The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Arakan Army troops on parade in Laiza, Kachin State, in April 2014. (Photo: Moe Myint / The Irrawaddy) By Lawi Weng /The Irrawaddy January 8, 2015 RANGOON — A commander and “several” other members of the Burma Army have been killed in recent fighting with the Arakan Army in Kyauktaw Township, according to state-run media, which on Friday reported that the military intended to “remove” the ethnic armed group from Arakan State.

  By Ahmad Ibrahim The Daily Star June 08, 2014 The UNHCR estimates that at the moment there could be as many as 500,000 unregistered Rohingya refugees inside Bangladesh. This number is in excess to the 25,000 that are registered refugees and are living in two of the camps provided by the UNHCR. What it means is that half a million people are living on Bangladeshi soil without any legal rights or provisions. They exist like ghosts in the wind because the government of Bangladesh does not recognise their presence. The real problem, though, starts in Myanmar, where Thein Sein's military backed government fails to acknowledge their presence as well, often turning a blind eye to the massacre of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine and the crimes against humanity being committed on Myanmar land. On March 29, the Myanmar government banned the word 'Rohingya' and insisted that the Muslim community register as 'Bengalis.' Critics will point to the fact that it is a po...

By BD news24 ,  May 29, 2014 Bangladesh has summoned Myanmar’s ambassador in Dhaka to protest against the detention of a border guard by Burma’s border police. Nayek Md Mizanur Rahman of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) remained missing since Wednesday morning following “an indiscriminate firing by the Myanmar Border Guard Police”, the foreign ministry said. Dhaka has demanded his release and also “a thorough investigation” into the incident to prevent a repeat. Secretary (Bilateral) Mustafa Kamal handed over a “note verbale” to envoy Myo Myint Than on Thursday. He also protested against the indiscriminate firing along the border. The BGB member was patrolling along the Bangladesh-Myanmar international border with the team when he went missing amid indiscriminate firing. According to the foreign ministry, the Myanmar ambassador promised that the matter would be immediately conveyed to the Myanmar authorities. He also said “he would revert back to B...

By Legal Aid Network (LAN) Comment on the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement proposed by the Government of Burma/Myanmar Introduction Burma, also known as Myanmar, has been plagued by a complex civil war since the independence of the country in 1948. To bring this to an end, a dialogue process between the ruling regime led by President Thein Sein and the ethnic armed groups (hereafter ‘EAOs’) has been taking place for about three years now since it commenced in 2011. On November 2, 2013, a conference was held in Laiza, the headquarters of the Kachin Independence Organization (‘KIO’), in Kachin State, with the participation of almost all the major EAOs. There, the ethnic leaders reached a common agreement for, inter alia, the establishment of a federal union coupled with a federal army, as a crucial part of a new political framework. To read full report, please click here

By Reuters May 15, 2014 WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama extended some economic sanctions against Myanmar for another year on Thursday, telling Congress the step is needed despite some progress on reforms made by the country formerly known as Burma. Obama notified leaders of Congress in a letter that he was renewing for another year the National Emergencies Act, which prohibits U.S. businesses and individuals from investing in Myanmar or doing business with Myanmar figures involved in repression of the democracy movement since the mid-1990s. Obama, who visited Myanmar in 2012, said the Myanmar government had made much advances in critical areas such as the release of more than 1,100 political prisoners, progress toward a nationwide ceasefire, the legalization of unions and taking steps to improve the country’s labour standards. However, he said, “Despite great strides that Burma has made in its reform effort, the situation in the country continues to pose an...

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...

By Sajidul Haque bdnews24 May 08, 2014 Unregistered Rohingya refugees scattered across the Cox’s Bazar district are apprehensive of the government’s efforts to put them on a list. They are worried that the listing process might just be the beginning of a push-back programme. Many Rohingyas are leaving Cox’s Bazar to take shelter elsewhere in Bangladesh. Some are returning to Myanmar to try and get listed in the latest census. The foreign ministry is saying further actions will be determined after the listing process ends. The cabinet on Sep 9 last year approved a national strategy paper on Myanmar refugees and illegal immigrants. The listing is part of that strategy paper. Different state agencies have started working to this end. Md Rahimullah, a resident of the unregistered Rohingya camp in Teknaf’s Shamlapur, told bdnews24.com: “People in registered camps get some benefits. We don’t get those. If the government sends us back after this enlist...

By Taylor O'Connor  New Mandala April 29, 2014 Image: Logo of local interfaith initiative, Coexist Myanmar Violence has raged on in Myanmar’s Rakhine State for nearly two years now. As security forces continue to be implicated in acts of violence targeting Muslims and known instigators of violence operate freely, it becomes increasingly clear that the Myanmar’s political leaders have no interest to resolve the conflict. While humanitarian agencies in Rakhine State come under attack by the communities in which they live, international praise and increased investment allow the government to neglect addressing conflict related issues. Members of the international community involved in Myanmar must have deep awareness of the context and knowledge of a number of interrelated issues if they are to avoid further aggravation of the conflict. Mindful planning and coordinated action would ease tensions and support resolution of key issues. This article will describe the ...