Around 400 Rohingya migrants discovered in a raid on a camp hidden in a remote rubber plantation in southern Thailand will be deported back to Myanmar, Thai police said on Friday. 

The group, 378 men, 11 women and 12 children, were found in a makeshift shelter in the plantation in Songkhla province where they had languished for three months waiting to be trafficked to a "third country", local police said. 

Acting on a tip-off officials stormed the shelter on Thursday and found the Rohingya, a Muslim minority group not recognised as citizens in Myanmar who have fled sectarian unrest in their thousands to Thailand and other countries. 

"They are now waiting for deportation which will be done by Thailand's immigration police," Lieutenant Colonel Katika Jitbanjong of Padang Besar local police told AFP. 

"They told officials that they had volunteered to come (to Thailand)," he said, adding police were seeking an arrest warrant for the Thai landowner on charges of human trafficking and sheltering illegal migrants. 

Rights groups decry Thailand for failing to help Rohingya migrants who reach its territory, instead pushing them back to Myanmar or on to neighbouring countries including Malaysia, which offers sanctuary to the minority. 

"Thailand is pursuing a beggar-thy neighbour approach," according to Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch Asia. 

"Thailand is using the good policy of its neighbour (Malaysia) to escape its own international obligation to protect refugees and it is shameful." 

The UN refugee agency has called on Myanmar's neighbours to open their borders to people fleeing a wave of communal violence in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine. 

Clashes between Buddhists and Muslims have left at least 180 people dead in Rakhine since June, and displaced more than 110,000 others, mostly Rohingya. 

Myanmar views the roughly 800,000 Rohingya in Rakhine as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and denies them citizenship. 

Although the tensions have eased since a new outbreak of killings in October, concerns have grown about the fate of asylum-seekers setting sail in overcrowded boats. 

Last week Thailand deported 73 Rohingya boat people back to Myanmar, after they landed on the southern island of Phuket.

Phuket Wan

January 10, 2013

January 10, 2013

The Nation
January 9, 2013

Jakarta - The Rohingya Muslim minority group in western Myanmar needs long-term support to recover from recent sectarian violence, the Indonesian foreign minister said Wednesday after a visit to the area.

"We must quickly move beyond emergency response," Marty Natalegawa said. "The people in the affected area are showing resilience, they are showing constant willingness to recover quickly, but they need crops to harvest and seeds to grow." Natalegawa on Monday visited areas in Myanmar’s Rakhine state affected by last year’s communal violence between the minority Rohingyas and the majority Buddhist population.

Natalegawa said the situation remained "unfavourable" with widespread distrust between the communities.

Indonesia, the world’s most populous majority-Muslim nation, has pledged 1 million dollars in humanitarian assistance to the Rohingyas.

Natalegawa said Indonesia was ready to help Myanmar and share its own experience with ethnic conflicts.

"The fact that the Myanmar authorities have been inviting us to see for ourselves shows a willingness to be involved and to benefit from other countries’ lessons learned," he said.

Phil Robertson, Sunai Phasuk, Brad Adams, John Sifton (Human Rights Watch)

The Nation

January 9, 2013

The Thai government should immediately halt its plan to deport 73 ethnic Rohingya back to Myanmar. Thai authorities should allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN refugee agency, unhindered access to these and other boat migrants from Myanmar's Arakan State, to determine whether they are seeking asylum and whether they are qualified for refugee status. 

On January 1, near Bon Island in Phuket province, Thai authorities intercepted a boatload of 73 Rohingya migrants - including as many as 20 children, some as young as three - that contained likely asylum-seekers. After providing food, water and other supplies to the passengers and refuelling the boat, Thai authorities initially planned to push the boat back out to sea, en route to Malaysia's Langkawi Island. When they found that the rickety, overcrowded boat had cracks and that many passengers were too weak to endure a stormy sea voyage, the authorities brought the group ashore to the Phuket Immigration Office. By 4pm on January 2, two trucks with all 73 Rohingya were heading to Ranong province for deportation back to Myanmar.

The Thai government should scrap its inhumane policy of summarily deporting Rohingya, who have been brutally persecuted in Myanmar, and honour their right to seek asylum. The UNHCR should be permitted to screen all Rohingya arriving in Thailand to identify and assist those seeking refugee status.

The Thai government's so-called "help on" policy fails to provide Rohingya asylum-seekers with protection required under international law, and in some cases increases their risk. Under this policy, the Thai navy is under orders to intercept Rohingya boats that come close to the Thai coast. Upon intercepting a boat, officials provide the boat with fuel, food, water and other supplies on condition that the boats sail onward to Malaysia or Indonesia. All passengers must remain on their own boats during the re-supply.

Should a boat land on Thai soil or be found to be unsafe, Thai immigration officials will step in to enforce deportation by land. This "soft deportation" process has resulted in Rohingya being sent across the Thai-Myanmar border at Ranong province, where people smugglers await deported Rohingya to exact exorbitant fees to transport them to Malaysia. Those unable to pay the smuggling fees are forced into labour to pay off the fees, condemning them to situations amounting to human trafficking.

Thailand has repeatedly stated its commitment to combat human trafficking, yet by deporting Rohingya into the hands of people smugglers, they are making them vulnerable to trafficking.

In January 2009, Thailand's National Security Council, led by then-prime ninister Abhisit Vejjajiva, authorised the navy to intercept incoming Rohingya boats and detain the passengers before pushing them back to sea. Later that year, Thai security forces were captured on video towing boats with Rohingya out to sea, which the government initially denied, but which Abhisit later conceded, saying, "I have some reason to believe some of this happened." While the recent "help on" strategy has meant that intercepted boats are re-provisioned, the Thai navy is still pushing back to sea boats filled with Rohingya, with some deadly results.

Thailand's response to arriving Rohingya asylum-seekers contrasts sharply with the policy in Malaysia, where the authorities have routinely allowed the UN refugee agency access to arriving Rohingya. Those recognised by the agency as refugees are released from immigration detention.

Myanmar authorities have long persecuted the Rohingya, members of a Muslim minority group who have lived in Myanmar for generations. Government and military authorities in Arakan State regularly apply severe restrictions on the Rohingya's freedom of movement, assembly and association, levy demands for forced labour, engage in religious persecution, and confiscate land and resources. Myanmar's 1982 Citizenship Law effectively denies the Rohingya citizenship, leaving them stateless.

Each year hundreds of thousands of Rohingya in Arakan State flee repression by the Myanmar military and dire poverty. The situation significantly worsened in late 2012 following communal violence in June and October targeting Rohingya and other Muslim groups. The arrival of the 73 Rohingya in Phuket on January 1 was the first acknowledged interception that included women and children on board. Many more boats are expected to set sail from Myanmar in the coming months.

Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to seek asylum from persecution. While Thailand is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, under customary international law the Thai government has an obligation of "non-refoulement" - not to return anyone to a place where their life or freedom would be at risk.

The Thai government should ensure that its laws and procedures recognise the protection needs of ethnic Rohingya. The UNHCR has the technical expertise to screen for refugee status and the mandate to protect refugees and stateless people. Effective UNHCR screening of all boat arrivals would help the Thai government determine who is entitled to refugee status.

Refugee screening is crucial for protecting Rohingya asylum-seekers, and the Thai government should allow this critical process. Until the UNHCR is allowed to conduct refugee screening, the Thai government should halt forcible returns of Rohingya boat people.

Bernama

January 8, 2013

KHARTOUM -- Two Sudanese groups -- Higher Committee for Support to the Muslims of Rohingya and National Group for the Human Rights of Myanmar (Rohingya) Muslims -- have announced aid totalling US$200,000 as the first installment of support to Muslims facing various violations and withdrawal of their Myanmar nationality.

At a press conference at the Al-Zubair Charity Institution here Monday, National Human Rights Group chairman Ibrahim Abdul-Haleem said a delegation of the higher committee had visited Turkey and signed an agreement with a charity organisation and visited a camp of Myanmar Muslims in Bangladesh and extended different kinds of relief to Rohingya Muslims.

He said Sudan remains one of the first countries that extended support to the affected people in the world, referring to the support provided to victims of earthquake in Pakistan and Algeria.

He added Sudan's support for the Muslims in Myanmar would continue in all levels, including at international forums until their rights were fully restored.

Meanwhile, chairman of the Higher Committee for Support to the Rohingya, Mohamed Al-Hassan Ahmed Al-Bashir, said Sudanese-Turkish relations were witnessing progress in all fields.

This had resulted in the signing of a smart partnership agreement between the Sudanese Human Rights Group and a Turkish charity organisation through which Sudan had extended aid to the Muslims in Myanmar.

Sujadi Siswo 

Channel News Asia

January 8, 2013

RAKHINE, Myanmar: Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa has visited Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state, and the areas affected by sectarian violence. 

His visit was at the invitation of the Myanmar government.

Dr Natalegawa will make recommendations based on what he saw. 

More than 100,000 people are living in refugee camps, since fleeing inter-communal fighting that erupted last year. 

The overwhelming majority of those displaced are Muslims.

Indonesia has also pledged US$1 million in humanitarian assistance.

Dr Natalegawa shared his impressions soon after he wrapped up his trip.

He said it was crucial that trust be rebuilt between the Rohingya and ethnic Rakhines in the state.

Dr Natalegawa said: "The main impressions I had of my short visit to the area yesterday was that we are involved basically not only in the physical reconstruction and rehabilitation of the damage caused by the recent violence, but we must also nurture a sense of confidence, a sense of reconciliation among the different communities. 

"There is a tremendous sense of distrust between the two sides and we must return that sense of harmony that existed previously. It's no good having them segregated into one community and simply getting along, co-existing. They must be reconciled. They must be brought together. 

"In the end, we believe the efforts that must be introduced must be a sustainable one. It means it must be driven by communities themselves in the Rakhine state. And therefore, critical that both the Rohingya and Rakhine groups begin to have reconciliation, begin to have harmony reintroduced amongst themselves. It was quite surreal in many instances. These villages are very proximate to one another, and yet they are so distant in terms of trust and confidence."

He also reiterated the need to look beyond the immediate humanitarian response.

Dr Natalegawa said: "Economic opportunities are obviously very important. We must proceed beyond humanitarian emergency response, but we must provide economic opportunities. The prospect of better living conditions. these are the kind of things we in Southeast Asia, neighbours of Myanmar, must think beyond the emergency phase. 

"And I must say the scale of the challenge is pretty obvious, but Indonesia is ready to continue to lend support to Myanmar. This is because this is very much part and parcel of Myanmar's democratisation efforts."

He added that the Myanmar government was receptive of Indonesia's moves to find a solution to the ethnic conflict in Rakhine.

Dr Natalegawa said: "I think the Myanmar authorities have confidence in Indonesia's capacity to understand the situation in an objective manner. Over the years, we have similiarly done a bit more low-key in encouraging progress of democratisation in Myanmar. 

"We were also part of the process where Myanmar eventually got the ASEAN chairmanship in 2014, in return for certain expectations to take place. So I think this is a pathway that we have done in the past and we will continue to nurture a sense of trust and confidence by all concerned in Myanmar on this process."

Meanwhile, the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar said what the refugees need most urgently is proper shelter, especially with the rainy season approaching.

Mr Ashok Nigam also reiterated that security is a perennial concern in Rakhine.

"At this time, many of the IDPs cannot move out of their camps because of concerns of conflict between the two communities. So security is a concern that we always have at this time. We have other issues with regards to shelter. We need land for shelter. These people have been displaced and to find land in the places where they were originally living is difficult in some cases, and that is taking time, so shelter is taking time," he said.

The UN and its partners in Myanmar have put up a Rakhine Response Plan to meet humanitarian needs till June this year.

But the US$68 million plan is still short of some $41 million.

The UN office in Myanmar is also working with the Thein Sein administration to help find a permanent solution for the Rohingya and the Rakhine community.

Mr Ashok Nigam said: "We are in dialogue with the government that we need to address the reconciliation between the two communities or at the very least the co-existence - peaceful co-existence of the two communities in this context. To address this we have to address some of the very root causes of this conflict - which lie in the lack of citizenship for many of the Muslims in the Rakhine State, which prevents them from moving around freely in the country."

Any proposed solution will likely come from the independent commission of inquiry set up by the government following the outbreak of conflict in June last year.

Mr Ashok Nigam added: "It is a commission which incorporates 27 members across society. It is to come up with both the reasons for the violence and also recommendations on what next needs to be done. So the commission's findings will be very important. And we certainly hope that they will provide more ideas and directions in moving forward and that's what the government is looking for from the commission."

Buthidaung: Recently, a group of 70 Rohingya families from Kyauktaw crossed the mountain to come to Buthidaung (particularly to Fuimali village) due to unbearable situations there and starvation as Rakhines and the authorities blocked all sources of food supply to Rohingya people. On the way many including women and children were brutally killed and raped by Rakhines, Murung, and Naskaka. Many women were seen brought naked without clothes into the Fuimali villages by Nasaka as witnessed by many in the Fuimali markets. 

Furthermore, those who helped the victims were detained by Nasaka or released by offering hefty money. The situation is by no means bearable by any human beings and the Rakhines and the authorities are fully responsible for all these inhuman crimes against humanity. 

Attentions of UN and International communities are immediately required to interfere these types of situations and extreme pressure to Burma is urgently needed including UN forces presence in Arakan otherwise very soon the whole Rohingya population will be in total extinction.

M.S. Anwar 

RB News 

January 8, 2013 

Today, Rohingyas and Kamans in Arakan have become preys in the Burmese regime’s dirty and cruel political tactics and trapped among other self-interested extremist groups. They have been massacred and being killed in the secret cells, their houses have been burnt down and their properties vandalized, their women have been raped and their religious buildings locked down and so on and so forth. In short, a systematic pogrom and all kinds of possible atrocities have been being carried out against these highly neglected and helpless people. They have cried out for help not only to the Burmese but also to the international communities. Buddhist Burmese did not come forward to help the people being killed as they are supposed-to-be being Buddhists. They got trapped in the regime’s Divide and Rule Policy. A few international organizations and countries who have come forward to help all the victims regardless of race and religion met with stern oppositions from the fanatic and racist section of the Burmese society. 

As a result, miserably, the painful and soul-shattering plight of these widely neglected and vulnerable people continue till these days. To start with, on 7th January 2013, an 83-year-old Rohingya man was arrested by the Military led by the second commander (Du Htetyin Muu), Colonel (Bohmuu) Ye Win Aung, of the battalion based at the village of Kha Ye Myaing near to the village of Nurallah in southern Maung Daw. The old man named Abdu Jalil S/o Ali Meah from Nuralla was coming to Baggona to buy Medicines for ill health. He is so old and weak that he can’t walk without the help of a stick. He was arrested with the typical arbitrary accusation of his involvement in torching Rakhines’ houses. If Kyat 2 Million is not given to the military within 24 hour from the time of his arrest, he will be handed over to the Police. Imagine an 83-year-old man who can’t move without a stick has involved in torching houses!! I can imagine military have no shame of doing so as they are uneducated, ill-natured and have slave mentality. But how will you feel if it is done to your own father or grand-father?? 

On one more occasion, on December 25, 2012, Bohmuu Ye Win Aung extorted Kyat 7 Lakhs from called Islam, by threatening him to hand over to Police, from the village of Htet Oo Annauk of Baggona village tract. On December 21, 2012, he did the same to Noor Mohammed from Kilai Daung (Du Chi Ya Dan) by extorting a humongous Kyat 4.5 Millions. On November 25, 2012, he arrested Mohammed Alam S/o Abdu Shukkor, a young Rohingya, with the same accusations mentioned. He said, upon giving Kyat 2 Million to him, would release the young Rohingya. Quite disgustingly, he backed out of what he said. He not only extorted the money but also handed over to the Police. According to Rohingyas in the region, Bohmuu Ye Win Aung has gone rampant, wild and arbitrary. Today, Kidnapping and Abducting of Rohingyas, Threatening and torturing them and Extorting of Money from anyone he thinks he can has become his only business there. He is exactly behaving like SOMALI PIRATES. 

On 30th December 2012, Military and Rakhine extremists from the village of Tharay Kunbaung San Phya were driving away 130 Oxen+Cows owned by Rohingyas from the village of Fudu Fara of Gaw Du Sara Village Tract. The Rohingya villagers shouted and four of them got arrested by Military and handed over to the Police. Having the information, Nay Myay Mu (Head of the NaSaKa Region 7) ordered to give the animals back to the villagers. The animals were returned but the destiny of the four Rohingyas handed over to the Police is not known yet. Later on 1st January 2013, the same military group including a one-star ranking Major together with the Rakhine extremists broke into two Rohingya houses in the village post 12 midnight. In a house, three military together with two Rakhine extremists gang-raped a 16-year-old under-aged Rohingya girl named AISHA D/o Hussein Ahmed. She was almost to death due to injuries resulted from gang-raping and man-handling. But (to her good luck or bad luck I don’t know) she survived after the medical treatment. 

In another house, other military did the same to a 30-year-old woman called Firoza D/o Mohammed. She is a mother of five and widow, whose husband, Mohammed Ayub, was killed by Rakhine extremists a month back while he was looking after his animals in the forest. Why? As these evil military in human form said, they were their men who shouted while they were taking away the animals from the village. Imagine the innocent girl and the woman were your sisters! What will your reactions be towards the grave injustice done against them??? 

While Rohingyas in Maung Daw and Buthidaung are being killed inside their houses, Rohingyas and Kamans in Sittwe, Pauktaw, Myebun, MinBya, Kyauktaw are being killed in the open fields. Rohingyas and Kamans as well as their children, babies and infants have been facing starvation, famine and different kinds of spreadable diseases. They are dying in numbers day by day. Nay!!! It is not an ordinary famine. It is a systematic man-made human catastrophe and famine- the only differing fact from the 1983-1985 famine of Ethiopia. While IDP Camps of Rohingyas and Kamans in Sittwe are receiving some foreign aids, the other regions mentioned here are completely neglected and hidden from international scenes. Imagine what is happening with them. Just feel it with your eyes closed! 

“We request those Burmese who perceive us illegal invaders from Bangladesh to demand U Thein Sein to hold a meeting with Bangladesh government. And to ask Bangladesh government to take us back if we belong there. Why should we go to a third country if we belong to Bangladesh? Why is not U Thein Sein asking Sheikh Hasina such a thing instead of UNHCR Chief Antonio Gutterres? We are also humans. We can’t be killed inhumanely the way it is happening now. Buddhism, either, doesn’t even allow inflicting pains even on the smallest living creatures let alone killing human beings! 

In fact, we have been living here for centuries and for generations. Many know this. Those who don’t know just read the Burmese Encyclopedia Volume 9 Part A and check the records of Burmese Broadcasting Service (BSS). No need to go to long history back! We have more than enough records and evidences of our existence in Arakan from the time immemorial. We are paying the costly price for being too naive and simple through the history. It is the time for the genuine Burmese Buddhists to show their true Buddhism by helping to save the lives of, we, human beings. It is time for international community to come forward to effectively help us in time and before we are exterminated. Or else, please don’t make a history out of us a later point of time as such and such people existed once upon time and were exterminated” cried out a 60-year-old Rohingya man from Maung Daw. 

M.S. Anwar is an activist and student studying Bachelor of Arts in Business Studies at Westminster International College, Malaysia

Jack Lee

Alders Ledge

January 7, 2013

We Will Not Look Away, We Will Scream 

(Part of The Darkness Visible series)

As the world neglects the minorities of Myanmar the old Junta continues to deprive many ethnic groups in Burma of their basic human rights. From the Chin to the Karen to the Rohingya the use of forced slave labor, rape camps, and starvation are killing countless minorities every day in the still barbarically brutal regime in Rangoon. Religion has played its part in the butchering of Rohingya (Muslims) and the oppression of the Chin (Christians). But race is the main factor. 

The majority of what the Junta calls "Burmese" are Buddhist. They all come from differing ethnic groups and smaller communities. Yet during the brutal rule of communist style leaders and Junta power these groups fused as one. The most important thing to this new ruling class is that the minorities "know their place" in Myanmar's new "democratic" society. 

For the Chin, nearly 80-90% Christian, the new Burma is odd in the fact that Myanmar recognizes the Chin people in the fact that they named one of the seven ethnic states in Burma the "Chin State". Like the Arakan, a people who are accepted by the Junta as "Burmese", the Chin were apparently given a place in Burmese society. Yet the old Junta continues to force the Chin into slavery to the state as they use rape to keep the Chin in line. Unjust taxation mixed with random denials to property rights makes it nearly impossible for Chin to make a self-reliant life for themselves within Myanmar. Thus the Chin are among the hordes of refugees that annually take to the borders of Myanmar and attempt to flee the ruthless regime once willingly called the Junta. 

Meanwhile the Rohingya are trapped on the border with Bangladesh, a fact that Myanmar exploits by calling the Rohingya "Bengali invaders", with no place to turn. Myanmar now has turned to the method of "forced famine" to starve out the Rohingya who have been forced out of their homes. Many of the starving Rohingya can be found in refugee camps throughout the Rakhine state. These camps are being blockaded so that food and water can not make it inside. Thus creating a famine within the camps while food flows freely just outside the camps. 

In addition to forced starvation the Rohingya face common diseases that could be prevented if the Burmese government was not also withholding basic medications from the encamped Rohingya minority. This allows for malaria to spread throughout a camp without warning. The people trapped inside have no access to medications that are often cheap or free when provided by humanitarian groups. However the Junta has made certain that children and women in these camps are restricted in access or forbidden access all together from help from the outside world. 

No matter how we look at this. No matter how we try to rationalize this. This is genocide. 

When a government attempts to restrict the population growth or drastically reduce it they are engaging in ethnic cleansing. When a government is attempting to kill off a portion or the entirety of an ethnic group they are engaged in genocide. The attempts of the Junta in Burma to bring about a "democratic" society in Burma is not to be praised by people like Barack Obama. This is not an attempt to spread "hope" to an oppressed people in a newly opened up frontier of Asia. This is genocide. 

It has been the battle cry of Alder's Ledge that we might take upon the suffering of others as our own affliction. It is our purpose in life that we might live their pain so that even in the darkest hour they might not be left alone and persecuted by the most evil aspects of humanity. In doing so we can bear witness to the anguish of those who have suffered so that the world may not deny their pain or at worst their very existence. 

Our voices will continue to be raised till our throats can suffer no longer... till blood trickles from our vocal cords. Our eyes will forever be transfixed upon the darkest chapters of man so that we might shine a light into the abyss. This is our battle cry. This is our mission. 

As 2013 lay before us it is our goal to make our voices so loud that every soul around us knows the pain of the Rohingya. We will keep their suffering at the forefront of our daily lives. As long as there are children and women lingering in death's chains we will fight. As long as there are Rohingya men being dragged off to their deaths at the hands of barbarians we will cry out. We will bear witness. 

Today, Alder's Ledge, makes only one demand of those of you who are reading this. We ask that you take to your Twitter, your Facebook, and any other social media you have to start sharing these post. We ask that you become a screamer. 

A screamer is a person who witnesses genocide and refuses to remain silent. A screamer uses the one weapon our G-d gave to all men and women... his or her voice. In the modern era a screamer takes to social media to effect change in a world where we are all linked by media. A screamer, most of all, forgets his own misfortune and takes up the suffering of others as his own. This is what drives a screamer to act... to scream. 

It is time that we all scream as one. It is time to fight.

An analyst says that the US and its Western allies are not concerned about the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

In the background of this a UN report says some 13,000 people have fled Burma now known as Myanmar chased out by racist Buddhists wanting an all-Buddhist country. Hundreds have been killed escaping and massacres have been committed by the Buddhist group. The government of Myanmar is complicit in the ethnic cleansing as is Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi by her silence in this matter. The mainstream international community are not only permitting this act to go ahead, but their media intentionally keeps this story well in the background. 

Press TV has interviewed Mr. Jahangir Mohammed, Director of the Center for Muslim Affairs, Manchester about this issue. The following is an approximate transcription of the interview. 

Press TV: We are still looking at the plight of these Rohingya Muslims, but it’s very interesting that the media in one respect has sited this to be the result of sectarian violence. 

At the same time what is being done about this? We’ve had Navi Pillay (United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights) making statements, the UNHCR report etc, but it seems like they’re still stuck in this persecution state. 

Mohammed: Absolutely. The United Nations issues these reports and gives us statistics, but the world community doesn’t seem to be interested in doing anything about the plight of the Rohingya Muslims. 

And all the time really the West, the US in particular and the European states at the UN still won’t do anything because they are keen to bring Burma into the economic fold of capitalism so they can exploit its resources just as they did with South Africa and portray Aung San Suu Kyu as the next Nelson Mandela. 

You can get information from Press TV and Muslim sources, but hardly anything in the Western media about the roots of this conflict and what’s happening there. 

And it’s a real tragedy that in the 20th century such blatant cleansing of people on the lines of religion can take place.

Mr. Anwar Ibrahim's Tweet on Twitter

To: Universiti Darussalam Brunei (UBD)

Dear Vice Chancellor Zul and Assistant Vice Chancellor Anita,

It is with deep regret that I am writing to you to submit my resignation from the post of Associate Professor with the Institute of Asian Studies at the Universiti Darussalam Brunei (UBD).

You were both the key members of the interview team which recruited me to come and work for the University a little over a year ago. I was very much impressed by your narrative of UBD being a place for open intellectual inquiry, supportive bureaucracy, and the new drive for innovation and research. This description of UBD was central to my decision to accept the post.

Months before I arrived in Brunei and officially joined the UBD on 3 Jan 2012, the then Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, where I would be based, assured me in writing that there was academic freedom for faculty, and I should only steer clear only of two taboo subjects, namely the Sultan and Islam.

But my first-hand one-year professional experience at the UBD has been anything but positive, intellectually and professionally, save the experience of teaching and providing academic support to my Bruneian students.

In June 2012, I travelled to London and joined a highly distinguished LSE panel of experts and practitioners in the fields of human rights and the rule of law including Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, Sir Geoffrey Nice, deputy head of the ICC Tribunal for Slobodan Milosevic, and LSE Professor Mary Kaldor. UBD authorities punished me by withdrawing UBD’s financial and institutional support 24 hours before my flight to London left, forcing me to take a personal annual leave for this important occasion, and pay for an expensive $3,000 last minute flight and instructing me, in writing, NOT to use the UBD’s name even for affiliation purposes for the LSE roundtable program and to ensure that my contribution to the panel discussion be “purely academic” – something which given the political role of Aung San Suu Kyi in Burma is entirely impossible.

Upon return I was called in by Professor Chee-Kiong Tong, my immediate line manager and Strategic Advisor to the Vice Chancellor, and emphatically told “everyone is watching you”, insinuating that I was being spied on by neighbouring countries, merely for my role in this high-profile event – , something any credible university would both support and take pride in. In addition, I was told by Professor Chee-Kiong Tong that I should restrict my work to non-Burma related issues or write only “purely academic” papers, effectively attempting to gag me on my area of academic and professional expertise.

As a socially engaged academic with a known activist background – I was 100% transparent during the recruitment process in my CV and during the job interview in London about my years of human rights activism on the military-ruled country of mine, Burma – I simply could not conscience allowing my employer to intimidate me into professional silence on unfolding human rights atrocities and war crimes against Myanmar’s Muslims and ethnic minorities in Burma on account of a monthly pay check.

In fact, I am the only Burmese academic who is researching, publishing and speaking out against what the Organization of Islamic Conference/Cooperation (OIC) officially refers to as “genocide against the Muslim Rohingya” in Western Burma committed by the collaborating political and social forces, namely the Rakhine “Buddhists” and the Government of Burma itself.

There were other events and articles that I have been prevented from contributing to, or have been made acutely aware of UBD’s displeasure with my contribution in no uncertain terms by UBD authorities. These include writing an invited guest editorial on Burma’s transition for National University of Singapore LKY School’s peer-reviewed Asian Journal of Public Affairs for its February 2013 Special Issue on Burma and being invited to Singapore-based Channel News Asia’s live premier debate on the question of democratization in Burma.

Besides the UBD’s preemptive attempts to stop me from performing my professional public service to the wider Asian public, I have been derided, in writing, for participating in them, being told that they are trivial, luxurious and culturally inappropriate acts which only liberal universities in the West allow their faculty members to engage in.

I have also been prevented from carrying out my own UBD-assigned central professional assignment, namely to develop a key research and publication program on the South China Sea. Just weeks before the scheduled international seminar on the S. China Sea which I was tasked to organize, I was instructed to ‘postpone it until next year’ – causing me considerable professional embarrassment in front of some of the world’s most esteemed scholars on the S. China Sea. For the topic of the S. China Sea was finally deemed too sensitive a subject even to discuss among a small group of about 15 invited – and confirmed – academics and policy practitioners from ASEAN, China, Australia, Europe and N. America.

Recently, at the UBD-NUS co-sponsored Inter-ASEAN Universities Conference on human insecurities in Asia, I read a research paper on the plight of the Rohingya people, based on my own field work with fleeing Rohingya refugees, members of the Presidential Inquiry Commission, local Rakhines and the UN staff based in Western Burma where large-scale ‘sectarian’ violence broke out.

Under pressure from none other than Myanmar Embassy/Government, the UBD initially prevented its own Southeast Asian Studies students with a concern for and an interest in the Rohingya persecution from attending my session- a decision that was later reversed because the chair of my panel Professor Gary Jones insisted that UBD research students ought to hear my academic presentation.

Finally, the Senior Management of the University instructed me NOT to accept any direct invitation to give lectures or briefings on any issue from outside institutions – not even Brunei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. I was told that any institution that wishes to invite me must send their official written requests to the Vice Chancellor who will then decide whether I should be allowed to accept the invitation. To my deep dismay, I have found a greater degree of intellectual and professional openness in such non-academic institutions here, namely Brunei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Ministry of Defence vis-a-vis the Universiti Brunei Darussalam.

I was genuinely committed not only to my role in research and publication, but also in institution building and public service in the form of ‘public intellectual activities’ such as informing the public at large about important issues including human rights, democratization and social justice in Burma and internationally. It is will deep regret that I have come to the conclusion that, given the restrictions imposed on me professionally by the extreme institutional and professional censorship within UBD, it is no longer possible for me to maintain my productivity or make valuable contributions to UBD’s stated objective of being ranked in Top 50 in Asia by 2015. Neither is it possible for me to maintain my professional or personal integrity.

Starting 1 January 2013, Brunei will be chairing the ASEAN, and as the first professor in the Institute of Asian Studies and a noted expert on Burmese affairs, I have already been asked to give my expert comments or write commentaries on policy-relevant issues such as the Rohingya, the South China Sea, human insecurities and civil society. However, I feel that in sharing my expertise on these issues with the public or small groups of diplomats, my position at UBD will be compromised due to the institutional censorship, placing me in an impossible professional position.

In light of the intensification of the restrictions placed on my professional activities in the recent months, I feel that with Brunei taking over the chair of ASEAN, my ability to function in the immediate future with professional integrity will be compromised beyond the levels to which I am prepared to accept. Thus my resignation is effective immediately – from Jan 1st- the beginning of Brunei’s ASEAN chair and before the start of the 2013 academic year on Jan 7th.

I believe I was mislead regarding the professional environment at UBD during the recruitment process, and due to the on-going attempts to gag me on the persecution and slaughter of minorities, including Muslim minorities, in the country of my birth, I no longer wish to be subject to this level of extreme and unprofessional academic censorship. I need to work at a professional institution where the word ‘politics’ is mentionable, social conscience livable, and compassion honourable.

On a personal level, I wish you both all the very best in 2013. Anita, I greatly appreciated your personal intervention to overturn the initial decision to prevent me from attending the public seminar with Professor Amartya Sen at Columbia University on the conflicts in Burma in September. Unfortunately, good individuals are not an antidote to illiberal institutions.

_______________________

Related News:

• HM sees joint ventures with Myanmar in oil exploration
• Brunei sees potential in joint oil exploration with Myanmar

Nirmal Ghosh

The Straits Times

January 7, 2013

Regional governments are bracing for a further influx of boat people from Myanmar and Bangladesh, headed to Malaysia mainly, that could number in the hundreds, maybe thousands. 

Some incidents in the past two weeks indicate there could be more this year than the estimate for last year. 

Last Friday, Vivian Tan, a spokesman for the United Nations refugee agency, said that last year, about 13,000 boat people - mainly Rohingya Muslims, including many from Myanmar's Rakhine state - fled Myanmar and Bangladesh. At least 485 people are known to have drowned or been lost at sea. 

"These numbers are very worrying," Tan said. "The fact that even women and children are increasingly risking this journey shows the growing sense of desperation among the Rohingya in Myanmar and Bangladesh." 

Last week, the Thai authorities deported a group of 73 Rohingya who had sailed from Myanmar. 

Colonel Manat Kongpan, who heads Thailand's Internal Security Operations Command for the Phuket region, told the local journal Phuket Wan that the military was intercepting "two to three" vessels a week. About 3,000 boat people had been found since October, when the sailing season started; it usually reaches its peak in December and January. The voyage from Teknaf in Bangladesh can take from two to six weeks. 

Thailand was heavily criticised for turning Rohingya back onto the high seas without any provisions in a previous instance. It now has a policy of "helping on" the boat people, by providing fuel and provisions. Most want to go to Malaysia, which has agreed to receive them. 

Apart from Malaysia, no country in the region wants this "hot potato" on its shores, said a diplomat in Yangon, who asked not to be identified. 

Most of the Rohingya leave from Bangladesh, where more than 200,000 live largely in both official and informal camps - little more than makeshift shacks sprawled over the countryside outside Teknaf, a town named after the river that marks the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar. 

Adding to the flow now are some Rohingya from Myanmar's Rakhine state, aid agencies say. Violence erupted between Rohingya and Buddhist Arakanese there last year, and the situation remains tense. The diplomat said: "Feelings are very fervent; the two communities hate each other." 

The violence first flared up last June, after which Rohingya who had their settlements razed were accommodated in camps. 

A second round of attacks in October drove more into the camps, and further entrenched a physical segregation of the Rohingya and Arakanese. 

The Arakanese form the majority in the area and consider the Rohingya - whose population in Rakhine state is estimated at around 800,000 - illegal immigrants. 

The area has a long history of informal cross-border migration and conflict, with Muslims and Buddhists having been armed by different sides during World War II as Burma sought independence from Britain. But many Rohingya are now second- or third-generation settlers there. 

The Arakanese, the majority Burmans and the Myanmar government do not recognise the term "Rohingya", which appeared in the mid-1940s. 

They describe the Rohingya as "Bengalis" from Bangladesh's Chittagong division. Rohingya are not on the Myanmar government's list of ethnic minorities, which renders them stateless. 

Bangladeshis do not consider them Bengalis either. The Rohingya in Bangladesh, who reside mostly in the Teknaf area, are seen as a potential security threat because they compete with locals for scarce resources and jobs. They are also potentially a sensitive nerve in relations between Bangladesh and Myanmar. There are fears of Rohingya militancy - which has sputtered on and off for decades - re-emerging in response to persecution in Rakhine. 

Dr Tasneem Siddiqui, who heads the University of Dhaka's Refugee and Migratory Movements Research Unit, told The Straits Times that boats carrying goods from Myanmar go to Teknaf's Shahpuri island, where they are unloaded. Human smugglers then load them with both Rohingya and Bangladeshis, and they set off for Malaysia. 

The Bangladeshi authorities know who the smugglers are and should be more proactive in stopping the trade, Dr Siddiqui said. 

"And there has to be scope for formal migration, otherwise people - whether Rohingya or Bangladeshi - will take desperate steps." 

Malaysia's willingness to take in the Rohingya is seen as a bright spot in a gloomy situation. "The big question is how long it will last," said Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch. 

Meanwhile, some governments and aid agencies are scrambling to keep at bay a humanitarian disaster in Rakhine's squalid camps, which now accommodate upwards of 100,000 Rohingya. 

Saudi Arabia has provided millions of dollars in financial aid, and Iran last week sent 30 tonnes of essential supplies. Last September, Jakarta sent seven tonnes of aid. 

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa is due to visit Rakhine state this week.

Regina Paulose

January 7, 2013

In November 2012, the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the ICC released its Report on Preliminary Examination Activities 2012, which examines situations in various countries for acts which could potentially amount to crimes against humanity and/or war crimes. Some of the countries mentioned in this report are North Korea, Columbia, and Afghanistan.[1] While one could question some of the cases the OTP is currently investigating,[2] this author takes the position that there are other atrocious human rights situations which need the immediate attention of the ICC. In particular, the OTP should begin to make efforts to investigate and address the continued persecution and abuse of the Rohingya population in Burma.[3]

The Status Quo Conflict and Response

According to some scholars, the Rohingya’s origins are not entirely clear.[4] Setting aside this debate, the Rohingya mainly reside in Burma on the western side. The Rohingya are a Muslim minority in Burma where the majority of the population is Buddhist. It is estimated that there are currently 800,000 to 1 million Rohingya living in Burma. Since the 1970’s the regime in Burma has been trying to drive out or restrict the Rohingya.[5] This sentiment was put into law in 1982 when it created a Citizenship Law, which mandates that a person must prove their Burmese ancestry dating back to 1823 in order to have freedom of movement and access to other basic rights such as education in the country.[6] (Recall: Armenian Genocide and Nazi Germany). This law is one of the prime reasons why the Rohingya have become “stateless.”

The Rohingya have been the target of violence and recent clashes, which has left “dozens dead and tens of thousands internally displaced.”[7] One does not have to look further than the last 8 months to truly see how the regime continues to treat the Rohingya. In June 2012, an outbreak in communal violence between the Buddhist and Muslim Rakhine and the Rohingya lead to massive sweeps resulting in detention of Rohingya men and boys. (Recall the massacre at Srebrenica). Reports indicated that these groups were subject to ill treatment and were held “incommunicado.”[8] In October 2012, satellite images showed that homes of the Rohingya were being destroyed by security forces. The security forces then overwhelmed and cornered the Rohingya to drive them out of the area. This destruction is on top of the gruesome reports of beheading and killing of women and children.[9] (Recall: Rwanda).

Faced with no other alternatives and with no access to justice in their country, the Rohingya have begun to flee only to be met with rejection from other countries. On the first day of 2013, some members of the Rohingya group were intercepted by Thai authorities and were deported back to Burma.[10] The Thai Navy is under orders to send them away from Thailand. Bangladesh has also expressed that it is not willing to accept Rohingya into their country.

Some countries however are reaching out to the Rohingya. Malaysia does accept the Rohingya as refugees. Iran recently sent humanitarian aid in order to help and has called upon the UN to take action.[11] Regionally, ASEAN offered to conduct “talks” but that was “rejected.” The regime explained that it sees the escalating violence as an “internal problem.”[12]

After a close examination of these events, the U.S. Presidential visit in November 2012, made the waters murky. President Obama felt that Burma was “moving in a better direction” and that there were “flickers of progress.” During the visit the President met with an advocate of the Rohingya population. While President Obama stated that his visit was not an endorsement of the current government, simple questions arise as to what the U.S. would be willing to do (or not do) to prevent this sectarian violence from escalating.[13] Not surprisingly, after the visit, Thein Sein made 2013 human rights news, when his regime admitted to using air raids against the Kachin rebels who are battling the government for control over certain territories.[14]

The ICC and its potential involvement

There are two interesting points of discussion that this scenario creates. The first is how the OTP would be able to meet jurisdictional requirements if it were to seriously consider prosecution. The controversial propio motupowers of the Prosecutor would allow her to investigate this situation. Articles 13, 15, and 53 of the Rome Statute require temporal jurisdiction, territorial or personal jurisdiction, and material jurisdiction. In addition, there are requirements in the Statute concerning admissibility. Burma is not a state party to the Rome Statute. The real challenge with this case would be with meeting the territorial or personal jurisdiction elements. Of course the easiest way to meet this requirement would be if the UN Security Council (UNSC) would be willing to refer the case as it did with Bashir of Sudan.[15] As stated above, the U.S. Presidential visit does not make clear at this time what the U.S. position would be, especially considering the U.S. also eased sanctions, perhaps as a symbol of new relations, on the regime in November.

Another interesting point of discussion also concerns the potential charges. This author believes that this is a strong case for various charges under crimes against humanity. Charges under war crimes would prove to be interesting, depending on how the situation is viewed. As previously noted, the regime has continuously called the situation with the Rohingya an “internal problem.” The situation with the Rohingya can be distinguished from the conflict with the Kachin rebel/soldiers who are fighting for territory and independence.

Some other kind of action is now necessary besides dialogue and commentary from high level UN officials. Our cries of “never again” have become hollow. The purpose of the ICC should be to facilitate deterrence in addition to punish perpetrators of grave crimes. The international community waits for these situations to become so grave that every action becomes too late. We cannot say we are students of history, when we continually are faced with the same situations over again and repeat the same mistakes. Our ability to ignore tragedy has come at the expense of hundreds of thousands of lives.

[1] A copy of this report can be found at ICC Coalition website which keeps an excellent record of documents pertaining to the ICC and the OTP: http://www.iccnow.org/?mod=browserdoc&type=14&year=2012

[2] This author questions some of the potential charging decisions being made by the ICC – for instance – the case involving North Korea and South Korea, is a clear act of aggression, but is under examination as a war crime. The death toll in this case is 22 people. The OTP is spending resources in Colombia, to assess whether the government is prosecuting the FARC properly. The author concurs that these cases are worthy of ICC attention, but questions why the ICC wont deal with situations that are ongoing which need immediate intervention. (Besides financial reasons).

[3] The great name debate: the U.S. recognizes the official name of the country as Burma. Myanmar is the name was introduced by the former military regime, 23 years ago, and is preferred by the current regime. President Obama reportedly did refer to the country as Myanmar out of diplomatic courtesy when meeting with Thein Sein, President in November 2012. See http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/19/politics/obama-asia-trip/index.html

[4] For a comprehensive report on the Rohingya situation, see Human Rights Watch, “The Government Could Have Stopped This” a report released July 31, 2012 and available athttp://www.hrw.org/reports/2012/07/31/government-could-have-stopped . Khaled Ahmed, “Who are the Rohingya?” The Express Tribune, July 31, 2012, available at: http://tribune.com.pk/story/415447/who-are-the-rohingya/

[5] Gianluca Mezzofiore, “Myanmar Rohingya Muslims: The Hidden Genocide” August 22, 2012, available at:http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/articles/376189/20120822/burma-myanmar-rohingya-muslims-ethnic-cleansing.htm

[6] UNHCR, Rohingya, available at: http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/country,,USCIS,,MMR,,3ae6a6a41c,0.html

[7] UN News Centre, “Independent UN expert calls on Myanmar to carry out latest human rights pledges.” November 20, 2012, available at: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=43550

[8] Amnesty International, “Myanmar: Abuses against Rohingya erode human rights progress.” July 19, 2012, available at: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/myanmar-rohingya-abuses-show-human-rights-progress-backtracking-2012-07-19

[9] Human Rights Watch, “Burma: Satellite Images Show Widespread Attacks on Rohingya” November 17, 2012 available at: http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/11/17/burma-satellite-images-show-widespread-attacks-rohingya

[10] Human Rights Watch, “Thailand: Don’t Deport Rohingya ‘Boat People’” January 2, 2013, available at:http://www.hrw.org/node/112247

[11] Ahlul Bayt News Agency, “Iran to Send 30 tons of Humanitarian Aid to Myanmar’s Rohingyas” January 5, 2013, available at: http://abna.ir/data.asp?lang=3&Id=378800

[12] ALJAZEERA, “Myanmar rejects talks on ethnic violence” October 31, 2012, available at:http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2012/10/2012103161130375846.html

[13] Although I thoroughly question the impact of sanctions and their utility, some sanctions were eased on Burma in the days leading up to the Presidential visit.

[14] See Thomas Fuller, “Myanmar Military Admits to Airstrikes on Kachin Rebels” New York Times, January 2, 2013, available at: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/03/world/asia/myanmar-military-admits-air-raids-on-kachin-rebels.html?smid=tw-nytimesworld&seid=auto&_r=1&. See also Associated Press, “Myanmar’s Kachin rebels accuse government of artillery attack on headquarter city” January 6, 2013, available at:http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/apnewsbreak-myanmars-kachin-rebels-accuse-government-of-artillery-attack-on-headquarter-city/2013/01/06/dc668006-57fa-11e2-b8b2-0d18a64c8dfa_story.htm

[15] For more information regarding this see Ammar Mohammed’s post for this month analyzing and commenting on the UNSC referral of the Sudan case.

AFP

January 6, 2012

YANGON — Myanmar democracy campaigner Aung San Suu Kyi on Sunday said she would not step in to help end worsening conflict between the army and ethnic Kachin rebels without government approval.

"It is up to the government. This case is being handled by the government at the moment," Suu Kyi told AFP when asked if she would get involved in efforts to resolve the fighting, after the army's use of air strikes drew international concern.

The Nobel laureate said she would need an official invitation to join peace negotiations aimed at quelling the raging civil war, which has overshadowed Myanmar's widely-praised political reforms.

Tens of thousands of people have been displaced by the conflict in the far north since June 2011, when a 17-year ceasefire between the government and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) broke down.

Myanmar's quasi-civilian regime, which took power in 2011 at the end of junta rule, has reached tentative peace deals with other major ethnic rebel groups, but an agreement with the Kachin has proved elusive.

President Thein Sein, a former general, in December 2011 ordered an end to military offensives against the rebels and continued hostilities have led to doubts over his ability to control the powerful armed forces.

According to the English language state-run New Light of Myanmar newspaper on Sunday, the Myanmar leader has instructed the military not to attack unless in "self-defence".

The report said Thein Sein urged "mutual trust" and "continued dialogue" in order to bring about peace.

Civil war has plagued parts of the country formerly known as Burma since it won independence from Britain in 1948.

Yup Zaw Hkaung, a local businessman and peace negotiator in the Kachin state capital Myitkyina, on Saturday appealed for Suu Kyi's involvement in ending the fighting, which has intensified in recent weeks.

He said the democracy activist had a "responsibility" to work for ethnic peace.

Suu Kyi, a former political prisoner turned lawmaker, used her maiden speech to parliament in July last year to call for greater protection of ethnic minority rights.

But the veteran activist has disappointed rights campaigners by not speaking out more vocally in support of another minority group, the Rohingya, in the violence-torn western state of Rakhine.

Iran has sent a consignment of humanitarian aid to ethnic Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar amid deafening silence of world bodies on atrocities being perpetrated against the community in the East Asian state, Press TV reports.

Head of the Rescue and Relief Organization of Iran's Red Crescent Society (IRCS), Mahmoud Mozaffar, said on Saturday that the 30-ton shipment includes foodstuff, tens, blankets and other basic commodities. 

He noted that he will fly to Myanmar aboard the cargo plane bound for Naypyidaw to supervise the distribution of humanitarian aid among Rohingya Muslims and study their situation. 

Mozaffar said an Iranian team will examine the need for setting up relief camps in the Rakhine state of Myanmar, and sending medical supplies to the Rohingya community. 

Some 800,000 Rohingyas are deprived of citizenship rights due to the policy of discrimination that has denied them the right of citizenship and made them vulnerable to acts of violence and persecution, expulsion, and displacement. 

The Myanmar government has so far refused to extricate the stateless Rohingyas in the western state of Rakhine from their citizenship limbo, despite international pressure to give them a legal status. 

Hundreds of Rohingyas are believed to have been killed and thousands displaced in recent attacks by Buddhist extremists. 

Buddhist extremists frequently attack Rohingyas and have set fire to their homes in several villages in Rakhine. Myanmar Army forces allegedly provided the extremist Buddhists containers of petrol for torching the houses of Muslim villagers, who are then forced to flee. 

Myanmar’s government has been accused of failing to protect the Muslim minority. 

Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi has also come under fire for her stance on the violence. The Nobel Peace laureate has refused to censure the Myanmarese military for its persecution of the Rohingyas. 

Rohingyas are said to be Muslim descendants of Persian, Turkish, Bengali, and Pathan origin, who migrated to Myanmar as early as the 8th century. 

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have issued separate statements, calling on Myanmar to take action to protect the Rohingya Muslim population against extremist Buddhists.

M.S. Anwar
RB News
January 5, 2013