By Editorial

Saudi Gazette

October 7, 2013

US President Barack Obama spoke of the “crushing poverty and persecution” being faced by Burmese Muslims, known as Rohingyas, on his trip to Burma last year. “This is a very serious problem for the world community,” former US President Jimmy Carter said last month referring to the continuing violence against Muslims in this Buddhist nation of 60 million. During their visit to Burma, Carter and two other world leaders — former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari, and former Norwegian Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland — also called for “an end to impunity“ to those who indulge in “these senseless, destructive, repeated acts of brutality.”

Last Wednesday we saw an extreme manifestation of this brutality in Thandwe, a township in western Rakhine state where four days of violence left five Muslims dead, forcing terrified women and children to hide in forests. One person was mutilated and burned so severely that his son couldn’t recognize the body. Around 250 people have been killed and more than 140,000 rendered homeless in several outbreaks of inter-religious violence around the country since June 2012.

Actually, to call it sectarian violence will be misleading. It is state-supported ethnic cleansing, according to many impartial observers. When a government casts a group of people as terrorists and traitors, things become easy for firebrands who preach that Islam is a threat and describe mosques as “enemy bases.”

This explains why many of those responsible for the worst of the bloodshed remain unpunished and security forces stood idle as Buddhist mobs chased down their victims.

Muslims have faced repression in Burma since it achieved independence in 1948, though not on a scale inviting international outcry. Their plight can be traced to the denial of citizenship for them. Burmese Constitution closes all options for Rohingyas to become citizens on grounds that their ancestors didn’t live there when the land came under British rule in the 19th century. Burmese government and extremist Buddhist groups claim that the Rohingyas are migrants from Bangladesh, while the Rohingyas point to ample evidence of centuries of settlement in the region.

So it is not difficult to think of the broad outlines of a solution to the problem. First,the government should rein in Buddhist nationalist movements like 969 and the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP). Those responsible for inciting murderous violence should get exemplary punishment. As for the long-term measures, Burmese President Thein Sein has himself indicated that he would consider policies “ranging from resettlement of displaced populations to granting of citizenship.”

The world community should remind Thein Sein of the offer he made in advance of Obama's visit to Burma. Western countries will be committing a grievous mistake if they accepted the government’s narrative of democratic transition and kept quiet as extremist groups went ahead with their plans for ethnic cleansing.

They should make it clear that this is Burma's problem, not Bangladesh's just because Rakhine where a majority of Rohingyas live shares a border with that country. It is true that from time to time, Rohingyas had fled by boat to villages in Bangladesh. But this was to escape persecution, not because Bangladesh spread a welcome mat for them. It would be unfair to ask Bangladesh to pay the price for Burma's abdication of its responsibility to protect the person and property of its citizens or world community's indifference.

By Ei Ei Toe Lwin

Myanmar Times

October 7, 2013

Thura U Shwe Mann says country should recognise the efforts of Rakhine people to safeguard the country’s borders and culture.

Parliamentary speaker Thura U Shwe Mann has praised ethnic Rakhine people for safeguarding Myanmar’s western border, as Rakhine representatives called for temporary ID cards to be scrapped and the right to form a people’s militia.

During a meeting with members of the Rakhine community in Yangon on September 29, Thura U Shwe Mann said parliamentarians have a responsibility to “support” the Rakhine people.

“It’s not enough to praise [Rakhine people] with words. Let’s cooperate to carry out our duties for the development of Rakhine State, and to physically and mentally support the people,” Thura U Shwe Mann said.

He also urged respect for the efforts of the Rakhine people to safeguard the country’s land and maritime boundaries.

“It’s not an easy task to take care of national sovereignty, territorial integrity, culture, traditions, customs and religion,” he said. “I appreciate the attempts of the Rakhine people to protect Myanmar ... despite the difficulties.”

Rakhine representatives used the meeting to explain the difficulties and challenges they face in regard to security, the rule of law, immigration, education and health.

They also said that parts of the state, particularly Maungdaw, Buthidaung and parts of Sittwe township, have been occupied by illegal immigrants.

“Illegal immigrants are using boats to enter Rakhine State through creeks and rivers before the national census in 2014,” said lawyer U Bo Min Phyu.

He urged the speaker to take action by bolstering the state’s security forces and scrutinising individuals holding temporary identity cards, also known as white cards.

“White cards were not provided for in the 2008 constitution, nor were they released in 1982,” the lawyer said. “White cards are unlawful.”

Furthermore, Rakhine representatives called for the establishment of a “people’s militia” to protect the state themselves.

“We’ll guard against all, making ourselves safe,” said Sittwe lawyer U Thar Pwint. “It’s fair for us to defend ourselves and our country in our own right.”

He also called on Thura U Shwe Mann to do all he could to solve the unrest that has wracked Rakhine State since the outbreak of communal violence in June 2012.

The parliamentary speaker promised to submit a report outlining all of the concerns raised at the meeting to the President’s Office and parliament.

He conceded that there is still no rule of law or peace in Rakhine State.

“If [someone] asks if there is an atmosphere of peace, tranquillity or rule of law in Rakhine State [the answer is] ‘no’,” Thura U Shwe Mann said.

He also promised to take action against officials failing to follow the law, or violating it.

“I believe that inviting us to this meeting means that you trust and rely on both me and members of parliament,” he said. “Our country was left behind for many years because we didn’t trust each other and lacked cooperation. Let’s build trust, cooperate and work together for the development of the state.”

By Zin Linn

Asian Tribune

October 7, 2013

Recently on October 1, President Thein Sein made a tour in Burma/Myanmar's western state of Rakhine which was the first visit by the president since the Rakhine sectarian conflict occurred in 2012. On his arrival in Maungtaw, the president met with both Muslim and Rakhine communities, urging them to keep on residing in peaceful coexistence.

Also on October 1, President U Thein Sein sent a message to the Conference of the Leaders of Five Faith. In his massage, he said, “Individual freedom or the basic foundation of democracy is to enjoy freedom without harming others. The Constitution of Myanmar fully guarantees freedom of religion as the fundamental rights of citizens. We all should never misuse this noble idea of the freedom of religion as a springboard for any kind of extremism and fueling hatred.”

However, looking back in the near past in May and June 2012, sectarian violence in western Myanmar had taken place. As a result of unrest, riots and arson between groups of raging peoples, killing 50, wounding 54 and burning down 2230 houses and 14 religious buildings till 14 June, the president’s office says in its statement (1/2012) dated 25 October 2012. The incident also left 61,462 people homeless forcing victims to take shelter at relief camps, the statement mentioned.

In order to bring back immediate peace and stability, the Rakhine State government issued Article 144 of the Criminal Code of Law in some townships in Rakhine State. The president also declared a state of emergency by issuing ordinance in agreement with the constitution, the statement said. Moreover, the government in cooperation with local people as well as police and army personnel took measures to restore the rule of law, the president’s office says in its statement (1/2012). According to the statement, the state of emergency was declared under the law with the approval of the Union Parliament.

According to the then president office’s statement, the government was under serious criticism over the affair – described as an abuse of human rights by some international organizations – and the case had been taken to the United Nations. The government of Myanmar had to defend against those criticisms through all possible means, the statement said. Concurrently, the statement (1/2012) said that the government had to make efforts to get humanitarian aid for temporary shelter, provision of food and health care and rehabilitation of victims.

According to the then government press statement, riots erupted in Kyaukpyu, Minbya, Myebon and Mrauk-U townships all of a sudden in Rakhine State, leaving 12 dead, 50 wounded, 1948 houses and eight religious buildings in ashes with substantial numbers of homeless people till 24 October, 2012. However, The Associated Press said that at least 56 people killed and 1,900 homes destroyed in renewed ethnic violence in western Myanmar as the government warned perpetrators and the international community appealed for calm.

Myanmar achieved the support and international recognition of its drive for smooth transition in the democratization process within a short period of time, the statement underlined. While the international community was watching the continuing progress in the country with awareness, the Rakhine riots and violence caused a great impact on the national integrity and interest.

In last July, President U Thein Sein has urged the Interfaith Friendship Group and Myanmar National Human Rights Commission to cooperate with the government to help end the conflict the two communities in the country, the state-run media reported.

He insisted that the conflict between Buddhists and Muslims is being exaggerated and that it could damage the international image of the country and its reforms. The constitution of the country grants protection to the four major religions including Islam, said U Thein Sein. The racial discrimination has no place in Myanmar, he added.

He urged the Interfaith Friendship Group to work in partnership with the government. The first priority is the rehabilitation of the areas where the conflicts broke out, he said. According to him, his government has already spent over 6 billion kyats (US$6.1 million) on delivering aid to over 100,000 victims in cooperation with the international organizations.

He said action had been taken against the criminals involved in the conflicts and investigations would continue.

The second priority task is to prevent a repeat of such conflicts and the Interfaith Friendship Group is required to be part of the task to form region/state/township-level groups. He called on Myanmar Human Rights Commission to develop human rights education to increase the public’s awareness of their rights. The third priority, he said, is to work towards a resolution on the origin of the conflict.

Hence, the government needs more effective measures to be taken for the rule of law and community peace and tranquility with the collaborative efforts of the police, army and local inhabitants. Even though the government declared through its statement that there are persons and organizations who are manipulating the incidents in Rakhine State from behind the scenes, it could not find out the real culprits. As a result, the statement called for the manipulators to be exposed and legal action taken against them.

The United States has condemned the latest fatal attacks against minority Muslims in western Burma and urging authorities to do more to tackle the long-standing sectarian tension within reach. The U.S. Embassy in Rangoon's statement on 2 October followed several days of violence that has killed at least five Muslims, several injured, and hundreds of civilians displaced in violence that included arson attacks destroying dozens of homes and several mosques.

The statement also calls on religious and civil society leaders, and all citizens throughout the country, to stand against continued violence targeting Muslim communities, and to promote understanding, mutual respect, and peaceful co-existence among all people in this diverse country.

It also urges the Myanmar government and local authorities to do more ensuring progress in security, rule of law, justice, humanitarian access, and reconciliation in Rakhine State to stem the sources of on-going tension, and create conditions for sustainable peace and development in the nation.

The ongoing sectarian violence in western Myanmar also looks as if a threat at-hand to destabilize the current reforms endorsed by the President Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government.

By Farish A. Noor

New Straits Times

October 6, 2013

NATION-BUILDING: It must ensure the rights of all communities, including the Rohingya, are protected

ONCE again, violence is flaring in the state of Rakhine, Myanmar. Once again, the headlines are full of stories about the violence meted out to the Rohingya minority.

That the issue exceeds the compartmentalised borders of Myanmar is evident for all to see, as it has contributed to a mass exodus across the frontier and now impacts on other countries like Bangla-desh, and even the rest of Southeast Asia, as a result of the movement of boat people.

Yet, the root of the problem can be traced back to a singular issue that is not unique to Myanmar, or to the Rohingya themselves.

It is, in fact, the result of a culmination of historical and contemporary variable factors, that include the role played by the colonial administration of the past in dividing of Burmese society along ethnic lines; the distortions made to Burmese society as a result of migration during colonial rule; the manner in which some communities (such as the Karens) were seen as being treated favourably at the expense of other communities, etc.

Compounding matters is the rise of ethno-nationalism in Myanmar today that presents the country in a singular hue as a Burman-Buddhist nation that has a singular past, present and future.

Yet, any historian would question such a thesis for the historical facts show that Myanmar's society consists of many other communities as well, apart from the ethnic Burmans. There are the Shans, Chins, Karens and others who have been in the land for centuries, and who have a culture, language and identity of their own.

Crucially, historical records show that the land of Arakan was once a polity in itself, and that even as late as the 18th century, European vessels on their way to the spice islands had stopped in Arakan (Rakhine) to trade and to re-supply: thus suggesting that the people of Rakhine are not exactly new migrants as some Burman nationalists have suggested.

But why do some countries still belabour the point about their complex pasts and identities, and remain uncomfortable with dealing with plurality in their midst?

Myanmar is in need of a multicultural policy that accepts the fact that while Myanmar is predominantly Buddhist-Burman, it also consists of other ethnic and religious groups, that include Hindus, Christians and Muslims, too.

After all, predominantly-Hindu India has come to accept, and even celebrate, its linguistic-religious-ethnic diversity; as has predominantly-Muslim Indonesia.

When facing the rise of narrow ethno-nationalism in any country and in any context, we need to bear in mind that these are fundamentally political movements that seek to exclude as much as they include and, more often than not, the underlying roots of such mass mobilisation are political-economic rather than cultural or religious.

My own concern about what is happening in Myanmar today is that the campaign against ethnic and religious minorities is being carried out by a small group of extremists in the name of Buddhism, which unfortunately sullies the name of Buddhism in general, in the same way that acts of violence carried out by small numbers of Muslims damage the image of Islam in general.

As Myanmar makes its slow transition to democracy and attempts to win the support and recognition of the international community, it, too, has to learn that there are some international standards and norms that have to be met before recognition is achieved.

Among these is the need to create the conditions where a plural society can express itself via a democratic process where all communities feel they are represented in the nation-building project.

Myanmar only has to look at its own plural past to note that this is possible, for up to the late 1940s other non-Burman ethnic and religious minorities were indeed represented in government, in parties, in the armed forces and the business community.

Nation-building narratives only work when they accurately reflect the realities of society on the ground, and the reality is that Myanmar is actually a culturally rich and complex society, that has every reason to be thankful of its rich and diverse identity.

By Andrew Day 

RB News 

October 6, 2013 

Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh - A young registered Rohingya Refugee was killed by villagers on October 2nd 2013. 

His Name was Rahim Ullah, the son of Hakim Ali. He lived in Kutupalong Refugee Camp Ukhiya. Shed 30, block C. His MRC No #19530. 

Ullah had been working as a security guard for a fisheries service in Fultala Satkaria in Chittagong for months without getting paid. Needing money to get his mother released from prison, he asked the fisheries master for payment. 

Angered by his request, the fisheries master and his Bengali servants began to beat him. After Ullah laid motionless on the ground, the group left him there to die. 

Some Bengali locals alerted the authorities. Rahim Ullah died before the police reached him. He was 22. 

His body was taken to a hospital morgue in Chittagong for autopsy. A day later his remains were returned to the kutupalong refugee camp with the assistance of the UNCHR and camp authority. His funeral was held October 3rd. In the morning. 

The murder has been reported. No arrests have been made. When asked if the murderers will be punished, one refugee told RB News: "Who will punish him? If he pays money to the police station, nobody will say anything to him. The police will salute him if he pays them money. This isn't a moral country. This is not our country so we have no real justice though we die like cats and dogs."

RB News

October 6, 2013 

Maungdaw, Arakan – According to an eye-witness, a Rohingya woman was raped by the policeman, Zaw Zaw Aung from Kyain Chaung, near Tar Rain Bridge on October 5th in the evening. 

Zaw Zaw Aung and four other policemen from Kyain Chaung police outpost went to near Tar Rain Bridge on October 5th, at 4 pm. This is on the highway of Kyain Chaung – Taungbro. They started stopping the Taxis passing the bridge. They checked for Temporary Registration Cards (White Cards) and travel permits from everyone. They extorted money from most of the passengers on false accusations and conducted body searches to everyone. People who could not afford the extortion were handcuffed. That evening, a Rohingya woman was raped. 

The highway of Kyain Chaung – Taungbro is between two hills. Villagers in the region say that the police frequently commit robberies and rape women on that highway. 

“They asked travel permit from me. Unfortunately I didn't have one. I had only my White Card. So Zaw Zaw Aung handcuffed me and asked 50’000 Kyats for my release. As I didn’t have 50,000 in my pocket, finally he told the car to leave and he told me to sit on the hill.” a victim who was handcuffed for unable to pay the extortion, told RB News. 

A Rohingya woman and 10 year old child arrived near the bridge by foot while the Rohingya man was sitting on the hill. Zaw Zaw Aung asked the woman whether she had White Card or not and immediately started searching her body. 

“The woman and the child arrived near the bridge while I was sitting on the hill. The police Zaw Zaw Aung asked her whether she has White Card or not. And then he asked she has any other things in the body and immediately touched her whole body in the name of searching. After that he took 10,000 Kyats from me and asked me to leave from the place. Then he took the woman onto the hill by force. After walking for a couple of minutes, I heard of the shouting of the woman to rescue her. I heard it many times. But I was unable to rescue her because they are 5 armed-police and I was alone. So I will be killed if I do anything against them. If I report this incident to the authorities, they will arrest me instead of taking action against the rapists. So I had to control my anger and backed home. The woman could be from Taungbro sub-region.” the Rohingya man told RB News. 

Zaw Zaw Aung arrested five Rohingya brothers from U Shin Gya village on false accusation that they were involved in a robbery case that took placed in Maungdaw last month. One of the arrestees were beaten to death while in custody. Yet, no action was taken against Zaw Zaw Aung. He has been named as the most notorious police in Kyain Chaung. He has been torturing and extorting the local Rohingyas in several ways for many years.

By Aung Shin

The Myanmar Times

October 6, 2013

But just miles inland the atmosphere was anything but peaceful. The township has become the latest setting for brutal violence between Buddhists and Muslims. 

A September 28 quarrel – thought to be over where a car had been parked – sent Buddhist mobs on a rampage through the town and nearby villages, such as Pauktak, Shwe Hlay and Thabuchai, where they torched 90 homes and killed five people – including a 95-year-old woman and 89-year-old man – leaving another four wounded. A Mosque and an Islamic school were among the buildings destroyed.

The violence was mostly under control by the time President U Thein Sein flew in on October 2, on the last day of his first official visit to the state as Myanmar’s leader. But in a final warning shot, Rakhine Buddhists torched the house of a Muslim in Thandwe as the president rested just 5 kilometres (3 miles) away at Ngapali.

Government officials – including President U Thein Sein – were quick to blame “outsiders” for rapid escalation in violence.

In a speech at Annawa Hall in Thandwe on October 3, the president noted the violence broke out just prior to his visit and said he was “suspicious of the motives” of those who turned a “trivial argument and ordinary crime into racial and religious clashes”.

“External motives instigated violence and conflicts. According to the evidence in hand, rioters who set fire to the villages are outsiders,” he said. “Participation of all is needed to expose and arrest those who got involved in the incident and those instigating the conflict behind the scene. Only then can root cause of the problem be addressed ... Action will be taken in accord with the law, without discrimination on the grounds of race and religion.”

Six people have been arrested so far, including the head of the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP) office in Thandwe township.

“Thandwe is normally always such a quiet place. I think the outbreak occurred because of outside stimulation. We have to find out whether political parties were deliberately involved,” Rakhine State Chief Minister U Hla Maung Tin told The Myanmar Times in Thabuchai village on October 3.

But Muslims in Thabuchai, where five people were killed on October 2, accused some local police of being complicit in the violence.

"We were afraid not only of Rakhine people but also the police. They fired above us, stopping us from defending ourselves. Then they let Rakhine people burn our houses," said U Nay Win, 53.

They accused political parties of inciting the violence.

“Parties are using religious and ethnic ideology as a stepping stone on their political journey. [The parties] have been active … for the past few months there have been new religious and ethnic [Rakhine] movements developing in Thandwe,” said schoolteacher U Myo Win, whose 89-year-old father was killed on October 2.

The violence in Thabuchai left 180 people homeless, including 42 Muslim households whose homes were destroyed, and 11 Rakhine families who fled fearing reprisals.

High-ranking officials from the regional government and Ministry of Defense visited Thabuchai village on Oct 3 and warned that residents could face legal action.

But they rejected any suggestion that police had been complicit in the violence.

"There are no members of our police force who would fail to do their duty in that way,” Police Lieutenant Colonel Kyaw Tint, the head of Thandwe police, said in response to the accusations.

“They are just accusations. If any police official is found to be involved in the violence, they will be punished," he said.

The six arrested people were taken to the local court on October 3. Police have refused to release details of the charges and stopped journalists from taking photos. They are being held at Thandwe prison. A police colonel based in Thandwe told The Myanmar Times on October 4 that the investigation into the violence is being handled by a special unit – he described it as a “secret mission – from the regional police force.

There are indications, however, that the unrest may be far from over. Following the court hearing, Democratic Voice of Burma quoted a spokesperson from the RNDP office in Thandwe as saying that it would “respond seriously” if the six arrested people are not released within 24 hours.

Media reports quoted the party’s chairman, U Aye Maung, calling on the government should release details of the charges against the six people and questioning whether the government had broken the law in suppressing the details.

The situation in Thandwe was quiet but tense as The Myanmar Times went to press. 

"[The charges] are a sore point for Rakhine people. The authorities didn't charge Muslims for insulting our religion and ethnicity,” said one Buddhist Rakhine resident from Thandwe, before warning, “This issue cannot stop here – it will go on.”

By ROBIN McDOWELL

Associated Press

October 6, 2013

THANDWE, Myanmar — Even as the president came to western Myanmar to urge an end to sectarian violence last week, security forces could not prevent Buddhist mobs from torching the homes of minority Muslims or hacking them to death, at times, unwittingly, even encouraging them.

That has raised questions about the government's ability to quench a virulent strain of religious hatred blamed for the deaths of more than 240 people in the last 18 months.

Five Muslims were killed in the attack Tuesday in Thandwe township, just hours before President Thein Sein touched down for a scheduled visit.

He promised an immediate investigation and, with uncharacteristic speed, state-run media by Saturday night said 44 suspects had been arrested, though few other details were released.

Still, as soldiers walked the dusty streets in the hardest-hit village of Thabyuchaing, semi-automatics slung across their shoulders, Myint Aung and other Muslims residents were afraid.

They said authorities had plenty of opportunities to prevent a series of attacks Tuesday, each more brutal than the next, but did nothing. More than 110 homes were burned to the ground, and nearly 500 people were left homeless.

Initially, the Buddhist mobs numbering about 150 entered before dawn, setting one house on fire, but Muslim residents were able to push them back, said the 52-year-old, standing before a charred mosque and several homes.

Police detained three suspects soon after, but released them almost immediately following threats of more violence, he said.

Though police promised the Muslims villagers protection — and disarmed them and ordered them back into their homes — the mobs returned in even greater numbers at 9:30 a.m., and then again at 2:30 p.m.

Among the dead were a 94-year-old woman and an 89-year-old man, both too old to run, each with multiple stab wounds.

"We had no way to protect ourselves" said Win Myint, 51, another resident, standing in front of his demolished home, echoing complaints heard by victims in other attacks across the state.

"And the police did nothing. They just looked on. Now everyone is living in fear now."

In an interview with Associated Press in New York, Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin denied the charges that law enforcement or government troops failed to take necessary action.

There was more sectarian violence in Myanmar late Saturday, this time in the southern delta region, with police and residents saying Buddhist mobs destroyed a pair of Muslim homes. It was the first time sectarian unrest was reported in the area since the violence started in June 2012.

The violence in the town of Kyaunggon, about 120 kilometers (75 miles) west of the main city of Yangon, came after news spread that a 14-year-old girl had allegedly been raped by a Muslim man. Kyaunggon resident Myint Soe said mobs destroyed the rape suspect's home, as well as the home of another Muslim man elsewhere in the town. Police confirmed the violence and said Kyauggon was calm Sunday.

Myanmar, a predominantly Buddhist nation of 60 million, is undergoing a mind-boggling political transformation after a half-century of brutal military rule.

But greater freedoms of expression have had a dark side, exposing deep-seated hatred toward Muslims that, fueled by radical monks, have ignited attacks first in western Rakhine state and then from Meikhtila in the country's center to Lashio near the Chinese border.

Under the new democratization, a poorly trained and ill-equipped police force — made up almost exclusively of Buddhists — is now tasked with dealing with sectarian violence, the army only stepping in at the invitation of civilian authorities or during states of emergency.

The results, on many occasions, have been disastrous.

"From the facts as presented, it appears the police failed to do their job properly," said Jim Della-Giacoma, the Asia program director for the International Crisis Group, a research organization.

"But it is not just the authorities fault here," he said. "The community is being riled up by extremists. There is no justification for such violence."

Tensions started to build in Thandwe one week ago, when a Buddhist taxi driver accused a Muslim shop owner of being abusive over a parking space dispute.

Several houses were burned or damaged in the hours that followed, and by Tuesday the anger exploded into mass violence.

Thein Sein was quoted by state media as saying he was "suspicious of the motives" of those who turned a "trivial argument and ordinary crime into racial and religious clashes."

"According to the evidence in hand, rioters who set fire to the villages are outsiders," he said. "Participation of all is needed to expose and arrest those who were involved in the incident and those instigating the conflict behind the scene."

"Action will be taken in accordance with the law, without discrimination on the grounds of race and religion," he said.

In what appeared to be rare criticism of "969," a state media report said some organizations had distributed religious flags that were hung in front of thousands of Buddhist-owned homes and shops.

A Buddhist-led campaign, "969" has taken root nationwide with its supporters urging Buddhists to shop only at Buddhist stores and avoid marrying Muslims or selling homes to them.

Billboards with the logo were seen lining the bumpy roads.

Muslims in and around Thandwe also blamed outsiders, saying they had existed peacefully side by side with Buddhists for generations and never imagined it could be otherwise.

"Now, suddenly, anyone who believes in Islam is seen as the enemy," said U Win Myint, a 51-year-old member of the ethnic Kaman Muslim minority. "They are targeting us just for our beliefs."

Others specifically blamed 969 and "northern Rakhines."

Zaw Lay Khar, 62, who lost her mother in the attack, described how mobs waving swords and knives came into the village.

"There was nothing we could do but run," she said, adding that while the faces of the attackers were largely unfamiliar, she saw some Buddhist neighbors pointing out Muslim homes.

"I don't know how this happened," she said.

By Deccan Herald

October 6, 2013

The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Centre on a PIL seeking direction to ensure proper health facilities for women and children of Rohingya tribes of Myanmar, residing in refugee camps in Delhi and Haryana.

A bench of Justices H L Dattu and Gyan Sudha Misra also sought response from Delhi and Haryana governments on the petition filed by Jaffar Ullah.

According to the petitioner, almost 150 Rohingya refugee families, staying in the camps at Delhi and Haryana’s Mewat district did not have access to basic medical care, clean water, nutritious food or secure shelters.

The petitioner sought humanitarian assistance to ensure the survival and wellbeing of the refugees as guaranteed under the Constitution.

The Rohingyas, numbering about eight lakh, constituted a sizeable minority of Myanmar’s population of 60 million. 

They suffered due to the ethnic riots that broke out in June 2012, forcing many of them to come to India.

By Shada Islam

The China Post

October 5, 2013

BRUSSELS -- Myanmar opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi receives the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize next week amid growing international concern over Buddhist-Muslim violence in the country.

The fact that the Nobel laureate can finally go to Strasbourg to pick up the prestigious prize, awarded 23 years ago, is cause for celebration. So too is Myanmar's remarkably peaceful transition from military to civilian rule.

But even as they lay out the red carpet for the leader of the National League for Democracy (NLD), members of the European Parliament and European Union (EU) policymakers must step up pressure for political and economic reform in the country — and urge Suu Kyi to take a stronger stance on ending the rising violence and discrimination against the Rohingyas.

Myanmar has certainly come a long way in the last few years. Once an isolated nation under a harsh military junta, the country is now universally feted for its embrace of civilian rule and continuing efforts at political reconciliation and economic reform. Investments are booming.

In a striking symbol of ongoing international rehabilitation and economic integration within the region, Myanmar will take over as chair of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations in 2014, thereby playing a crucial role in preparations for creating an Asean Economic Community by 2015.

Suu Kyi's fortunes have also changed. Released from years of house arrest in November 2010, she remains the country's most popular politician. After having spearheaded her party's entry into the Myanmar parliament in 2012, she is now head of the Rule of Law and Tranquillity Committee in the lower house.

With an eye on the presidency after general elections in 2015, she is now in full campaign mode, telling investors, officials and reporters in Singapore recently that the NLD is the “most effective political party” in the country and reiterating calls for changes in the constitution which currently bars those with foreign-born family members from becoming head of state. The NLD also says the constitution is undemocratic because it gives the military a substantial percentage of parliamentary seats.

Cannot Rest in Face of Violence

Myanmar's transformation is impressive. But neither Myanmar nor Suu Kyi can afford to rest on their laurels.

The Nobel laureate's standing as a defender of democracy and human rights and Myanmar's reputation as an emerging Southeast Asian tiger are conditional on their response to several challenges facing the country. Above all, they must take urgent action to stop rising inter-communal violence between majority Buddhists and minority Muslims (who make up 4 percent of the population).

The bloodshed which continues to rack Rakhine state is spreading to other parts of the country with Muslim communities. Since June last year, the clashes are reported to have killed over 230 people. According to the International Crisis Group (ICG), the violence has regional implications given the sharp increase in the number of Rohingya Muslims making the treacherous journey by boat from Rakhine state to other countries in the region.

Inter-communal tensions have also spilled over Myanmar's borders with the murder of Myanmar Buddhists in Malaysia and related violence in other countries. There have also been threats of jihad against Myanmar and plots and attacks against Myanmar or Buddhist targets in the region, the ICG warns.

Human Rights Watch accuses the Myanmar authorities and members of Arakanese groups of committing crimes against humanity in a campaign of ethnic cleansing against Rohingya and other Muslims.

The European Parliament is clear about the way ahead. In a resolution adopted in June, it said the government must take urgent action to end all forms of persecution and violence against the Rohingya Muslims, ease their humanitarian situation and protect them from violence and public incitements to religious hostility.

The EU assembly also insisted the government draw up an action plan to address the root cause of the discrimination and undertake an urgent review of a 1982 citizenship law with a view to granting citizenship to the Rohingya.

All eyes are now on Suu Kyi who has so far steered clear of a direct condemnation of the Buddhist-Muslim violence. In Singapore recently, she admitted that the current stalemate in resolving protracted insurgencies, inter-ethnic conflicts and lack of robust laws posed the biggest challenges to development in Myanmar.

Asked about the inter-communal violence, Suu Kyi insisted on the need to respect the rule of law, saying the international community could help by “giving us your understanding (and) by trying to go deeper into the reasons why communal conflicts have been taking place.”

“Please study the situation in depth, please don't take a superficial look at it, and try to condemn one community or another,” she said.

Celebrated as an icon for democracy while she was under house arrest, Suu Kyi has spent the last few years collecting a host of much-deserved international awards and accolades. She is now entering the more difficult world of realpolitik and as a politician with presidential ambitions she is understandably reluctant to lose public support. While she sits on the fence, however, her international standing is at stake.

Violence in Myanmar deters potential investors, making them more wary of putting their money in a country facing political uncertainty. What happens in Myanmar also has deep repercussions on relations between Buddhists and Muslims in the rest of South and Southeast Asia.

The accolades Suu Kyi receives in Strasbourg will be well-merited. She is receiving the Sakharov Prize for her role in standing up to the military junta. As a strong, brave and remarkable woman, she certainly deserves it.

However, as Myanmar marches towards new horizons, it is important that the Nobel laureate and peace advocate adds her voice to calls for inter-communal reconciliation, ethnic harmony and an end to violence.

Burmese American Muslims Association’s Statement on Thandwe Violence

Press Statement (1/13) 

Date: 10/01/2013

Ongoing and Recent Anti-Muslims violence took place in Rakhine State, Thandwe Township of Burma, in front of the bare eyes of the law enforcement agencies of Burmese Government in broad daylight. The Burmese government’s failed governance has reach to the level that innocent lives were lost, places of worship and homes were burnt down and thousands of people became refugees in their own country. The attacks are targeting to the Muslim community only.

Taking into accounts of all the crimes committed against the Muslim population of Burma and based on the United Nation’s Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide Article II, the crimes against humanity in Burma (Myanmar) have already reached to the level of genocide.

Therefore, we, the Burmese American Muslims Association is seriously concerned about the livelihood of Muslim minority as well as the other oppressed minorities in Burma and would like to demand the following;

1. BAMA, in the strongest term, condemns the genocidal violence against the Muslim population of Burma (Myanmar). We demand the Government of Myanmar (Burma) to protect the Muslims in Burma (Myanmar) to the fullest extent and bring the rule of law to the land that it governs.

2. The Government of Myanmar must bring the perpetrators of the crimes targeting the Muslim population of Myanmar to justice.

3. The Government of Myanmar must give the international team of investigators complete access to all the areas in Myanmar that are affected by the violence.

4. The Government of Myanmar must return the land and properties of the displaced people, and must allow the restoration and rebuilding of their properties and places of worship immediately. The Government of Myanmar must permanently lift the closure of the Muslims’ places of worship in Rakhine state and all around Myanmar.

5. We appeal the Government of the United States and the European Union to designate 969 and Rakhine Ultra Nationalist group that instigate hate and commit violence against Muslims in Myanmar as a terrorist network, and impose sanctions on individuals associated with 969 terror network.

6. BAMA strongly urges the international community to fully cooperate with the legal experts in launching an investigation to the genocide committed by the officials in the government of Myanmar in association with the extremist Buddhist elements, to pave the way to proceed to the International Criminal Court.

RB News 

October 5, 2013 

Thandwe, Arakan – Rakhinese mob in Thandwe started attacking Kaman Muslims on September 28, 2013. As a result, 5 Kaman Muslims were mercilessly killed and 1 was died in heart attack while escaping the attack. 781 Kaman Muslims became homeless according to the locals in Thandwe. 

The list can be read in the file that is posted on Scribd.

Houses, Mosques and others destructed by Rakhinese Mob in Thandwe

By Francis Wade

Asian Correspondent

October 4, 2013

The latest bout of violence in western Burma, where the death toll currently stands at six, all of whom are Muslim, hasn’t taken many by surprise. Leaders on both sides of the political divide have mostly responded with empty phrases that appear to be aimed more at placating their critics, rather than cutting to the core problems of intolerance and exploitation of a crisis. As a result, houses belonging to Muslim families in Arakan state have once again turned to ash, and the body count slowly climbs.

The slaying of a 94-year-old woman marks a new low in the violence – largely incapacitated through old age, she hardly presented an existential threat to the Buddhist population there (NB: pages 24-25 of this Harvard report statistically debunks claims that Muslims are ‘taking over’ Arakan state). Instead her death is a classic tool of intimidation, a message to the country’s entire Muslim population that none are safe. This is only reinforced by the fact that the recent attacks in Thandwe were against Kaman Muslims, who are distinct from the Rohingya (against whom past violence in Arakan state has been targeted), who have citizenship and with whom Arakanese had enjoyed harmonious relations.

The speed with which the violence in Thandwe spread from Sunday onwards raises further suspicions about the degree of organizing going on behind the scenes. The trigger on Sunday last week was a petty argument between a Buddhist taxi driver and the leader of the Kaman Muslim Party, Kyaw Zan Hla. Word then spread round the district that Kyaw Zan Hla had ‘insulted Buddhism’; mobs then formed with surprising speed and torched a mosque and several houses. Attacks spread over the following days to villages around Thandwe, and as of Wednesday dozens of houses have been razed. A photo today from a local journalist showed a truckload of Arakanese Buddhists, all brandishing spears and swords, and all wearing red bandanas.

It took the tiniest of triggers to spark a rampage. A similar chain of events happened in April in Oakkan, when a young Muslim girl riding a bike knocked an alms bowl out of a monk’s hand. As word spread of the incident, large Buddhist mobs quickly formed and attacked a mosque and Muslim homes, eventually destroying 77 and leaving one person dead and nine injured. The month before, inhabitants of Meikhtila in Mandalay division spoke of convoys of trucks carrying ‘ousiders’ into the town as anti-Muslim violence gathered pace. Similar reports of ‘outsider’ mobs came out of Sittwe in Arakan state during last year’s rioting.

It’s easy to get conspiratorial about this, and it’s often the knee-jerk reaction of Burma observers to blame the government, or government-affiliated networks. But as well as the events listed above, the attacks on Muslims in Shan state’s Lashio in May don’t necessarily fit the picture of an upsurge of solely local public anger – a New York Times report said mobs there were heard singing Burmese nationalist songs, something that you’d be hard pressed to find any Shan person doing. Moreover, footage from the violence in Meikhtila in March showed police standing by and watching while mobs torched shops, which is consistent with local reports that security forces allowed the attacks to proceed.

Of course there’s no smoking gun in all this, no paper trail that leads all the way to the top. What President Thein Sein really makes of the miserable state of inter-religious harmony isn’t clear, though his wispy, pussyfooting responses over the past year have only sharpened the feeling that he is reluctant to put his foot down. Why? Perhaps because powerful forces close to him, who are uncomfortable with the transition in Burma, will benefit from this – particularly the military, which fears a potential waning of its influence and which can draw on these fissures to reassert its relevance. (Take the Arakanese, for instance, who were once so vehemently opposed to army presence in their state but who now ask for its protection, or prominent student activists who spent their lives fighting the army, but who now say they will join hands to repel Muslim ‘invaders’).

Moreover, is mob mentality so strong among disparate Burmese across the land that the chain of events in Sittwe last year – the speedy formation of mobs, types of weapons used, methods of destruction – can be replicated so strikingly in Mandalay division, in Shan state, and even up in Kachin state, where there’s no history of anti-Muslim hostility? And that since the Oakkan violence, the trigger needed for the attacks has in fact become weaker, and not stronger, as should be the case if the government is really tackling this?

U Win Myaing, spokesman for the Arakan state government who was interviewed by the NYT, suggests in fact that the severity of the actual event that causes these rampages is not important, but merely who is involved: “You can see in all the recent conflicts that Bengalis [reference to Muslim Rohingya] sparked the incidents. The problems always begin with them.” At the very least, by reinforcing the fear that an enemy lives among us, the government is tacitly encouraging the attacks; Win Myaing almost legitimizes them. But the eerie similarities of the nearly 10 bouts of anti-Muslim violence since June last year suggests there may be something more than merely communal violence happening here.

THANDWE — After four days of attacks on at least five Muslim villages around Thandwe town, southern Arakan State, inter-communal violence seemed have to come to a halt by Thursday.

But hundreds of Muslim villagers remain scattered throughout the countryside after they were forced to flee attacks by Arakanese Buddhist mobs on their communities. Some fled to nearby Muslim villages or into local forests and other hideouts.

On Thursday evening, small groups of Muslims were trying to collect some of their remaining belongings from their home villages under police protection.

In Pauktaw, a village where 28 homes were burned down on Tuesday, a frightened ethnic Kaman Muslim family was collecting some belongings and livestock, while a few unarmed policemen provided security.

“I am losing my life. I am losing my life,” Ba Saw Lay, 30, said repeatedly, as he loaded some of the family’s belongings into a small truck while dusk fell over the paddy fields around the village. Ba Saw Lay said he was a farmer who was born and raised in Pauktaw.

But now, he can no longer stay in his native village. “They burned down my house. I have nowhere to stay,” he said.

His young daughter tried to collect a few chicks, which seem to have lost their mother during the recent chaos.

“I could not find their mother. That’s why I tried to catch all of them to save them,” Myint Myint Naing said. Soon after, the little girl broke down in tears. “Please help us… We have no future now and no place where we can stay safely,” she told Irrawaddy reporters.

During a visit to the villages in the countryside around Thandwe town, a few dozen security forces could be seen patrolling the main roads. In Pauktaw village, Buddhist youths carrying sticks and swords walked around, while police looked on. An Arakanese man said he did not know who burned the Muslim homes in his village, adding, “I was not at my house when it happened.”

A police officer told The Irrawaddy on Thursday that a mere 80 security forces had been deployed to bring Thandwe Township under control.

A video posted on Youtube on Thursday, purportedly recorded by police officers, claims to show a Buddhist mob of several hundred people heading towards a Muslim village in Thandwe Township.

Police can be heard speaking to the crowd through megaphone, ordering them: “Please don’t go ahead. The law doesn’t allow arson. Government officials, including the president, are trying to resolve the situation.” A man wearing red scarf and carrying a megaphone is seen leading the mob, which is temporarily deterred from advancing.

Nge Pu, a woman belonging to the Kaman family who were packing to leave Paktauw village, said local Muslims felt unsafe as police had failed to protect them during the recent attacks. “We could not trust these security forces because we told them our people were under attack, they did not come to help,” she said.

“We saw that some people came to check where we [Muslims] are now staying. They can attack us any time as we do not have enough protection,” Nge Pu said. A Muslim youth called Ko Gyi said, “We have no places to run to anymore. If they come to attack us, we just fight back until we die.”

The complaints echo recurrent claims made by Burmese Muslim leaders and international human rights groups, which have accused the Burma government and Arakan State authorities of doing little to prevent the Buddhist mob attacks on Muslim minorities in the country.

The US-based Human Rights Watch has alleged that Rakhine National Development Party (RNDP) members, Buddhist leaders and ethnic Arakanese civil society groups organized the attacks on the Rohingya Muslim minority in northern Arakan in June and October 2012, with tacit support of state authorities.

According to several Thandwe inhabitants, anti-Muslim sentiments in the town in southern Arakan State began to rise after Aug. 26. On that day a community organization called Protection of Nationality, Religion and Dhamma organized ‘Buddhist Day’, an unofficial religious celebration that was proposed as a national holiday in Burma in the early 1960s, but which was never officially introduced.

Thandwe National League for Democracy representative Win Naing said the event drew tens of thousands of local people and hundreds of monks, adding that the ultra-nationalist Buddhist 969 movement had used the event as a platform to actively spread its message.

The 969 movement, led by the Mandalay-based monk U Wirathu, has become notorious across Burma for spreading virulent anti-Muslim rhetoric, such as calls for the Buddhist majority to shun Muslim-owned shops.

Stickers, flags and flyers of the 969 movement started to appear all over Thandwe, said Win Naing, while the movement’s songs — with its fiery, nationalist messages — started being played in public spaces in the town.

A Muslim resident of Thandwe said, “People were playing [969] songs about protecting their religion and they started hanging Buddhist flags around the town. That’s how the tensions started.”

The town had already experienced a brief outburst of anti-Muslim violence in early July, when three Muslim-owned homes were destroyed, but the tensions came to a head last Sunday, after an argument broke out between the owner of a motorbike carrying a Buddhist flag and a local Kaman Muslim.

The Muslim was taken in for questioning by local police, but a Buddhist mob gathered at his house and began pelting it with stones. Later that night, several Muslim homes were burned in Thandwe, a town of around 100,000 inhabitants, while the violence began to spread through villages around the town.

More than 100 houses and several mosques were burned from Sunday to Wednesday, in the Muslim villages of Thapyu Kyain, Pauktaw and Mae Kyun. Two other Kaman villages were also attacked. Six people were reportedly killed and at least five injured in the violence, which caused hundreds of Muslim residents to flee.

The unrest coincided with President Thein Sein’s first visit to the strife-torn region in western Burma since violence broke out last year. About 140,000 people, mostly Rohingya Muslims, were displaced and 192 people were killed during two waves of violence in June and October 2012.

Burma’s government refuses to recognize the Rohingya as citizens, but the Kaman Muslims in southern Arakan are recognized as an official minority.

Thein Sein visited the state capital Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, Maungdaw and Thandwe townships on Tuesday and Wednesday, and he met with Muslim and Buddhist community leaders. During his visit, he said that “external motives” were behind the violence in Thandwe Township, according to state-owned newspaper The New Light of Myanmar.

“Ethnic Rakhine [Arkanese] and ethnic Kaman have been living here in peaceful coexistence for many years,” he was quoted as saying. “According to the evidence in hand, rioters who set fire to the villages are outsiders. Participation of all is needed to expose and arrest those who got involved in the incident,” said the president.

Since Wednesday, Thandwe police have been making several arrests in relation to the violence. Two local RNDP members, including the Thandwe RNDP chairman Maung Pu, were apprehended, while two members of civil society group Protection of Nationality, Religion and Dhamma were also detained.

“Now, Maung Pu is in Thandwe Prison,” Thandwe RNDP secretary Maung Phyu told The Irrawaddy on Friday, adding that four more Arakanese community leaders from Thandwe had been detained by authorities.

Maung Phy said that another nine people, from both Arakan and Muslim communities, had been arrested in the villages surrounding the town. “Now Thandwe and the villages are under control of authorities,” he said.

Additional reporting by Lin Thant and Paul Vrieze.

By Hanna Hindstrom

Democratic Voice of Burma

October 4, 2013

President Thein Sein has accused “outsiders” of orchestrating this week’s outbreak of communal violence in Sandoway in western Burma, suggesting it was a premeditated attack intended to undermine his first ever visit to the conflict-torn region.

In a report published in state media, Thein Sein said he was “suspicious of the motives” behind the Sandoway riots, which left five Muslims dead and dozens of homes destroyed, and called for the perpetrators to be held to account.

“Participation of [everyone] is needed to expose and arrest those who got involved in the incident and those instigating the conflict behind the scene,” he told a gathering of Sandoway elders, including Kaman Muslims and Arakan Buddhists, according to Thursday’s edition of the New Light of Myanmar.

He reportedly blamed individuals driven by “external motives” for turning a trivial argument between a Muslim shop owner and Buddhist trishaw driver into an “unacceptable” outbreak of racial and religious violence.

Thein Sein insisted that the government would take swift action to identify and prosecute rioters without discriminating on the basis of religion, and called on community leaders to teach local youths not to be “deceived by instigators”.

The newspaper also reported that Gen Hla Htay Win from the Ministry of Defence, who was accompanying Thein Sein on a pre-scheduled tour of Arakan state, met with Sandoway locals to inspect the damage caused in the three-day clashes.

The article notes that Buddhist Sasana flags had been used to mark houses in order to avoid coming under attack – echoing reports from Meikhtila, where locals said Buddhists had distributed 969 stickers a week before similar violence flared in March. The 969 movement is an extremist Buddhist group preaching that Muslims are planning to take over the country and urged followers not to trade with them.

According to the New Light, Buddhist locals in Sandoway had been instructed to buy the flags from some unidentified local organisations, fuelling speculation that 969-aligned groups were behind the violence. The report added that an investigation would be held to uncover who was responsible for distributing the Buddhist flags.

On Wednesday, the Sandoway chairman of the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party, known for its inflammatory anti-Muslim rhetoric, and two members of a local nationalist group were held for questioning about their role in the unrest.

Burma has been swept by a tide of religious violence, increasingly targeting its minority Muslim population, since last year when Rohingya Muslims – who are denied citizenship and popularly reviled – clashed with Buddhists in northern Arakan state. The unrest has since spread through Burma’s heartlands, including Mandalay and the commercial capital Rangoon, targeting all Muslim communities.

Thein Sein has also come under fire for a perceived failure to stem the violence, which has already displaced over 140,000 mostly Muslims and claimed at least 200 lives.

Earlier this summer he defended 969 as a peaceful movement and banned a controversial edition of TIME Magazine that branded its main proponent, monk Wirathu, “The Face of Buddhist Terror”. Although the state-backed monks’ association, the Sangha Maha Nayaka, has since moved to ban 969 gatherings, there is little evidence that its leaders have been reproached.

Many foreign governments and the UN have urged Burma to do more.

Thursday’s admission is the strongest signal yet that Burma is willing to recognise the role of nationalist extremists groups in stirring up communal tensions. The government’s inertia has fuelled speculation that it is tacitly, if not actively, condoning abuses against Muslims, especially the Rohingya minority.

But rights groups continue to question the government’s commitment to tackle Buddhist extremism. Matthew Smith, the executive director at Fortify Rights International, described Thein Sein’s comments as “vague” and unsatisfactory.

“His remarks appear to be an attempt to direct attention to an unseen mastermind, diverting attention from a mountain of damning evidence against his own government for its role in ongoing violence and abuses against large segments of the Muslim population,” he told DVB on Friday.

He slammed Thein Sein for doing nothing to address the plight of the Rohingya, who unlike the Kaman Muslims in Sandoway, are denied basic rights such as freedom of movement and the right to an education.

“The international community should disabuse itself of the convenient notion that the central government bears no responsibility for what is happening in Arakan state,” he said. “We would all like to believe their hands are clean but it’s simply untrue.”