in the Arakan State capital, Sittwe, in the coming days, said Than Tun, an Arakanese leader and a member of the state’s Emergency Coordination Committee, and comes as a citizenship verification project is restarted for Muslims in Arakan State. Clashes between ethnic Arakanese and Rohingya broke out in mid-2012 and about 140,000 people, mostly Muslims, still live in temporary camps after fleeing their homes. Arakanese Buddhists see the Rohingya, who are not a recognized ethnic group under Burmese law, as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and refer to them as Bengalis. T

Rohingya boat people (mostly men) arrive on Phuket in January of this year. Photo: (EPA, Yongyot Pruksarak) By UNHCR August 22, 2014 This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 22 August 2014, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva. A new UNHCR report on irregular maritime movements in South East Asia estimates that 20,000 people risked their lives in sea crossings in the first half of this year. Many were Rohingya who fled Myanmar and arrived in the region suffering the effects of malnutrition and abuse during the journey. Several hundred people were also intercepted on boats heading to Australia. The report has been produced by a newly-established Maritime Movements Monitoring Unit at UNHCR's Regional Office in Bangkok which collates information through direct interviews, and from media reports, partners and governments. It focuses on departures from the Bay of Bengal and elsewhere pas