The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Tokyo, Japan:   The Burmese Rohingya Association in Japan (BRAJ) staged a demonstration as a part of “The Rohingya Global Day of Action” in front of Burmese embassy, Tokyo, Japan, on September 15, 2011, according to Mohamed Khan,Joint Information Coordinator, BRAJ. Rohingya and its well-wisher holding placards in front of Burmese Embassy in Tokyo   at “The Rohingya Global Day of Action” Demonstration in Japan “Rohingya in Japan and its well-wisher are demanding immediate withdrawal and cessation of anti-Rohingya propaganda and human rights violations by the Burmese civilianized military regime and restitution of Rohingya’s citizenship and ethnic rights in their homeland in Burma.” The Burmese Rohingya Association in Japan (BRAJ) organized ever biggest rally in Tokyo in response to the USDP Government’s racist statement in parliament of Burma against Rohingyas on the name of “The Rohingya Global Day of Action” “We are staging in the name of “The Rohingya Global Day of Action...

By BENEDICT ROGERS Published: 20 September 2011 Aung San Suu Kyi stands with Thein Sein after their meeting last month (Reuters) Two phrases have come to dominate conversations about Burma in recent weeks – “charm offensive” and “wait and see”. It is time to redefine the conversation. As far as the regime’s “charm offensive” is concerned, no one disputes that some things have changed in Burma. Six months ago, the military intelligence told me that there was “no change, no change,” as they threw me out of the country. However, now that assessment is no longer valid. The question we should ask is not whether there is change, but how much, how significant, how deep and how permanent it is? That Thein Sein invited Aung San Suu Kyi to Naypyidaw, allowed the meeting to be publicised, and that she has remarked on how positive their talks were is clearly a shift on the regime’s part. Whether it is merely a shift in style and tone, or a real shift in attitude, is unclear, but it is a cha...

News By Kaladan Press Akyab, Arakan State:   The Chief of the State Immigration and Population of Arakan State forced a female magistrate to imprison nine Rohingya including five men and four women in Akyab on September 8, said a leader from Akyab, denying to be named for security reason. “The five Rohingya were release from court on bail on September 6 by the female magistrate, but the Chief State Immigration and Population of Arakan State forced the magistrate to issue the arrest warrant for released Rohingya male on same day at 9:00pm as the female magistrate pressurized by the concerned authority from Nay Pyi Daw.” “The nine Rohingya including five men and 4 women, hail from Akyab, were sentenced to two and a half years in jail by a court of Akyab under the Article 188 of the penal code 6(2) and 6(3) on September 8, 2011, without having any chance to defend themselves through legal procedure.”  14 Rohingyas including 5 men, 4 women and 5 children were arrested at the ...

News by Kaladan Press Burma along with seven other countries named as “countries of particular concern” on the International Religious Freedom Report of the US Department of State released on August 13. The US Department of State documents major developments with respect to religious freedom in 198 countries and territories from July-December 2010. The Secretary of State designates as Countries of Particular Concern (CPCs) countries that have "engaged in or tolerated particularly severe violations of religious freedom." Secretary Clinton designated eight countries as CPCs: Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Uzbekistan. The Secretary applied CPC sanctions to six of these: Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, and Sudan. The Burmese government refuses to recognize that the Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic minority, are Burmese citizens,” the assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights, and labor, Michael Posner, told reporters after th...

News By Kaladan Press Teknaf Bangladesh: A refugee woman from Nayapa camp who gave birth to twin babies at Chittagong Medical Hospital on August 10 after operation who were missing or not known where about, said the mother of twin babies. “I do not know whereabouts my newborn babies, but, doctors said the twin babies were dead.” “Ambia Khatun (35), wife of Abdu Shukur, MRC # 2454, Nayapara camp of Cox’s Bazar district, Bangladesh, is the mother of twin and also mother of three children.”

Maungdaw, Arakan State: The authorities of Burma’s military backed civilian government has been giving soft-loan to the local villagers of Maungdaw Township since September 12, but in other hand, they forced people to buy mobile sets with huge money to extract money, according to a local elder from Maungdaw Town who denied to be named for security reason, said a local businessman from Maungdaw town. “The authorities of Maungdaw town went to the local villages and providing soft-loan to the villagers aiming to eliminate the poverty in the rural areas. But, the authority force the villagers to buy mobile sets each and every house with huge money. They offer villagers to pay Kyat 100,000 per set. In local market, it is very cheap to those of authority’s mobile sets.” “The local Nasaka (Burma’s border security officer) had already ordered to the villagers in Maungdaw Township to buy mobile sets if anyone is failed to buy it, he/.she will be punished. It makes poor villagers very difficult...

By Dr. Habib Siddiqui Part 1: The Rohingya Identity and Hatemongering by Rakhine Racists Khin Maung Saw’s article “Islamization of Burma through Chittagonian Bengalis as Rohingya Refugees” is a revisionist attempt by a deranged chauvinist Magh to rewrite the history of the Muslims of Arakan. Racism and bigotry are written all over the article. 1. Introduction In this post-9/11 era of hatemongering and Islamophobia, it is not difficult to understand his evil mindset that steered him to concoct such an absurd idea that the Rohingya Muslims are working towards Islamization of Myanmar (Burma). Forget about the fact that Burma is a military-ruled country with no democracy, how could a mere 2 to 3 million people impose the dictates of their faith on a nation of 50 million, especially when they are denied all basic rights – of movement, assembly, marriage, education, jobs, etc.? One has to be either mentally unstable or very high in mind-altering drugs to hallucinate such a ludicrous idea! A...