The Stateless Rohingya Blog

Groups Burmese received with hostility to the UN Special Rapporteur Press TV August 13, 2013 The United Nations has urged the Myanmar government to hold talks with Rohingya Muslims to avoid further violence in the west of the country. United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) spokesman Adrian Edwards made the remarks at a press conference in Geneva on Tuesday. "UNHCR is reiterating its call for peaceful dialogue and confidence-building between the (internally displaced persons) and government. We believe this is key to avoiding further violence," Edwards said. Meanwhile, UN's human rights envoy for Myanmar Tomas Ojea Quintana was visiting Rakhine state, where violence killed one and injured ten others last week. Rohingya Muslims have faced torture, neglect, and repression in Myanmar for many years. Hundreds of Rohingyas are believed to have been killed and thousands displaced in recent attacks by extremists who call themselves Buddhists. ...

Refugees International's team meeting with Kyaw Hla Aung, left. By Sushetha Gopallawa Refugees International August 13, 2013   During my recent visit to Myanmar, I met with human rights activist Kyaw Hla Aung in a Rohingya village in Sittwe Township, Rakhine State. We talked about his peaceful political activism, his public service, and his humanitarian work. But mostly we talked about how he and other village elders and leaders feared for their lives.    Two days before the meeting, a government-sponsored verification process in the nearby Rohingya displacement camps had increased communal tensions. Fearing the exercise was aimed at undermining their claims to citizenship, the Rohingya community refused to participate. The ensuing protests by Rohingya, though small in size, forced the government to abandon the verification process and sparked a wave of arrests of Rohingya activists.    Kyaw Hla Aung told us that he was not present in the ...

Burmese Rohingya Association in Queensland-Australia(BRAQA) Hosted the EID FESTIVAL on Sunday evening 11 August 2013 at Multipurpose Hall of Australian International Islamic College in Durack, Brisbane, Australia.  About 420 local and Rohingya people and More than a dozen representatives from different government and non government organizations attended the event including Rolling party Senator Claire Moore, Mr Yousub President of ICQ, Mr Yusob khatree President of MCF, Sergeant Jim Bellos (police department), Jenny foodwin MDA, Mr Khan educational adviser AIIC and Representatives from QPASTT, Mercy Family Care and many others.  Senator Claire Moore wished a wonderful EID MUBARAK to all and thanked the BRAQA for all the work it has done for the community specially for bringing people together in occasion like today. “We heard and we know that the trouble happening in your home land our prays are with you all. Welcome you with the values of our co...

KPN News August 12, 2013 Maungdaw, Arakan State:  The Buthidaung jail authority had shifted Rohingya prisoners to different places – police custodies – of Maungdaw and Buthidaung today, according to an official who didn’t want to mention his name. “The jail authority had ordered from high officials to shift Rohingya prisoners who are educated, smart persons and can able to complain about human rights violations to the United Nations Special Rapporteur Tomás Ojea Quintana who will visit  Arakan (Rakhine) State, Kachin State, Shan State, Chin State and Meikhtila in Mandalay Region of Burma during August 11 -21.” The Burmese government is trying to hide the violations on Rohingya community and try to hide 32 Rohingya prisoners from jail to Maungdaw police custody and 30 Rohingya prisoners to Buthidaung police custody today where the custodies are full of detainees, said a Rohingya elder from Maungdaw. “In Buthidaung jail, more than 1000 Rohingya prisoner...

MS Anwar R visiontv News  Opinion Editorial  August 12, 2013 UN Special Rapportuer on Human Rights to Myanmar, Mr. Tomas Ojea Quintana, arrived in Sittway (Akyab), Arakan, this (on 12 th August 2013) early morning. However, he was unable to proceed to Rohingya IDP camps due to protests by Rakhine extremists and blockage by government’s security forces.   This afternoon, around 12:00 noon, he arrived in Buthidaung. Then, he went to visit Buthidaung prison. Hundreds of Rohingyas were arrested arbitrarily and under false accusations of involving in the violence last year. They have been, without any legal charges against them, infinitely detained under extremely catastrophic condition in the prison. However, prior to the visit by Mr. Quintana, the authority had made Rohingya prisoners in the prison into many groups. And they were shifted, in separated groups, to many parts of Maung Daw and Buthidaung. Some of the places where Rohingya prisoners had bee...

Kutupalong, Ukhiya : A 60 years old Rohingya refugee tenant was killed at his landlord house a day after the glorious Islamic month, Ramadan. Haji Nur Ahamed, son of late Ali Miya was a Rohingya living in E2 block of unregistered refugee camp just in front of MSF (Médecins Sans Frontiéres). He rented a small open space from a 45 years old local Bengali named Jagir Ahamed who is known as “robber Jagir”. Jagir has been committing crimes against the defenceless, supportless, stateless and voiceless unregistered Rohingya refugees for many years. In the early morning of 10th August, Haji Nur was invited to Jagir’s house to discuss about the rent, but the discussion became the case of murder. Haji Nur was inhumanely murdered by Jagir and his sons when he denied receiving money from his relative in Saudi Arabia. Haji Nur was a family man who was the sole supporter of his family by collecting and selling firewood. There has been high tension between the tenant and the land...

By Bill O'Toole  Myanmar Times   August 11, 2013 Lawyer and activist U Kyaw Hla Aung is due to appear in a Rakhine State court this week, in what will be his second hearing since being arres ted on July 15. U Kyaw Hla Aung, who identifies as Rohingya, is accused of inciting a protest in a camp for internally displaced people (IDPs) earlier this year. His supporters, both inside and outside Myanmar, say the charges are false and a pretence to silence the prominent Sittwe-based activist. “He’s a human rights defender peacefully trying to help his community,” said Jim Lougren of the Frontline Defenders organisation, which works to protect activists in oppressed nations and communities. “It’s effectively a case of arbitrary detention ... We would argue that this case is without merit.” Since being arrested U Kyaw Hla Aung has not had access to a lawyer or been able to contact his family. He has been charged with rioting armed with a deadly weapon, enco...