The Stateless Rohingya Blog

The Buddhist Rakhine consider Muslim Rohingya to be Bengalis and have directed most of the sectarian bloodshed at them, writes Francis Wade [EPA] By  Francis Wade Al Jazeera October 9, 2013 Myanmar's president made his first trip to the violence-hit town of Thandwe last week, days after a  94-year-old Muslim woman was slain by Buddhists  in a nearby village. Spurred on by an unrelated argument between a Muslim political leader and a Buddhist taxi driver two days prior, a mob approached her home in a nearby village on October 1. Her daughter managed to escape, but returned to find a charred house and a mother with cuts to her neck, head and stomach.  The state-run New Light of Myanmar later quoted President Thein Sein as saying that he had suspicions about the nature of the Thandwe attacks, where close to 100 houses were razed. "Ethnic Rakhine [Buddhists] and ethnic Kaman [Muslims] have been living here in peaceful co-existence for many years,” he s...

An ethnic Rohingya boy and woman eat at a camp for displaced Muslim families in Arakan State. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy) By Nyein Nyein Irrawaddy News October 8, 2013 RANGOON — The UN agency for children’s rights has called for an end to communal violence in west Burma, where clashes last week between Muslims and Buddhists left hundreds of people homeless.   Unicef issued a statement on Tuesday urging an end to violence in Arakan State, following the third major wave of communal violence to hit the state since last year. The clashes last week near the southern town of Thandwe left five people dead and destroyed some 110 homes.   In the two waves of unrest last year—elsewhere in Arakan State, in June and October—more than 140,000 people were displaced, and more than 105,000 were children affected by the violence, according to statistics from Unicef, which is providing aid locally.   “We are concerned the inter-communal violence is spreading ...

( Burma times ) by Ibrahim Shah – “Urgent! Urgent! Urgent! In Burma, isn’t it: Alas! What—? “To disband the pernicious virus that interrupts fragile reform in Burma—the newly registered neo-Nazi party known as Rakhine Nationalities Development party (RNDP) that has founded by a gang of pernicious viruses of racists in 2010—.” It is critically important for a scrutinous analysis or observation concerning the current perpetual strife against Rohingya, Kaman, Ka Bya, Burma Muslim that is a great challenge or obstacle for the country’s fragile reform which earned a bad reputation  since June 2012 as the country failed to protect its ethnic minorities due to  lack of rules of law for the ethnic minorities in particular while so called fragile reform is going on. After the stepped down of the notorious Hitlerite Burmese Junta in 2010, on the double, another pernicious virus party known as neo-Nazi  RNDP that is deadly worse than the ex-generals was founded by some...

A protestor demonstrates near Shwedagon pagoda in Rangoon on 15 October 2012. (DVB) By Aye Nai DVB News Two locals from the Arakan capital Sittwe have been sentenced to three months in jail for staging an unauthorised protest against a Turkish government-backed plan to build housing for displaced Rohingyas. “We learnt that Nyo Aye and Kyaw Soe were each sentenced to three months in prison by the court around noon today [Tuesday],” said Khine Pray Soe, general secretary of the Rakhine Nationalities Development, adding that they had repeatedly requested permission to stage a protest from the authorities. “They sought permission with local authorities to demand that [the government] only build houses for those who are verified as citizens under the 1982 Citizenship Law,” said Khine Pray Soe, referring to the legislation which renders most Muslim Rohingyas stateless. It followed reports in March that the Turkish government had offered to help build 5,000 houses for...

KPN News October 07, 2013   Maungdaw, Arakan State:  Police accompanied by Hluntin (riot police) made arbitrary arrest and extorted money from Rohingya villagers in Maungdaw Township without finding any fault, a businessman named Liyakat Ali (not real name) said from Maungdaw.  “Moulana Abdullah,41; son of Rashid Ahmed, hailed from Nari Bill south of Maungdaw Township, was called by police and Hluntin when he was walking on the road nearby the out-post camp on October 5, at around 11:00pm. The Maulana was kept in a room and tortured by police and Hluntin without giving any allegation after entered to the outpost camp.”                When the victim asked why he was tortured severely, the Hluntin replied that--- “You, Moulana (religious leaders) become eye-sores of us.” Md. Jalil (not  real name), a close relative of the victim said.  However, he was released after taking a big cock. A big cock was c...

By Ei Ei Toe Lwin   Myanmar Times Thura U Shwe Mann says country should recognise the efforts of Rakhine people to safeguard the country’s borders and culture. Thura U Shwe Mann speaks at a meeting with Rakhine civil society leaders in Yangon on September 29. Photo: Boothee Parliamentary speaker Thura U Shwe Mann has praised ethnic Rakhine people for safeguarding Myanmar’s western border, as Rakhine representatives called for temporary ID cards to be scrapped and the right to form a people’s militia. During a meeting with members of the Rakhine community in Yangon on September 29, Thura U Shwe Mann said parliamentarians have a responsibility to “support” the Rakhine people. “It’s not enough to praise [Rakhine people] with words. Let’s cooperate to carry out our duties for the development of Rakhine State, and to physically and mentally support the people,” Thura U Shwe Mann said. He also urged respect for the efforts of the Rakhine people to safeguard...

U.S. President Barack Obama waves after giving a speech at the University of Yangon November 19, 2012.  Credit: Reuters/Minzayar Saudi Gazette October 07, 2013   US President Barack Obama spoke of the “crushing poverty and persecution” being faced by Burmese Muslims, known as Rohingyas, on his trip to Burma last year. “This is a very serious problem for the world community,” former US President Jimmy Carter said last month referring to the continuing violence against Muslims in this Buddhist nation of 60 million. During their visit to Burma, Carter and two other world leaders — former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, and former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland — also called for “an end to impunity“ to those who indulge in “these senseless, destructive, repeated acts of brutality.” Last Wednesday we saw an extreme manifestation of this brutality in Thandwe, a township in western Rakhine state where four days of violence left five Muslims dea...