The Stateless Rohingya Blog

By John Sifton Human Rights Watch October 21, 2014 A lot has changed here in Burma in the last three years. Large-scale political prisoner releases have occurred. There has been a lessening of censorship and surveillance. The government has permitted some movement toward democratic reforms—although much of that progress now appears to have stalled.  Not all changes, however, have been positive. In the midst of Burma’s recent transformations, caustic and divisive anti-Muslim voices have been on the rise. In May and October 2012 in Burma’s western Arakan State, ethnic Arakanese Buddhists with the backing of local authorities carried out extensive attacks on vulnerable minority Rohingya Muslims and other Muslim populations in a campaign of “ethnic cleansing” that amounted to crimes against humanity. Hundreds of people were killed and ultimately more than 100,000 were displaced. The effects of that violence are still felt now. Today most Rohingya in Arakan State live in ...

By  Richard Potter Diplomacy Post October 20, 2014 In a move to sway the public into believing it has taken pragmatic steps to resolve one of the greatest human rights catastrophes in the country, Myanmar has confirmed before the UN General Assembly. ”An action plan is being finalized and will soon be launched,” Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin said in his address. “We are working for peace, stability, harmony and development of all people in Rakhine state,” he said. He spoke as an orator for reconciliation, but beneath the gentle slew of niceties and words reminiscent of progress is a call for a process of ethnic reclassification, resettlement, and indefinite detention of the country’s Muslim Rohingya minority, many of whom are already trapped in squalid camps throughout the country’s western Rakhine State. What is most alarming is the lack of response, outrage, and even possible silent approval by the international community. The plan, which was first exposed to ...

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's latest report on Burma has once again drawn global attention to the sad plight of Muslims known as Rohingyas in that Buddhist country. His annual report to the UN General Assembly's Third Committee, which focuses on human rights, raises serious concerns about the condition of Muslims who are victims of ethnic and religious tensions created by official policies and hate campaigns by some radical monks, particularly Wirathu whom Time magazine describes as the "face of Buddhist terror." This has so poisoned the atmosphere that even the democratic reforms initiated by President Thein Sein are working to the disadvantage of Rohingyas. While the government intensifies its campaign of hate, opponents of the regime don't want to alienate the Buddhist majority by supporting the minority. Even the leader of the democracy movement, Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, is avoiding any criticism of the government on the Rohingya issu...

Maungdaw, Arakan State : Four villagers including an 11- year old boy arrested by Burmese Border Guard Police (BGP) in Maungdaw north on October 13, at night without any reason, said Kasim (not real name) from the locality.   “The arrestees are identified as —Hashim Ullah (19), son of Abdul Khader; Mohamed Alam (30), son of Mohamed Rashid; and Farooq (22), son of Mohamed Rashid and a minor boy Sayed Alam (11), son of Khalu. They all belong to Kwan Thipin village of Maungdaw Township.” After arrest, they were brought to BGP headquarters of Kyikan Pyin ( Kawar Bill) village of Maungdaw Township where they are detained and interrogated with  severe torture. They were accused that they had link with Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO) a rebellion group, said one of the relatives of the victims who denied to be named. The authority targets the Rohingya youths even the minor boy. They are innocent villagers, but the concerned authority deliberately accused them that th...

Maungdaw, Arakan State : Burma Border Guard Police (BGP) personnel are watching religious buildings – Mosques, Madarasas (religious schools) and cemeteries at night since 2nd week of October, said Farous, a village admin officer from Maungdaw south. “The BGP personnel stayed near the religious building and cemeteries at night after people entered to their home and watching the areas. The BGP returned early in the morning to their stations.” The BGP personnel started this operation after they started arresting Rohingya youths and religious students where some Rohingyas were died under BGP custodies, said the officer. The BGP are suspecting the areas – religious building and cemeteries – for hideout of Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO) which the authority declared that RSO entered to Maungdaw. But, it is a pre plan of authority to harass the Rohingyas community and to show international community that Rohingyas are doing against the law, said Rafique, a politician from ...

By Ibrahim Shah / Mohamed Ibrahim Burma Times October 18, 2014 New Delhi: Today, on Saturday, 18thOctober, a peaceful demonstration regarding ‘the ongoing forced Bengalization over Rohingya through Rakhine Action Plan, arbitrarily detention, disappearance of Rohingya detainees from police custody and controversial Burma Census 2014’ was carried out by about four  hundreds exiled Rohingyas including female under authority of Rohingya Youth Union-India at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi. In the demonstration, the participants disclosed that the exclusion of Rohingya national from controversial Burma census 2014 is one of the concealed plots of quasi-military regime led by President Thein Sein to persistently deprive of citizenship rights of Rohingya. Moreover,the demonstrators demanded that UN should be able to immediately prevent  Rakhine Action  Plan which is being conducted under 1982 Burma Citizenship Act drafted by Dictator Ne Win as the Burmese ...

By Saiful Rohin  Rvisiontv.com October 19, 2014  Rathedaung, Arakan State: Rakhine extremists blocked WFP’s access to the few remaining Rohingya villages in Rathedaung Township leading the hundreds of innocent Rohingyas to face starvation, according to a source of WFP. Post the state-sponsored violence against ethnic Rohingya in 2012, only few Rohingya villages in Rathedaung Township survived from destruction. Two of them are Anauk-Pyin village and Muzair (Nyaung Pin Gyi) village. “The Rohingyas in the villages of Anauk-Pyin and Muzair have been besieged and economically crippled by the majority Rakhine extremists. WFP, the UN’s World Food Program, has been providing them starving people with some food rations monthly. Now, the Rakhine extremists have blocked the WFP’s access to the villages by building an unnecessary bamboo bridge in an attempt to starve the boycotted people. WFP asked the Rakhine community to dismantle the bridge as it was blocking t...