The Stateless Rohingya Blog

'DEEPLY TROUBLED.' UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon expresses concern about Myanmar's Rohingya Muslims, whom the government excluded from a census. Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images/AFP By  Ayee Macaraig Rappler September 27, 2014 Ban Ki-Moon says Myanmar must address the underlying causes of conflict between Buddhists and Muslims or its reform process will suffer UNITED NATIONS  – The head of the United Nations called on Myanmar to address the exclusion of Rohingya Muslims from a controversial census, warning that its much-vaunted reform process will suffer if root causes remain unresolved. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon commented on  Myanmar’s first census in 30 years , widely criticized for  excluding people who identified themselves as “Rohingya,”  a religious minority in the Buddhist-majority nation. “For the first time in decades, Myanmar will have data to help address key social indicators. However, some segments of the ...

By AP August 30, 2014 Figures extrapolated from last census in 1983 estimated population at 60 million, but new count finds only 51.4 million. Some isolated parts of northern Kachin state controlled by ethnic rebels were not counted [EPA] Myanmar has discovered it has only 51 million people - far less than the previously estimated 60 million, according to preliminary results of the latest census. State-run television, which announced the initial findings of the country's first census in three decades on Friday, said complete results would be released next year. The census, conducted from March 30 to April 10 with help from the UN Population Fund, counted 51.42 million people. The previous estimate of 60 million was based on extrapolations from the last census, conducted in 1983. The tally went smoothly, except in some areas of the western state of Rakhine where an estimated 800,000 members of a long-persecuted Muslim minority were denied the right t...

A volunteer collects census data in Arakan State. (Photo: Reuters) By Yen Snaing  Irrawaddy News August 18, 2014 RANGOON — Burma’s first nationwide census in three decades was conducted successfully and in line with international standards across the country, with the exception of Arakan State, according to a team of independent observers. A team of 46 national and international monitors witnessed how the census was conducted between March 30 and April 10 in all 15 of Burma’s states and divisions. The Independent Observation Mission witnessed a total of 2,193 interviews in 901 different enumeration areas in 121 townships, according to a statement dated Aug. 14. “The Mission described the Myanmar Census as successful on the whole and in line with international standards, except in Rakhine [Arakan], where almost all communities that wanted to self-identify as ‘Rohingya’ (who the Government call Bengali) were not counted,” said the statement distributed by the...

Myanmar Vice President Nyan Tun (3rd L-standing) visits during a census taking at the village of Barasa in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine on March 30, 2014   By KPN News July 06, 2014   Maungdaw, Arakan State:   Deputy Director General (DDG)of Border Guard police (BGP) of Burma held a meeting at its headquarters, inviting religious and local elders from neighboring villages of police area No. 6 of Maungdaw north yesterday  for discussion about census, said  Moktar Ahmed, a participant of the meeting. In the meeting, the DDG of BGP said, “Now, we are processing only population lists, not census.  In future rebellion groups will penetrate Maungdaw, so it is very important to check the population lists and also need to deduct the death lists and to register the new born babies.”   According to a participant of the meeting, the BGP Deputy Director General asked the participants of the meeting to organize all the villagers to parti...

By KPN News April 27, 2014 Maungdaw, Arakan State : The Rohingya from Maungdaw district –Maungdaw and Buthidaung – opposed the proposal which U Myit Kyine, head of the Immigration and Population Department, while his first visited these areas to register as Bengali or to keep the column blank, today at 4:00 pm, said Halim , a Human Rights Watchdog said. U Myit Kyine, called some Rohingya elders including ruling party MP from Maungdaw at Maungdaw Township Administration office’s hall today to discuss about the update process of census which he had proposed last visit. But, Aung Myo Min alias Jangir, on behalf of Rohingya community from Maundaw, said that all Rohingya will register in census as Rohingya as race and didn’t accept the Bengali and to keep blank, Halim said. The Rohingya from Maungdaw didn’t accept the Bengali as the government exposed in the country that Bengali mean illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh and it is not ours, said Jangir in the meeti...

Myanmar polices walk along with census enumerators as they collect information at Thae Chaung village in Sittwe, Rakhine State, western Myanmar, Tuesday, April 01, 2014. — AP photo By Muhammad Zamir Financial Express BGD April 14, 2014 As Myanmar continues its efforts to roll back half-a-century of totalitarianism and usher in a comprehensive democratic process, controversy has found a new niche within its public realm. The latest nationwide census undertaken throughout Myanmar was initiated on an upbeat note. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) came forward to help the Myanmar government complete the much needed task. Frederick Okwayo, a census adviser, explained to the media that there was need for completion of the coding list of the 135 ethnic groups who are supposed to constitute the population of Myanmar. As indicated by Okwayo, such a census of the population was imperative 'for any planning - be it planning for basic education, planning for health ...

Enumerators collect census data in Myitkyina, the capital of Kachin state, in April 2014. (Photo: RFA) By Radio Free Asia  April 10, 2014 Myanmar's first census in three decades, which was scheduled to end Thursday, has been extended to at least the end of the month to cover those who could not participate in the 12-day natio nwide exercise, a senior official said.  The exercise, which began on March 30, had covered about 10 million of the country’s estimated 11 million households as of Tuesday, according to Myanmar's Director of the Population Department Khaing Khaing Soe.  Those who could not meet census takers during the exercise would have to provide their personal data to administrative offices closest to them or to a hotline that had been set up until the end of the month, she said.  "They have to go and provide their data to the closest local administration office. We have already informed village and township census committees about...

AP Photo By Bill O’Toole   Myanmar Times April 07, 2014 Criticism of Myanmar’s census hit fever pitch last week when residents of Rakhine State were not allowed to self-identify according to their wishes, with even the United Nations appearing to turn on the government for its apparent back-flip. But experts say the census was “doomed from the start”, and that donors and the UN had more than enough warning of the likely problems but did little to act on them. In particular, a risk assessment commissioned by donors “clearly warned” of many of the problems facing the program now, including flawed data and the inflaming of ethnic tensions, a person familiar with the report told The Myanmar Times. The report was never released publicly and UNFPA did not respond to requests for information about its conclusions last week. But there were many more public warnings about the census’ likely impact. “Many individuals and organisations, both domestic and inter...

Monday, April 7, 2014 R visiontv.com 1- Sittwe (Akyab) Township, Arakan State - Starting at 8AM on 5 th  April 2014, a group of 200 Police Force, 100 Military, 250 Census Enumerators, immigration officials and other respective authorities visited the villages of Ala-Sin (Alsang), Nga-Point-Gyi (Nappong), Nga-Point-Shay (Mush Khylla Fara) and Doon-Pyin-south (Shabok) one village after another. They just inquired of the villagers of their ethnicity. As people replied ‘Rohingya,’ the group left the respective villages without carrying out the census. In Doon-Pyin-North, they encountered a Kaman family and the cenus team completed all of the 41 questions and census enumeration itself.  (Saed Arkani Report) ………………………………………………………………. - Starting at 8AM on 6 th  April 2014, a crew of 250 census enumerators, 250 Police Personnel, 150 Military, Immigration officials and...

ERC Press Release on Burma Census 2014 & its Major Donors  Date: 04th April 2014  ERC Urged to UNFPA, DFID to immediately retrieve its Funds & to prosecute the Burmese regime and its accom genocidal policies against Rohingya on Burma Census 2014. The Burmese successive regime with several disguises have been perpetrating crimes against Rohingya or humanity across the country in particular western Burma, the most populous areas of Rohingya.  After the bloodshed that was triggered against Rohingya by state-backed bloodthirsty Buddhists—state designated united armed forces comprised of army and police and paramilitary, radical monks from anti-  Muslim movement 969, ultranationalists, self-centered politicians, and thugs—midst June 2012, the bloodthirsty face of Burmese genocidal quasi-civilian regime led by president Thein Sein notoriously became familiar with international community.  Day by day, the most unimaginable genocidal s...