By Dr. Maung Zarni
May 23, 2013

As chillingly reminiscent of the Third Reich and its Nazism, un-Buddhist, un-factual and ethnocidal as some may sound, these select statements are an accurate reflection of the sub-consciously neo-Nazi world of the ethnically dominant Burmese ruling elite and counter-elite who are forging ahead one grand coalition with their former jailers to turn Burma into 'the last Asian tiger' and build 'discipline flourishing democracy', apparently at the expense of religious and ethnic minorities who make up 40% of the population. 

Ironically, local Rakhines, generally widely disliked by both the Burmese public and the military, and the Rohingya Muslim, one of the world's 'most vulnerable' peoples, have been pitted against one another by the internally colonial State and Society in Burma, since 1940's.

1. Burma's Ambassador to the UN (Geneva)

Rohingya 'as ugly as ogres'

"In reality, Rohingya are neither Myanmar people nor Myanmar's ethnic group. It is quite different from what you have seen and read in the papers. (They are as ugly as ogres)."

- ex-Major Ye Myint Aung, then Consul General of Myanmar Consulate, Hong Kong and subsequent to sending his rather racist and derogatory written note to the UK-based diplomatic missions, was promoted to Ambassadorship in the UN, Geneva, 10 Feb 2009

Myanmar Presidential Inquiry Commission on the Rakhine Sectarian Violence at the Western donor-funded Myanmar Peace Center (29 Apr 2013) From left to right (Aung Naing Oo, Dr Kyaw Yin Hlaing (Secretary and President Thein Sein's adviser), Dr Yin Yin Nwe (ex-daughter-in-law of the late despot General Ne Win), Ko Ko Gyi (88 Generation Peace and Open Society Group) and Zarganar

Ibrahim Shah

RB Article

May 23, 2013

A Rohingya History seminar by Ko Htay Lwin Oo was held in Saudi Arabia in April 2013. Ko Htay Lwin Oo becomes popular as a Rohingya historian since the time he reportedly challenged Dr. Aye Chan; so-called Rakhine historian. The challenge was to prove that the most ancient indigenous race of Arakan is whether the Rohingya or the Rakhine based on historical facts and evidence. Recently Dr. Aye Chan has organized a conference at Mahidol University, Bangkok on the 9th of March 2013 with the help of some Rakhines living in Thailand. During the Q & A session, Ko Htay Lwin Oo has pointed out the fact that the first and foremost indigenous people of Arakan are Rohingyas by referring a primary source evidence of a book on Asian Research written in 17th century AD by a western scholar. Dr. Aye Chan was shocked and speechless to encounter with such concrete historical evidence. His deception and distortion of the true ancient Arakanese history was unmasked in front of many Asian history enthusiasts and international audience. It was a very shameful event for him that made him lost composure and at last concluded the conference abruptly. 

Ko Htay Lwin Oo’s aims of holding the Rohingya History seminars in Saudi Arabia are: 

a. Clarifying the existence of Rohingya in Arakanese history since 7th century AD with historical evidence. 

b. Increasing awareness on authentic ancient Arakanese history to every Rohingya so that their origin, identity, indigenous ethnicity and motherland are clearly defined. 

c. Revival of Rohingya true history worldwide so that it will eventually help every Rohingya from being exterminated. 

d. Proof of Rohingya Ancestry and Etymology so that Rohingya can challenge the Burmese-Mogh racists and their fellows accomplices such as Dr. Aye Chan, 88 generation student leader Ko Ko Gyi, Bengali-Mogh RNDP vet. Aye Maung and so on. 

Though Burmese historians claim that “Divide & Rule” was first introduced in Burma by the British Colonialism, it was actually exercised in Arakan in as early as 1784 when Burmese King Bodaw invaded and conquered Arakan. The Burmese intruder had instigated communal violence and religious hatred between Rohingya and Rakhine that resulted slaughtering many people from both ethnicities. King Bodaw Maung Waing had destroyed all cultural monuments which were erected since 7th century. When Burma was totally occupied by the British Empire 1885 the inter-communal violence was temporarily stopped until 1942. It was an unforgettable and horrific year for Rohingya as many thousands Rohingyas have lost their lives under the swords of Rakhines. The biggest blow to Rohingya has come in 1982 when Burmese dictator Ne Win drew the 1982 Citizenship Law. The sole purpose of the Citizenship Law is to strip the Rohingya off their fundamental and bona fide citizenship rights. It also imposed discriminatory policies in Education, Health Care, Job, Freedom of Movement and eventually made Rohingyas as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh on their own ancestral Land Arakan. 

During the Seminars, Ko Htay Lwin Oo has used various historical references and evidence in explaining Rohingya History and here are some of the evidences that he has referred. 

• The language of Ananda Chandra stone inscription which was written at the end of 8th century has 70% similarity with Rohingya Language. It is not even closely similar to either Burmese or Rakhine languages. 

Undoubtedly, it is the concrete evidence which indicates that the Ancient Arakan official language was Rohingya and they were the indigenous people of Arakan. 

Some of the historians unfortunately overlooked the primary source “Stone Inscription” and falsely claimed that Rohingya are the descendents of Arab. They traced the term “Rohingya” back to a shipwreck in the 8th century AD. According to their assumptions, after the Arab traders’ ships wrecked near Ramree Island, The Arab traders were ordered to be executed by the Arakanese King. Then, Arabs shouted in their language, “Rahma” which means “please show mercy to us”. Hence, these people were later called as “Raham”. Gradually it changed from “Raham” to “Rhohang” and finally to Rohingyas. MA Chowdhury 1995, pp. 7–8. 

“Brief observation throughout the evolution of world’s languages and their environment; if the Rohingya people were the generations of those shipwrecked Arabs, their language must be Arabic following their fathers’ roots or else, it is must be either Rakhine or Burmese following their mothers’ roots. In reality, the Rohingya language is much more distinct amongst these languages. Therefore, inarguably it further confirms that the Rohingya people were in Arakan before the advent of Arabs. Since that time in Arakanese Kingdoms and in their daily lives Rohingya language was used as official and mother tongue of Rohingya people.” 

Another historical evidence came from the research of the renowned European traveler Dr. Francis Buchanan (1762-1829 AD). In his major work “A Comparative Vocabulary of Some of the Languages Spoken in the Burma Empire” published in 1799, in the fifth volume of Asiatic Researches, is the book which provides one of the first major Western surveys of the languages of Burma. In his book, Arakan was mentioned as “Reng, Roung, Rossawn, Russawn, Rung” .It also stated that, “the native Mugs of Arakan called themselves ‘Yakin’, which name is also commonly given to them by the Burmese. The people of Pegu are named ‘Taling’. By the Bengal Hindus, at least by such of them as have been settled in Arakan, the country is called Rossawn. The Mahammedans who have long settled at Arakan call the country ‘Rovingaw’ and called themselves ‘Rooinga’ or native of Arakan. The Persians called it ‘Rkon’.” 

Some words from the book Asiatic Researches volume fifth by Dr. Francis Buchanan that was published in 1799 :

Hereby attached another dialectical chart of the difference of Rohingya and Bengalee dialects:

Chauvinistically, Burmese President Thein Sein accused of Rohingya as illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh and his hostile term for Rohingya is "Bengalee”. 

According to above dialectical chart, it is obvious that the Rohingya and the Bengalees are totally different in their languages. 

Quoting from British census, Charney says that in 1891 there were 126,586 Muslims in Arakan (most of whom were concentrated in Danra-Waddy, wherein sat the capital), comprising roughly 19% of the total population. This figure should not come as a surprise given the fact that in the 1830s, at least 30% of Arakan’s general population was Muslim. For the original number to increase to the 1891 number, only a growth rate of 2.24% was necessary. 

Recently, Burmese President Thein Sein has accused Rohingya for overpopulation in Arakan. The Rakhine Commission biased report which was released on 29th April 2013 has suggested the State to reduce the birth rate of Rohingya population. Following the commission’s report the Burmese government has immediately imposed a territorial Act “Two-Child” policy for Rohingyas in Maung Daw and Buthidaung on 17th May. The “Two-Child” policy is another strong evidence of gross human rights violation by Burmese government on Rohingyas. In fact today’s Rohingya population is merely 10 times more of 1891 census and government accusation of overpopulation is just a pretext to launch demographic warfare on Rohingya minority.

David Grunebaum

CNN

May 22, 2013

RB News 

May 22, 2013 

Ms. Rushanara Ali, a British MP, visited Arakan from 27th April 2013 to 2nd May 2013. During her trip, she observed the situation being faced by the displaced Rohingyas, the displaced Kamans and the displaced Rakhines. 

Ms. Rushanara Ali in cooperation with Mr. David Mepham, the UK director of Human Rights Watch, held a press conference at House of Lords on her experience during the trip to Arakan. British MPs, NGOs and the representatives from Rohingya organizations based in England attended the conference. 

During her trip to Arakan, on top of observing the situation of the displaced people in the camps, she met with Political Activists, MPs, the repesentatives from ethnic and religious representatives and the representatives from social organizations in Myanmar. 

During the press conference yesterday, she explained her experiences during her trip to Arakan in detail including the deaths of the pregnant women due to the denial of admission to the hospitals, the lack of clean and drinking water, the malnutrition and the shortages of foods in the IDP camps. Besides, she pointed out the challenges to the peaceful coexistence and necessity for the British government to pressure Myanmar government to rectify 1982 Citizenship Law and provide shelters to the displaced people in the coming moonsoon season. 

Then, the UK director of Human Rights Watch, Mr. David Mepham, explained the facts and details included in the 153-paged report released by Human Rights Watch (HRW) on 22nd April 2013. Besides, Mr. David Mepham, explained the reports in details on how the Rohingyas were systematically displaced and how the security forces cooperated with the extremists to attack Rohingyas.

Khin Maung Win

Associated Press

May 21, 2013

MEIKHTILA, Myanmar — A Myanmar court sentenced sevenMuslims to prison Tuesday — one of them to a life term — in the killing of a Buddhist monk amid deadly sectarian violence that was overwhelmingly directed against minority Muslims but has not led to any criminal trials against members of the country's Buddhist majority.

As the country tries to rebuild democracy after decades of military rule, the issue poses a dilemma for politicians who would lose support if they embraced justice for the unpopular Muslim minority. Opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who spent years under house arrest under the former ruling junta but now hopes to bring her party to power, spoke of the law but not of sectarian tensions when asked about the verdict.

At least 44 people were killed and 12,000 displaced, most of them Muslim, in more than a week of conflicts with Buddhists that began March 20 in the central Myanmar city of Meikhtila. A dispute at a Muslim-owned gold shop triggered rioting by Buddhists and retaliation by their Muslim targets, and the lynching of the monk after the gold shop was sacked enflamed passions, leading to large-scale violence.

While the violence is now contained, questions are arising over whether minority Muslims can find justice in overwhelmingly Buddhist Myanmar. Hundreds more Muslims have been killed, and tens of thousands have been made homeless, in violence across the country over the past year.

The sectarian strife has tarnished the image of Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace laureate who has been criticized for failing to speak out strongly in defense of the country's Muslims despite her long commitment to human rights. Her supporters, especially abroad, fear she is afraid to take a politically unpopular stand now that her party will mount a bid for power in the next general election in 2015. Prejudice against Muslims is widespread in Myanmar, and it is hard to find public figures willing to speak in defense of the Muslim community.

In a press conference Tuesday in the capital, Naypyitaw, she did not directly address the plight of the Muslim minority. Instead, she spoke in familiar terms about the rule of law when asked about the verdict.

"There is no transparency in Myanmar's justice system and there is too much influence from the administrative branch," she said, echoing the opinions of many human rights groups. "The judicial system has to be independent to be credible."

Suu Kyi has been criticized for failing to take a strong stand on attacks last year against the Muslim Rohingya community in western Rakhine state. Mobs of Buddhists armed with machetes razed thousands of homes, leaving hundreds dead and forcing 125,000 people, mostly Muslims, to flee,

When asked whether she was concerned about her reputation over the issue, she said she wasn't worried. "If I had to be concerned about my image, I should not have become a politician right from the beginning," she said.

The issue of ethnic strife also marred this week's Washington trip by President Thein Sein, a trip otherwise filled with accolades for the first leader of Myanmar to visit the White House in 47 years.

President Barack Obama praised Thein Sein on Monday for his efforts to lead his country back on the path to democracy, but also said he expressed concern to his counterpart about violence against Muslims. "The displacement of people, the violence directed toward them needs to stop," he said.

Thein Than Oo, a lawyer defending the men sentenced Tuesday, said one of his clients, Myat Ko Ko, was given life in prison for murder. Myat Ko Ko was also sentenced to an additional two years for unlawful assembly and two for religious disrespect.

Of the remaining defendants, one received a two-year sentence while the others received terms ranging from six to 28 years. Four of them, including a minor tried in a separate court, were convicted of charges including abetting murder. Two were convicted only on lesser counts. Mandalay Advocate General Ye Aung Myint confirmed the sentences.

"It's not fair!" shouted one of the convicted men shouted from inside a prison van as they were being driven away after the trial.

But members of a crowd of about 30 people outside the court house expressed unhappiness over the verdict for a different reason: They said they wished the death penalty had been applied against those who were convicted of killing the monk. Myanmar has the death penalty for premeditated murder, but the defendants were charged under a different murder category.

Thein Than Oo said he would await his clients' instructions on whether to appeal the verdicts.

The lynching of the Buddhist monk enflamed passions in Meikhtila, especially after photos circulated widely on social media of what was purported to be his body after he was pulled off a motorbike, attacked and burned. Monks are highly respected both for their religious devotion and as community leaders.

Entire Muslim neighborhoods were engulfed in flames, and charred bodies piled in the roads. The government declared a state of emergency and deployed the army to restore order, but the unrest later spread to other parts of central Myanmar.

In parliament in Monday, Religious Affairs Minister Hsan Hsint gave the official figures for casualties and damage from March 20 to 28: 44 people killed, 90 injured, 1,818 houses, 27 mosques and 14 Islamic schools destroyed. He said 143 people were arrested in connection with the violence, out of which 47 have been formally charged. Parliament on Tuesday formally approved the state of emergency.

The gold shop owner and two employees, all Muslims, were sentenced in April to 14 years in prison each on charges of theft and causing grievous bodily harm.

Hsan Hsint did not break down arrests and charges by religion, but no major cases involving Buddhist suspects have been announced.

Asked why only Muslims have faced trial in Meikhtila, Ye Aung Myint, the advocate general, said the courts were starting with the initial incidents that triggered the violence, and those involved in later incidents would be tried subsequently.

"There is no discrimination in bringing justice. We dealt with the first two cases and 11 more cases involving Buddhists will be dealt with very soon," he said, adding that about 70 people will face charges for murder, arson and looting.

Thein Sein's administration, which came to power in 2011 after half a century of military rule, has been heavily criticized for not doing enough to protect Muslims or stop the violence from spreading since it began with clashes between ethnic Rakhine Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya last year.

In a speech Monday at a university in Washington, Thein Sein vowed to ensure an end to the violence and justice for the perpetrators. He also called for a new era in U.S.-Myanmar relations.

Rights groups have criticized Thein Sein's U.S. visit, saying human rights injustices are still rampant in Myanmar despite progress made in freeing political prisoners, and in granting more freedom to political opponents and the media, among other changes.

U.S.-based Physicians for Human Rights released a report Monday detailing a gruesome massacre carried out by Buddhist mobs who hunted down and killed at least 24 Muslim students and teachers from an Islamic school as Meikhtila descended into anarchy in March. The report, based on interviews with survivors, accuses state authorities and police of standing idly by while the killings were carried out.

Richard Sollom, the report's lead author, called for Thein Sein to support an independent investigation into the killings and speak out more forcefully against anti-Muslim violence.

___

AP writers Aye Aye Win in Naypyitaw, Myanmar, and Matthew Pennington and Nedra Pickler in Washington contributed to this report.

Pattaya Mail

May 21, 2013

Thailand today asked Bangladesh to help verify the nationality of Rohingya ethnic people on its border with Myanmar.

Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra raised the issue during bilateral talks with her Bangladeshi counterpart Sheikh Hasina on the sidelines of the Second Asia-Pacific Water Summit.

The unsettled issue of Rohingya minority group between Bangladesh and Myanmar has led to continued departures of numbers of the ethnic people from Myanmar, many of whom landed illegally on Thai soil.

Ms Yingluck expressed her appreciation regarding increased trade and investment between Thailand and Bangladesh after her recent visit to the South Asian country.

In a separate meeting with UN General Assembly president Vuk Jeremic, the Thai prime minister sought the UN’s cooperation on food stability and health, calling for exchanges of knowledge on the two significant issues to minimise the gap between the rich and the poor.

Mr Jeremic invited the Thai premier to express her views on social and economic issues at a UN forum in New York.

(Continued from Part 1 http://goo.gl/L0WJt) 

Maung Aurther 

RB History 

April 24, 2013

Rakhine False’s Claim (continuation of the previous title)

However, a reasonable answer was given by Dr. Aye Chan (the then U Aye Chan) under the title “Assessment of Rakhine History” in “Rakhine Tasaung magazine 1975-76.” He mentioned 

“All inscriptions before 10th century were Indian literature. Not only the ruling class but their subjects also used that literature. Burmese inscriptions were found only after 10th century. For instance, Desaraza Stone inscription! That was a swift change. There might have been a rapid and momentous political and cultural revolution in Arakan during (early) 10th century A.D. So it is difficult for us to say the present Rakhine are the same as those settlers before 10th century. It is an important issue remains to clear up for coming generation researchers.” 

What Dr. Aye Chan mentioned here alone is sufficient for one with a right mind to understand that the people before 10th century were not same to the present Rakhines (of Tibeto-Burman Group). That’s to say they were Indians (same to the present Rohingyas). To be clearer on what had happened in Arakan around 10th century, Maurice Collis mentioned 

“The area now known as North Arakan has been for many years before the 8th century the seat of Hindu dynasties; in 788 A.D., a new dynasty, known as the Chandras, founded the city of Wesali [the dynasty then] came to an end in 957 A.D., being overwhelmed by a Mongolian invasion."… (Maurice Collis, Arakan's Place in the Civilization of the Bay, p. 486) *** 

However, it is cheering to read Narinjara News Agency led by some Rakhine scholars living in Bangladesh admitting in the history section “their (Rakhines’) forebears entered the country only in the 9th Century CE as the advance guard of the Myanmar people.” (http://goo.gl/7lwvF) 

In contrast to some present day writer’s unsubstantiated claim that Rakhine is an Indo-Aryan race, a Senior Rakhine Politician and Historian U Hla Tun Pru said, Rakhine and Burman have affinity in blood and religion. He quoted a Burmese adage to substantiate his remise that Burman, Bran, Rakhine, Yaw, and Tavoy . . . . . . all together seven groups none but Burman races. (History of Arakan; Combination of his articles; published by U Min Lwin). 

Exposing the Unsubstantiated Claims 

Yet, there are Rakhine leaders with the vested-interest who are blindly trying to stick to the baseless claim of having Indo-Aryan origin. These Rakhines will end up humiliating themselves for their claim to have Aryan blood and attempt to relate them with the earlier Indian Kings. 

GENETICS TESTS on mtDNAs and Y-DNAs on Rakhines to confirm their origin, a thorough archeological survey in the ancient sites in Arakan and subsequent open and honest disclosing of the findings by the scholars will expose all the purported lies of Rakhine bigotry scholars and might reveal many more hidden secrets of Arakan. But all these do not seem to be happening in the near future due to the involvements of local and global powers behind the exclusion of Rohingya people. 

By far, it has become evident that the indigenous people of Arakan were/are Indo-Aryans (i.e. Indians) followed by Mongoloid Tibeto-Burman in 957 CE. And if you are to consider Rohingyas as the illegal Bengali settlers of British colonial time, a question that may likely to come on your mind is “where have all the descendents of the indigenous Indo-Aryans of Arakan gone today? There is no historical record at all that says Indo-Aryans were exterminated by the invading Mongoloid Tibeto-Burmans after their invasion of Arakan in 957CE. As so, it is not hard to understand that while the kingdoms had shifted from the hands of Indo-Aryans to the hands of Tibeto-Burman, Indo-Aryans continued their usual lives as normal people. Similarly, it is also not difficult to confess that Rohingyas are the bona-fide descendents of the indigenous Indo-Aryans of Arakan unless you, intentionally, try to eradicate the true history. 

Claims on the Ground of Religion 

Moreover, another excuse given by a few self-centered Rakhine bigotry scholars to make the kings and the people before 10th century as if from their own people/race is based on the ground the religion: Buddhism. Read the following. 

"The earliest dawn of the history of Arakan reveals the base of the hills, which divide the lower course of the Kaladan and Lemro rivers, inhabited by sojourners from India, governed by chiefs who claim relationship with the rulers of Kapilavastu. 

Their subjects are divided into the four castes of the older Hindu communities; the kings and priests study the three Vedas; the rivers, hills, and cities bear names of Aryan origin; and the titles assumed by the king and queen regent suggest connection with the Solar and Lunar dynasties of India." (Dr. Emil Forchhammer, A Report on the History of Arakan, Page. 1) 

“Refer back at the evidence given by Maurice Collis mentioned and shown with *** above” 

….."The Chandra kings were upholders of Buddhism, guarding and glorifying the Mahamunni [sic] shrine; their territory extended as far north as Chittagong" [then known as Chatigrama], "The conclusion to be drawn from this MS is that Wesali [Vaishali] was an easterly Hindu kingdom of Bengal, following the Mahayanist form of Buddhism and that both government and people were Indian as the Mongolian influx had not yet occurred." (Maurice Collis, Arakan's Place in the Civilization of the Bay, Page. 486) 

Therefore, we can conclude from the above-mentioned evidences that the people in Arakan before 10th century were the followers of Hinduism, Buddhism and Animism. However, in mentioning so, what some selfish Rakhine historians fail to admit are: 

(1) The Hindus, Buddhists and Animists during those periods were only Indians (as Rohingyas are today), not Mongoloid Tibeto-Burman (as Rakhines are today). 

(2) The Buddhism in Arakan before 10th century was in the form of Mahayana, not Theravada (or Hinayana) that Rakhines follow today. 

To be continued………. 

Maung Aurther is an activist. He can be reached at dhannyawadi@gmail.com.

Paul Eckert

Reuters

May 20, 2013

President Barack Obama urged the president of Myanmar on Monday to take steps to halt violence against Muslims in his country and move ahead with economic and political reforms.

Thein Sein became the first head of Myanmar to visit the White House in 47 years, and he and Obama sat down for talks in the Oval Office.

Obama said the Myanmar leader had assured him that he intends to move forward on releasing more political prisoners and institutionalizing political reforms that have already taken place. Thein Sein also vowed to resolve ethnic conflicts by incorporating all communities into the political process, Obama said.

"I also shared with President Sein our deep concern about communal violence that has been directed at Muslim communities inside Myanmar. The displacement of people, the violence directed towards them needs to stop," Obama said.

Sein, speaking through a translator, said his country faces a "daunting task" in carrying out reforms but said for democracy to flourish in Myanmar the reforms must be carried out in the years ahead.

Myanmar will need the "assistance and understanding" of the international community, including the United States, as it goes through the process, he said.

Rights groups and some U.S. lawmakers fear Obama has moved too quickly since forging a dramatic breakthrough in relations in 2011 after half a century of military rule in Myanmar, also known as Burma.

U.S. officials argue that reforms by Myanmar's quasi-military government - freeing democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi and hundreds of political prisoners, scrapping censorship, legalizing trade unions and protests - are transformative and deserve support from Obama, who confirmed the end of Myanmar's pariah status with the West with a landmark visit last November.

However, ethnic or sectarian violence, particularly in the western state of Rakhine, has worsened since Washington started easing sanctions, and a Reuters special report published last week found apartheid-like policies segregating minority Muslims in prison-like ghettos there.

At least 192 people died last year in violence between Buddhists in Rakhine and Rohingya Muslims, who are denied citizenship by Myanmar. Most of the victims, and the 140,000 people made homeless in the attacks, were Muslims.

(Additional reporting by Steve Holland and Jeff Mason; Editing by Alistair Bell, David Brunnstrom and Eric Beech)

AFP

May 20, 2013

Sittwe, Myanmar: Myanmar's victims of sectarian strife were spared the full force of Cyclone Mahasen, but many are now returning to flimsy tents in flood-prone camps with the monsoon just weeks away.

Myanmar's Rakhine state is pockmarked with makeshift settlements for up to 140,000 people - mainly Rohingya Muslims - displaced by sectarian unrest last year that claimed about 200 lives and saw whole villages razed.

Many were evacuated last week ahead of Cyclone Mahasen, which later veered into neighbouring Bangladesh. But most have now returned, according to Kirsten Mildren of the UN's Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

"They are actually no better off than where they were last week before the storm," she said, adding the cyclone was simply a "dress rehearsal" for the rainy season -- set to hit in a few weeks.

Many of the camps consist of little more than ramshackle bivouacs of bamboo and tarpaulin flung up in soggy paddy fields.

Sanitation is a key concern. Rain last week left standing water in many of the camps and Mildren said water-borne diseases such as cholera were a particular fear.

"Thousands are sheltering in areas that make them vulnerable and we need to find solutions to this, " she said. "If one week of rain has done this, imagine what it's going to be like in a couple of months."

Many Rohingya are completely reliant on humanitarian aid, with an almost total segregation of Buddhist and Muslim communities.

A lack of adequate food has also raised fears about malnutrition among children, many of whom have gone without access to education for almost a year.

"It makes me sad just to talk about our life here," 55-year-old Hla Hla Myint told AFP, describing conditions at the Mansi camp near the state capital Sittwe.

"Ants, leeches and earthworms come into our tents. We are living in the water. I am so sad. We have no food," she said.

While the former factory worker sought shelter from the cyclone with her two daughters in a local school, her husband and son stayed behind to guard their tent -- all they had to protect them from the monsoon.

Myanmar views its population of roughly 800,000 Rohingya as illegal Bangladeshi immigrants and denies them citizenship - they are considered by the United Nations to be one of the world's most persecuted minorities.

Attacks against Muslims - who make up an estimated four percent of the population - have spread to other parts of Myanmar, overshadowing widely praised political reforms as the country emerges from decades of military rule.

After months of warnings from rights groups and aid organisations, local authorities are now scrambling to build enough wooden shelters before the tents are swamped.

"I don't think we have much time left -- just over a month. These houses have to be finished in that time," Rakhine government spokesman Win Myaing told AFP.

He said about 70 percent of the required shelters had been built, although he could not provide exact figures.

The UN's refugee agency, UNHCR, which has previously warned of a "humanitarian catastrophe", said some 70,000 people most at risk from the monsoon would be housed in new wooden blocks.

That is in addition to shelters for 12,000 people already built by UNHCR along with an unknown number constructed by the government, according to spokeswoman Vivian Tan.

The semi-permanence of the wooden structures has caused concern that they will prolong segregation of communities - a solution, albeit temporary, that was advocated by a recent official report on the unrest.

Independent analyst Richard Horsey said a "huge challenge" would be to provide aid "without making these camps into permanent settlements".

Tan said the aim was to eventually return the displaced to their old communities.

"This cannot go on for a long time. Solutions will need to be found in their own villages," she told AFP.

At Bawdupha camp near Sittwe, more than 7,500 Rohingya have moved into 20 new barracks, each comprising eight one-family rooms. A dozen more are being built, but residents worry whether they would withstand a cyclone.

"The house is a temporary construction, not strong. I am concerned if there is a storm, it will be swept away," said Muhibulah, 55, who has been living in the camp with his wife and three children for almost a year.

Like many Rohingya he has little faith in the authorities.

"We don't trust the government. Absolutely not," he said.

Maha Min Khant 

RB News 

May 20, 2013

Opening of the Mosques and Locking Down Again 

On 15th May 2013, the district administration and the township administration of Maung Daw asked local Rohingyas to open some mosques that had been locked down since June 2012 and pray in the mosques to get protected from Mahasen cyclone. The mosques were the main Mosque of Maung Daw in Quarter 1, two mosques in Quarter 2 and one in the village of Maung Ni. 

People were glad to see the mosques open and to have permission to pray in the mosques that had been locked for almost a year. As the cyclone changed its direction off the Arakan coast, Maung Daw authority locked the mosques down again at 2PM on 18th January 2013. Facing this situation, the local Rohingya Muslims in Maung Daw are feeling extremely sad and let down according to a Rohingya in Maung Daw. 

The Arbitrary Arrests of Rohingyas Due to Their Denial to Be Bengalized 

On 13th May 2013, Mohammed Salam S/o Syed Ahmed (45), from the village of Khawar Bil (Kyi Kan Pyin), Maung Daw, was arrested by NaSaKa (Border Security Force) as he refused to participate in the biometric process of forced Bengalization. On 18th May 2013, he was charged under the section “Nga/Nya” according to his family. 

It has been announced that the authority will start Bengalizing Rohingyas by force from 21st May 2013 onwards. Therefore, many Rohingyas are afraid and trying to escape the injustice for another country. 

Call Yourself Bengali, We Will Issue All Kind of Permission 

Rohingyas have been living in an open prison called Arakan for more than two decades. Rohingyas have been immense trouble as they have been deprived of such Basic Human Rights as freedom of marriage, freedom of family planning and freedom of medical treatments etc. They have been forced by NaSaKa to pay Kyat 10,000 to Kyat 100,000 to get permission to practice such basic human rights on top of that they have been tortured, persecuted and arbitrarily arrested and imprisoned in the hands of NaSaKa, Police, Military, SaRaPha (Military Intelligence), township administration and village administration for decades. 

Nowadays, at the gates of the NaSaKa Camps in Kyi Kan Pyin, Maung Daw, there are signboards stating that we will issue you travel permission, marriage permission and other sorts of permissions only when you give your finger prints calling yourself a Bengali. People will never call themselves Bengalis because they are not. Even though, people agree to do so, it is very difficult to say if they will live up to their promise because they like to abuse others. Therefore, people are really worried according to a villager.

(Translated into English by Maung Aurther)

Hasan Kamoonpuri

Oman Daily Observer

May 20, 2013 

AFTER the initial euphoria that followed some reforms by the civilian-led government of Myanmar in 2011, it’s again in the news; this time for the killing of Rohingya minority. The hopes of Rohingyas that much needed reforms on their citizenship rights were on the way, the first for 65 years, have been dashed.

Myanmar’s injustice is on full display in its Rakhine state where 140,000 displaced Rohingyas in makeshift camps are facing very hard times. Recent rains and floods have further worsened the conditions of the Rohingyas, who have faced torture, neglect and repression since 1948 when Myanmar achieved independence. More recently, the violence since June 2012 has left over 4,000 Rohingyas dead, a further 8,000 missing, over 140,000 homeless and 700 women abused.

The root cause is Myanmar’s racist attitude for not recognising one million Rohingyas as its own citizens, which has long made them vulnerable to discrimination, violence and persecution, expulsion and displacement by authorities. Rohingyas, who migrated to Myanmar as early as the 8th century, are regarded as illegal immigrants, rather than one of its 135 official ethnic groups.

Alarmingly enough, at a time when the UN has described these oppressed people “as one of the most persecuted minorities in the world”, some self-styled champions of human rights are not only mute over the continued atrocities, but have lifted sanctions and forged trade ties with Myanmar. At a time when the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) has confirmed Myanmar government’s complicity in ethnically cleansing entire Rohingya towns and villages, the European Union has decided to lift many sanctions on Myanmar.

The US has already lifted the 1996 visa ban that barred most government officials, including President Thein Sein, from travelling to the US. More recently, the Washington eased another set of sanctions against Myanmar despite the ongoing persecution of Rohingyas, which flies in the face of their assertions that they are supporters of human rights.

The latest promotion of their ties coincides with a new surge of violence against Rohingyas. The UK is against giving any coverage to the plight of Rohingyas in the press. So instead of engaging constructively in Myanmar with the supporters of peace, they continue to engage unhelpfully.

Egypt’s newly appointed Grand Mufti Dr Shawqi Allam, Grand Imam of Al Azhar Dr Ahmed el Tayyeb and Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei have condemned this massacre, describing it as "shame on humanity". They have also expressed readiness to dispatch humanitarian aid and called on all peace-loving parties to act to lift the injustice against these oppressed people.

Indeed, all justice-loving people need to raise an international chorus condemning the silence on these crimes and the use of human rights as a tool for political gains. HRW blames security forces, government officials and monks for fomenting ethnic cleansing and says the dead Rohingyas have been secretly buried in mass graves. The campaign of ‘ethnic cleansing’ amounts to “crimes against humanity”, adds HRW.

Thousands of Rohingyas, including women and children, have put their lives at risk by taking to the seas — often in unsafe craft — hoping to reach Thailand and Malaysia. Hundreds of refugees have been lost at sea. The UN says a boat carrying 100 Rohingyas capsized off western Myanmar on May 13 at midnight and many were feared drowned and dead. Just imagine the helpless cries of small children, women and men at the dead of night in the midst of sea! Where is our sense of outrage!

Amnesty International as well as the world’s foremost Buddhist leader the Dalai Lama have condemned the attacks on Rohingyas, who account for five per cent of Myanmar’s 60 million people.

Vijay Nambiar, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Adviser on Myanmar, said the violence is “clearly targeted” with “brutal efficiency” against Rohingyas. The UN Special Rapporteur in Myanmar, Tomas Quintana, said he received reports that Myanmar’s soldiers stood by “while atrocities have been committed before their very eyes” in the city of Meiktila.

A Tragic Account of Noor Bi Shuna 

- A Rohingya Woman Who Lost 31 Relatives 

RB News 

May 19, 2013

Sittwe, Arakan - The internally displaced Rohingyas from the camps in Pauktaw Township left for the camp of Sin Tet Maw by boats in search of a safer place ahead of the storm on 13th May 2013. 

Of them, a boat carrying more than 100 displaced Rohingyas sunk in the river around 2AM on Monday, 13th May 2013. Therefore, 81 people died and 43 people survived. Out of them, on the day, only two dead bodies were recovered. And of the 79 dead bodies, six were found on the coast of Merullah (Myint-Hlut), southern Maung Daw and other 31 dead bodies on the coast of Teknaf, Bangladesh. 

A 68-year-old Rohingya woman, Noor Bi Shuna D/o Shor Ali, from the village of Domfara, Pauktaw Township, is one of the people survived. According to her, there were 31 family members including her children, grandchildren and other close relatives with her on the boat. Though all the 31 family members had died while the boat sunk, she floated on the water and remained alive. On 15th May 2013 morning, around 11AM, she was found and rescued by the fishermen in the village of Bor Ga Dil, Sittwe. 

Now, she is sheltered by the people of the village. She is extremely worried, weeping and feeling depressed according to a villager.

(Translated into English by Maung Aurther)

Press TV

May 18, 2013

Iran’s Ambassador to the United Nations Mohammad Khazaei has urged a swift end to the violence and the breach of human rights against the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.

In a meeting with the ambassadors of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Khazaei said suppression and violence against Muslims are taking place despite Myanmar’s claims of democratization and reform. 

He criticized a lack of consensus and coordination among Muslim countries to adopt a resolution in condemnation of the atrocities against the Muslims in Myanmar, stressing the importance for Myanmar’s government to take effective measures to stop the violence. 

The Iranian envoy further stated that the silence and inaction of the international community have resulted in the further violation of the Muslims’ rights in the Southeast Asian country. 

He urged the UN General Assembly to hold a special meeting on Myanmar and pass a resolution to stop the brutalities against the Muslims. 

He also called on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to dispatch an independent fact-finding mission to Myanmar to probe human rights abuses and identify the perpetrators behind the acts of violence there. 

The OIC countries should urge Myanmar’s government to arrest and punish the violators of human rights and the perpetrators of violence against the Muslims, he pointed out. 

Rohingya Muslims have faced torture, neglect, and repression in Myanmar for many years. 

About 800,000 Rohingyas in the western state of Rakhine 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, persecution, expulsion, and displacement. 

Hundreds of Rohingyas are believed to have been killed and thousands of others displaced in recent attacks by extremist Buddhists.