The Stateless Rohingya Blog

News Stories © UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner Erika Feller and Aung San Suu Kyi. GENEVA, December 13 (UNHCR) – Erika Feller, the UN refugee agency's most senior protection official, recently paid a significant visit to Myanmar, where UNHCR has operations in Rakhine state in the west, and in the south-east of the country, where displacement along the Mynamar-Thai border is an issue. UNHCR estimates that northern Rakhine state hosts some 750,000 Muslim residents without citizenship. Independent observers have noticed important openings for humanitarian operations in Myanmar since the forming of a new government late last year. For the Assistant High Commissioner, this was reflected in more open and productive meetings with ministers and other senior officials and the permission given her to meet opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Feller spoke to UNHCR public information officers Babar Baloch and Leo Dobbs about her trip: Excerpts from the interview: Why did you go to Myanmar at ...

Teknaf, Bangladesh: The female Rohingya communities from northern Arakan who travel for medical treatment, are facing more difficult in Bangladesh than Burma, said a female patient from Maungdaw. “We are checking whole body including female private area by Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) female staff while entering to Bangladesh entry point (Teknaf Land port) and Dum Dum Meah check post, for searching drug (Yaba) which come from Burma to Bangladesh).”

Maungdaw, Arakan State: The authorities – Burmese border security force (Nasaka) and village administration officer - are looting paddy from Rohingya community from Nasaka area number 6, since December 10, said a school teacher from Maungdaw. “The Nasaka personnel with Kawlim Ullah – the village administration officer of Kyaukpyinsek (Nari Bil)- went to the village where they (Nasaka and village officer) forcefully enter Rohingya home and took the paddy from granary without informing the owner.”

By Kaladan Press Teknaf, Bangladesh: A two-member Australian delegation led by Australian High Commissioner of Bangladesh Dr Justin Lee visited the Nayapara official refugee camp on December 8, at about 11:00 am, said a refugee leader on condition of anonymity. “The delegation observed the whole camp including schools and cottage industry of soap center and also met with refugees and refugee teachers in the camp after arrival at camp. The delegation more wanted to know about the opinion of refugees whether the refugee want to go home or not after Bangladesh PM’s visit to Burma.” “We are not willing to go back until we are not accorded citizenship rights with ethnicity,” a refugee teacher said. “We more wanted to return our confiscated lands, to stop human rights violations and racial discrimination, to get compensation of our properties, to withdraw army and Nasaka from northern Arakan , to withdraw Natala (model) villages from northern Arakan and to ensure rights as par other nationa...

We at BROUK strongly condemn the sentencing of 63 innocent Rohingya boat people to one and a half years each by a Burmese court, under immigration law, after their boat ended up on the shores of southern Burma. According to our reliable source they were left stranded at sea by their agent 16 kilometers from the coastal town of Kawthaung in Tennasserim division.

By UPI.com YANGON, Myanmar, Dec. 9 (UPI) -- Bangladesh will be the first country to move its embassy from Yangon to the new city and capital Naypyitaw, Myanmar's official newspaper said. Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, on an official three-day visit to Myanmar, formerly called Burma, unveiled the foundation stone at the site chosen for the construction of the embassy, the New Light of Myanmar reported. The country's junta pronounced Naypyitaw, around 200 miles north of Yangon, as the capital in November 2005, although the site wasn't given an official name until March 2006. The planned inner city with its wide, and mostly empty boulevards, is still being constructed and is home to many of the former ruling military leaders. The surrounding countryside and its towns and villages that make up Naypyitaw have a population of around just less than 1 million, a 2009 report said. In August, Russian media announced that a Russian firm had won a contract to construct 30...

New Delhi ( Mizzima ) – Refugees living in the Nayapara and Kutupalong refugee camps and the huge number of undocumented Burmese nationals living in Bangladesh should be returned quickly, according to a joint statement by Burma and Bangladesh. The Kutupalong Rohingya refugee camp in Teknaf, Cox’s bazar. There are 30,000 un-registered Rohingya refugees living in the camp. Photo: Bayazid Akter