By Shibani Mahtani

The Wall Street Journal

December 31, 2014

Pilot Program Grants Identification Cards, But Fears of Violence Keep People Trapped in Camps

MYEBON, Myanmar — Sitting in a small rattan shack, Aye Khaing holds out her most-valued new possession: a pink identification card, indicating she is a full citizen of this country after years of statelessness.

Ms. Aye Khaing is one of 40 ethnic Rohingya in the area who now—in theory—have the ability to move freely around Myanmar, attend university, hold political office and enjoy other rights that were once a distant dream for the country’s long-suffering Muslim minority.

Yet more than two months since receiving her citizenship, Ms. Aye Khaing and others in the pilot program haven’t been allowed to leave the squalid displaced-persons camp they have called home since religious violence broke out in Myanmar two years ago.

Border guards and police, perched on watchtowers above, say that it is too dangerous for them to exit, and that they must keep the Rohingya Muslims in camps to maintain the area’s security.

“It is like I am under house arrest,” said Ms. Aye Khaing.

Myanmar’s government is experimenting with an unprecedented program to grant citizenship to some Rohingya, among the world’s most-oppressed minority groups. The effort is designed to resolve bitter divisions over the more than one million Rohingya—deeply unpopular among Myanmar’s Buddhist majority—that have threatened to destabilize Myanmar in recent years and poisoned its relations with Western governments.

But the process is already running aground as local opposition spreads. A 15-minute motorcycle ride from the camp where Ms. Aye Khaing resides, members of the Arakan Women’s Network, a Buddhist-rights group, has held protests with placards warning “No Rohingya in Our Land.”

Many Buddhists also refused to leave their homes in protest on the day the first Rohingya got their citizenship cards in September, shutting schools and businesses.

“We cannot accept [them] as citizens,” said Khin Thein, founder of the Arakan Women’s group, which formed in the wake of the 2012 riots that pitted Buddhists against Muslims.

A friend of hers, chiming in, said he would kill any Muslim he sees on the street—then, with a laugh, added that he was “just kidding.”

The impasse has forced the government to suspend the project—introduced so far only in the Myebon camp—until security improves.

Some critics are questioning the government’s sincerity—and whether it has the capacity to protect Rohingya if the program expands. Some Rohingya are losing hope entirely, with record numbers fleeing the country by boat in hopes of finding better conditions elsewhere.

Win Myaing, a spokesman in Rakhine state, where most Rohingya live, said officials were increasing security in the area but added that it is “difficult to say” when so-called citizenship verification will restart.

The question over what to do with Myanmar’s Rohingya has simmered for years since large numbers migrated to the country from South Asia during British colonial rule.

Many Buddhists consider Rohingya Muslims as illegal immigrants who get a disproportionate share of goodwill and aid from the international community. Rohingya say they have been living there for generations and deserve better treatment.

Divisions exploded into the open with the end of Myanmar’s military regime several years ago. Anti-Rohingya violence left at least 160 dead and displaced more than 140,000 Rohingya from their homes, leaving them dependent on international aid in camps like the one where Ms. Aye Khaing lives.

Their growing desperation has prompted stern warnings from Western officials, including President Barack Obama during a visit to Myanmar in November.

The Myanmar government’s “failure to take adequate, let alone decisive, action has led to continued underdevelopment for the Rakhine people, a deteriorating human rights and humanitarian situation for Muslim populations. and insecurity for all,” a senior Western diplomat said recently.

Myanmar’s plan offered citizenship to Rohingya who could prove three generations of residence in Myanmar. The residents also had to agree to be called “Bengali” rather than “Rohingya”—a provision many Rohingya object to as implying they are from neighboring Bangladesh, which they fear could be used against them later.

The plan said those who refuse the Bengali classification would be relocated to another country, and asked for United Nations assistance to do so.

International groups have criticized the deportation goals. Still, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees called the residency-verification exercise a “positive step towards addressing the issue of citizenship,” while calling on officials to follow through with more freedom of movement for those who qualify.

Myanmar leaders have said they would refine the plan to ensure it conforms to international humanitarian standards, but haven’t said whether the deportation aspect would be changed.

The program in Myebon, a town of just 8,000 people a two-hour speedboat ride away from the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe, was designed to test the plan’s workability.

State officials say 1,218 people applied for citizenship, or 93% of the camp’s eligible adult population. A verification committee granted 40 people full citizenship. Some 169 others were classified as naturalized citizens, also an upgrade from their former status as foreign residents.

Myebon was expected to be a relatively easy place to implement the plan because Muslims there face unusually tough living conditions, making them more likely to go along with the government’s insistence they classify themselves as Bengali.

In Sittwe, by contrast, dozens of Muslims interviewed who described themselves as Rohingya said they would not accept any government-imposed name change.

“The government has tried to convince us that if we accept the term Bengali, we will not be persecuted, but we don’t believe them,” said Armin, a 20-year old student there who only goes by one name. “They are trying to trick us.”

The government says that accepting the Bengali classification is the only way to ensure better treatment and rights.

Back in the Myebon camp, Rohingya who cooperated with the government are getting impatient.

Aung Lwin, a Rohingya, said Rakhine state’s chief minister and other senior officials have visited several times in the past six months, each time stressing they will prioritize citizenship claims.

But he said the new documents are meaningless until the government can assure their safety and let them leave their camp.

“They have lied to us,” he said, surrounded by dozens of Rohingya, nodding in agreement.

—Myo Myo in Yangon contributed to this article.

RB News

December 31, 2014

The first "European Rohingya Conference" was held in Esbjerg, Denmark on 27-28 December 2014. The conference was attended by 60 delegations from Denmark, United Kingdom, Norway, Netherlands and Sweden. The delegations are comprised of members from Burmese Rohingya Organization UK, Bradford Rohingya Community UK, Burmese Rohingya Community in Denmark, Rohingya Organization Norway, Burmese Rohingya Community in Netherlands and some individuals. In addition there are delegations from Germany, Switzerland, France and Finland who cancelled their trip in last minutes due to some unavoidable circumstances but they assured the conference organizers that they would support whatever decisions the conference may take. 

During the two days conference, the delegations intensely discussed many issues affecting Rohingya community and many decisions were made either by majority vote or by consensus. Future cooperation between different Rohingya organizations/individuals in Europe, establishing a fund to support the needy, Rohingya identity and Rohingya unity are some of the major issues among others which were discussed in the conference.

Every delegation in the conference agreed that the collective effort is needed to draw enough attention from the Europe and world bodies on Rohingya cause. In this regard, the conference decided to establish a network comprising representatives from different countries in Europe. The representatives will meet from time to time and discuss different issues affecting the Rohingya community and take actions jointly. If necessary the representatives will further carry the messages to their community/organizations in their respective countries for approval. The representatives selected are as below. 

1. Tun Khin (UK)

2. Hadayet Ali (Bradford, UK)

3. Monawara Jamil (Denmark)

4. Sayed Hussein (Norway)

5. Sazzat Ahmad (Netherlands)

6. Nay San Lwin (Germany)

7. Mv. Azizul Hoque (Switzerland)

8. Mv. Ali Ahmad (Sweden)

9. Bolu Mohammad Siddique (Finland)

Unity is vital to survive as a community. Divisions among the Rohinyga community are like pressing the self-destruction button. The conference requested the Rohingya community around the world to be united and fight for common cause. To help solve the divisions and preserve the unity among Rohingya community in Europe, a "Reconciliation Team" was formed with the following persons.

1. U Hla Tin (Denmark)

2. Mohammed Siddique (UK)

3. Ahamed Hussein Jarmal (UK)

4. Nabi Hussein (Netherlands)

The next conference will be held at the end of July 2015 either in Netherlands or in Norway.

For detail, the following persons can be contacted.

1. Sayed Hussein, +47 9579 5575

2. Tun Khin, +44 7888 71 4866

By Kyaw Phyo Tha

December 30, 2014

By Showkat Shafi

Al Jazeera

December 30, 2014

Hundreds of persecuted Rohingya families have found refuge in Kashmir after fleeing Buddhist attacks in Myanmar.

Jammu, Indian-administered Kashmir - Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees are searching for a new beginning across South Asia after being forced to leave Myanmar following persecution at the hands of Buddhists. 

Hundreds of Rohingya families have found refuge in the winter capital of Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir state, living in temporary homes made up of branches and shrubs and covered with plastic sheets. 

According to United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR), thousands of unregistered refugees are living in elsewhere in India.

The Rohingya are among an estimated 10 million stateless people worldwide. 

Local landowners charge about $9 a month for each jughi, or hut. Children are found playing around heaps of garbage, and a lack of water, sanitation and healthcare facilities pose serious threats.

Mohammad Rafik, 48, told Al Jazeera: "We have been forced to be scrap dealers as there are no employment avenues available. A large number of refugees here are unregistered as there is a long process to get your name registered with UNHCR who provide an registration card."

Children support their families by collecting and selling recyclable material, and some women work in walnut factories up to 12 hours a day, cracking shells and removing nuts.

Saddam Hussain, 39, a labourer living in a makeshift camp, said: "We have seen our life being devastated and ruined, but we want our kids to live a better life and become good humans. [Don't] we all seek better education, healthcare, and a better future for our children?"

By UNHCR 

December 30, 2014

MAUNGDAW, Myanmar – For 18 months they lived side by side but did not see or talk to each other. Following the 2012 inter-communal violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state, Muslim and Buddhist neighbours in this mixed village in northern Rakhine state were divided by fear and mistrust even though they were not directly affected by the unrest.

But they could not ignore the realities their forefathers had accepted. "The people of this village depend on each other," said Khine Myat San,* an ethnic Rakhine woman in the village. "Rakhine women used to sell vegetables in the Muslim hamlet, and Muslim men have been habitually hired as labour by Rakhine families."

In the country's second poorest state, paddy cultivation is one of the main sources of income and the two communities used to cooperate for agricultural and trading purposes. Luckily their leaders understood the importance of maintaining and restoring traditional links, and have progressively re-established a dialogue in some locations.

As a member of a mixed "agricultural committee," Khine Myat San speaks proudly of her efforts to promote a harmonious environment and enhance economic opportunities in her village. Her committee received farming machinery from UNHCR this year – part of an initiative to encourage reconciliation and coexistence in the wake of the violence that displaced more than 140,000 people.

UNHCR has spoken to numerous community leaders about livelihood activities that could lead to further interaction in their area. Early this year a meeting was called so that all community representatives could set out the basis for their cooperation. It was the first time that Muslim villagers were able to access the Rakhine hamlet in one-and-a-half years.

The committee members recall it as a moment of joy. "At the beginning we were all afraid that something might go wrong, but when we saw each other, we relaxed, and the meeting went well," said committee member Osman Johar.*

Today the agricultural committee members gathered in the house of the village administrator to highlight the benefits of their interaction and appreciate UNHCR's help in this process. When asked how often they held meetings, they looked at each other and burst into loud laughter: "We see each other every day we don't need to make an appointment for that."

Six villages have benefitted from this UNHCR initiative to support agricultural activities and improve income. Since the beginning of the year, UNHCR has helped more than 800 farmers by providing 18 small tractors, six rice mills, six harvesters, 12 water pumps and 45 tons of fertilizer. As a sign of their commitment, the committee members contribute an equal amount of fertilizer.

Where the villagers previously relied on manpower and cattle to plough their lands, the introduction of farming technology is expected to increase rice production while reminding people how they used to work together.

The project primarily targets communities that face irrigation problems and limited resources while trying to cultivate winter crops during the dry season. Equipment like water pumps decreases cultivation costs and improves irrigation.

Following this example of positive collaboration between the two communities, another 10 projects have been approved by the local authorities and the machinery will be delivered to the committee members in January.

While much more remains to be done to promote reconciliation between the communities, there are hopes that projects like this can start to sow the seeds for dialogue. As Khine Myat San observed, "We need to stay together. If we continue our lives separately, there will be risk of more misunderstandings, and violence might happen again."

* Names changed for protection reasons

By Al Jazeera

December 30, 2014

Non-binding resolution sends a strong message to Myanmar's government over its treatment of country's minorities.

The UN General Assembly has approved a resolution urging Myanmar to provide "full citizenship'' to its Rohingya Muslim minority and to allow them to move freely throughout the country. 

The resolution adopted by consensus on Monday, stressed the assembly's "serious concern'' about the government's treatment of the Rohingyas, sending a strong message from the 193-member world body that the international community is united in wanting change in Myanmar's treatment of its minorities.

It also called on the government to take measures to ensure that the Rohingyas can safely return to their communities, to conduct independent investigations into rights abuses, "and to promote peaceful coexistence".

The 1.3 million Rohingyas have been denied citizenship under national law and are effectively stateless and have almost no rights. Myanmar authorities want to officially categorise them as "Bengalis," implying they are illegal migrants from neighbouring Bangladesh.

After Myanmar started a transition from dictatorship to democracy in 2011, newfound freedom of expression fanned the flames of hatred against the Rohingyas by the Buddhist majority. 

Apartheid-like conditions 

Violence by Buddhist mobs has left up to 280 people dead - most of them members of the religious minority - and displaced another 140,000 from their homes since 2012. The Rohingyas now live under apartheid-like conditions in camps or in restricted villages in western state of Rakhine. 

The General Assembly urged the government to allow the Muslim minority to call itself Rohingya. 

It also asked Myanmar to ensure that the Rohingyas have equal access to services such as health and education, and to address the root causes of violence and discrimination against them. 

While the assembly welcomed continuing positive developments in Myanmar toward political and economic reform, it urged the government "to step up its efforts to end remaining human rights violations and abuses. 

The resolution called for an office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to open "without delay" in the country. 

The European Union-drafted, non-binding resolution also urged the Myanmar government to accelerate efforts to address discrimination, "violence, hate speech, displacement and economic deprivation affecting various ethnic and religious minorities, and attacks against Muslims and other religious minorities". 

The resolution also addressed international concerns over next year's presidential election, saying Myanmar should ensure that it is "credible, inclusive and transparent," and allow "all candidates to fairly contest'' the vote.

By Democratic Voice of Burma

December 29, 2014

Burma’s pro-democracy icon and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has requested Western nations to resist imposing economic sanctions on her country, but called on them to urge the Burmese government to enter into dialogue with her party and other opponents.

Asked to respond to suggestions that the US and EU have hinted at reimposing economic sanctions, Suu Kyi said, “I don’t like going backwards, I like going forwards. So I think that rather than reintroducing old methods, I think what would help greatly is if everybody seriously put their minds to doing whatever they can to encourage negotiations to take place. I think that is the key. That is the doorway to the future.”

Speaking on BBC’s Radio 4 on Friday, she said the international community has been “over-optimistic” in its expectations for Burma, and that the process of economic and political reform under President Thein Sein is “not going as well as people hoped it would.”

With regard to the international community, Suu Kyi said, “They have not lost interest in Burma. They still want Burma to have a happy ending, but they think that they’ll get a happy ending simply by insisting that it is a happy ending. And that’s not how things happen.”

She criticised the Thein Sein government and the military, saying, “The executive is not that keen on genuine reforms – that is how we see it – because they do not want to amend the Constitution. Unless you want to amend the Constitution, then we cannot get on the genuine road to democracy.”

Under the current 2008 Constitution, opposition leader Suu Kyi is barred from running for the presidency or vice-presidency under Article 59(f) because her children have foreign citizenship.

Her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), has spent the better part of the past year campaigning nationwide for constitutional reform, with an amendment to Article 436 at its helm. Article 436 states that changes to the charter must have the support of at least 75 percent of parliament. The NLD and other critics say that this effectively grants the Burmese military veto power over any constitutional change because it is appointed 25 percent of all seats in both houses of parliament. Observers say amending 436 could open the door to other constitutional changes, including lifting 59(f), allowing Suu Kyi to seek the presidency.

In her interview with BBC’s John Bercow on Friday, the NLD chairperson played down her own personal ambitions of becoming president of Burma. However, she appeared to revel in comparisons made between herself and freedom fighters Gandhi and Nelson Mandela.

Full BBC interview here.

RB News 

December 28, 2014 

Buthidaung, Arakan – On Saturday early morning Myanmar’s Border Guard Police raided Rohingya houses in Buthidaung Township of Arakan State and arrested 18 innocent Rohingyas, according to locals. 

On Saturday, December 26th morning at 1:30 am a number of Myanmar’s Border Guard Police (BGP) led by a Deputy Commander based in Maungdaw Township raided Rohingya houses in Mi Gyaung Zay village tract and Chin Thamar village tract. 14 Rohingyas from Mi Gyaung Zay village tract and 4 Rohingyas from Chin Thamar village tract were arrested without any reason. 

The 14 individuals from Mi Gyaung Zay were taken to BGP station in Maungdaw and the remaining 4 from Chin Thamar were taken to BGP station in Taung Bazar village in Buthidaung Township. 

The 14 innocent Rohingyas who were arrested from Mi Gyaung Zay village tract are: 

(1) Mozamal s/o Nawzu Miah (Age 43) – From Sin Thay hamlet 

(2) Saif Ullah s/o Eliyas (Age 27) – From Mazi hamlet 

(3) Osman Gani s/o Baysa Ali (Age 40) – From Mi Gyaung Zay hamlet 

(4) Madiya s/o Eliyas (Age 40) – From Fawti Ali hamlet 

(5) Shukur Alam s/o Eliyas (Age 30) – From Fawti Ali hamlet 

(6) Molvi Fayaz s/o Murad (Age 50) – From Fawti Ali hamlet 

(7) Molvi -- ? – s/o Ali Hussein (Age 55) – From Fawti Ali hamlet 

(8) Jani Alam s/o Salim (Age 30) – From Fawti Ali hamlet 

(9) Yahya s/o Shawmuluk (Age 35) – From Mazi hamlet 

(10) Molvi Ayas s/o Shawmuluk (Age 28) – From Mazi hamlet 

(11) Mamed Zalil (Age 55) (12) Ayas s/o Mamed Zalik (Age 25) 

(13) Soe Myint (a.k.a) Karim Ullah s/o Iqbal (Age 40) – Ywa Thit hamlet 

(14) Abdul Karim (Retired Clerk) (Age 65) – Ywa Thit hamlet 

The 4 innocent Rohingyas who were arrested from Chin Thamar village tract are: 

(1) Habi Ullah s/o Abdul Zalil (Age 38) – From Maung Nu hamlet 

(2) Mohammed Zubair s/o Abdul Samad (Age 40) – From Phaung Taw Pyin hamlet 

(3) Mohammed Shah (Age 35) – From Phaung Taw Pyin hamlet 

(4) Abu Tayub s/o Gawrir Hussein (Age 33) – From Phaung Taw Pyin hamlet

By AFP

December 26, 2014

YANGON: Myanmar’s main city is poised to go to the polls Saturday for the first municipal vote in six decades, but observers warn the process is riddled with flaws and could cast a shadow over crucial 2015 general elections.

For many the ballot in Yangon, home to more than five million people, will offer the first taste of voting under the country’s quasi-civilian government and a rare chance to steer the direction of its biggest commercial hub.

But there are fears the election for the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC), which comes just months before next year’s landmark vote in the former junta-ruled nation, is falling far short of democratic norms with strict curbs on who can vote, as well as who can stand, among the clauses causing concern.

“It will be unfair, but I am taking part anyway,” said Win Cho, a political activist who registered to stand in the city’s western district just days after being released from a jail term for protesting without permission.

“If we do not take part, we can’t do anything for the people,” he told AFP. The polls mark only the second major vote since 2010 general elections, which were marred by widespread accusations of cheating and the absence of Aung San Suu Kyi’s opposition.

By Mari Michener Oye

Religion News Service

December 26, 2014

YANGON, Myanmar -- Sometimes a smiley-face emoticon just won’t do the trick.

In Myanmar, the newest set of Facebook stickers features a flower in an animated character’s mouth. The 24 stickers carry a deeper message than the usual “Like” thumbs-up Facebook icon: “End hate speech with flower speech.

The stickers are the latest attempt to combat the spread of “dangerous speech” online and are sponsored by Panzagar, a coalition of civil society activists. The group’s name, which means “flower speech,” was organized as a response to the pervasiveness of anti-Muslim invective online and in public space.

At the same time and with less fanfare, Facebook is rolling out a new process for users to report online abuse in Myanmar. Since Nov. 21, Facebook users in the country have new options available to report disturbing posts. The new process is aimed at more quickly addressing complaints and removing offensive posts in the Myanmar language.

This type of “market-specific reporting mechanism” already exists in some regions, including North Africa. Facebook’s grievance process was originally developed in the U.S. in response to teen cyberbullying.

Myanmar, however, presents a very different set of issues.

Though Myanmar’s Internet and mobile phone usage remains among the lowest in the world, newly licensed telecommunication companies are set to expand that access from less than 10 percent in 2013 to roughly 50 percent by the end of 2015.

And censorship remains a real threat. Until 2011, every publication in Myanmar was censored prior to publication. The government has relaxed censorship of print media, though restrictions on film and broadcast journalism remain. After riots in Mandalay in July that authorities said left two dead and 14 injured, President Thein Sein stated: “Action will be taken against those who threaten state stability rather than using media freedom for good.”

These statements make Myanmar’s pro-democracy activists nervous.

“Our slogan is to be careful, not to be silent,” said Nay Phone Latt, a blogger and activist who has spearheaded the Panzagar campaign. “We just got freedom of expression, and we don’t want to be silenced.”

Religiously targeted violence in Buddhist-majority Myanmar has resulted in at least 200 deaths in recent years. The vast majority of victims have been Rohingya Muslims.

Much of the attention has focused on Ashin Wirathu, a Buddhist monk who was famously dubbed “The Face of Buddhist Terror” in a controversial Time magazine cover last year. He circulates inflammatory rumors, such as accusations of the rape of Buddhist women by Muslim men, on his public Facebook page.

But the narrative of social media directly causing violence is overly simplistic, said Nay Phone Latt.

“Online media is just a tool — people use these things to convey their message. If there is no Internet, they will find another way, but it’s very fast and can spread everywhere,” he said.

Wirathu, as well as the affiliated monks organization Ma Ba Tha (Committee for the Protection of Nationality and Religion), are active both online and off. The materials include DVDs and street sermons mixing calls for a renewal of Buddhist practice with virulent portrayals of Muslims as a threat.

Some of Panzagar’s organizing techniques, including the use of Facebook stickers, are taken directly from opponents’ playbooks, which bridge online and offline activism. Downloading materials from Panzagar’s Facebook page, local youth groups in Kachin State and Mandalay printed their own T-shirts and pamphlets. The “Youth and Social Harmony” civil society group led a street campaign that reached 56 cities and towns.

Panzagar’s own Facebook page has garnered more than 14,000 “likes.” The coalition has held workshops and distributed notebooks in public schools.

“I am a Buddhist, and I am against the so-called Buddhist extremists,” said Nay Phone Latt, the executive director of the Myanmar ICT for Development Organization, which coordinates the campaign’s online strategy. “We are doing this campaign not as Buddhists or Muslims, but as Myanmar citizens.”

Panzagar has received endorsements from Myanmar celebrities, with two songs, “We Are All Human” and “Flower Speech,” set for release in the next month. In June, Panzagar received the Citizen of Burma award, an annual honor bestowed by Burmese living abroad.

Opposition has included a fake Panzagar Facebook page created by anti-Muslim groups. This incident demonstrated that “online hate speech in Myanmar is systematically organized,” said Matt Schissler, an adviser to the civil society group Paung Ku.

When Panzagar reported the page to Facebook, it was deleted, and the “likes” were reassigned to the real Panzagar page.

“It (Panzagar) is peacebuilding against hatred,” said Ko Thit Sar, a Muslim youth leader and volunteer with the Panzagar campaign. “Where the government and community allow this kind of speech, and nobody is working against this speech, and they never speak up against it — that is the normal way to discrimination.”

By Prof. Anna Malindog

Kashmir Watch

December 24, 2014

“I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die” 

-Nelson Mandela-

“To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity”

-Nelson Mandela-

Myanmar is the largest country in mainland Southeast Asia, lying strategically between India, China, Bangladesh, Laos and Thailand. In the 19th century, the British took over Burma and formed a single entity under the Indian colonial administration. The Japanese occupied Burma during the 2nd World War but were driven out by the British Empire Forces as the war drew to an end. In view of the strong Burmese nationalism headed by Aung San (Burmese National Hero), British granted Burma independence in 1948. Burma after independence faced communist insurgencies. The government afterwards found itself facing an increasing number of armed ethnic based conflict resistance groups all over the country most of which were seeking their own independence even until this very day.

In 1962, General Ne Win, the head of the Burmese Army, - the “Tatmadaw” overthrew the civilian government and established a military rule. Since then the military junta became the de-facto government of Myanmar. This led to many insurgencies, human rights abuses and atrocities, economic crisis, massive street demonstrations and rallies which killed thousands of people. Many also fled to areas controlled by ethnic and communist armed groups to form their own political rebel groups. 

Then came November 2010, when the first ever general election in Myanmar happened after more than two decades, or to be more precise, after 22 years since the last general election in 1990. Then March 2011 happened when the ruling military government that ruled Myanmar for almost five decades since 1962 was not only dismantled, but more importantly, the generals in Yangon relinquished power to the newly elected and formed “civilian government” headed by President Thein Sein. Undeniably, these two historic political events marked Myanmar’s transition towards democracy and democratization. These events also generated mixed and varied emotions and thoughts among the different stakeholders of Myanmar. For some people, what is currently happening in Myanmar is quite bizarre. Others are simply happy about the prospects of democracy taking a foothold in the country. Others are very skeptical and cynical. But there are also some who are hopeful that, indeed, this path, this transition towards democracy will continue and will persist until Myanmar becomes fully democratic. 

Moreover, cynicism and skepticisms among many observers loom around this new political trajectory that Myanmar is pursuing. For one, the military is still and remains still the “arbiter of power” in the country. The military occupies and governs still all the important state institutions created after the November 2010 Elections. The military directly controls a quarter of the legislatures, which were filled with lower-ranking officers, ensuring that the military bloc remains cohesive and compliant with the wishes of the military superiors. With the provision of a quorum of 75% necessary to change the Constitution, the military effectively has a veto power over constitutional changes, since it occupies more than 75% of all the seats both at the lower and upper house of the Parliament. The new National Defense and Security Council is the most powerful institution and this is controlled by the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. In terms of civil–military relations, the military remains fully autonomous subject to neither executive nor judicial civilian authorities. Furthermore, the issue about the on-going conflict between the Burmese army and the ethnic-based armed groups remains crucial and unresolved. To add, this current “civilian government” in Myanmar needs still to fashion a politically inclusive process of national reconciliation with the involvement of all possible actors such as, the National League for Democracy, the military, and the ethnic nationalities among others if it wants to confidently sustain the democratization process that is said to be taking place nowadays in the country. 

Moreover, the already skeptical and cynical perception of many international observers about the real score if indeed Myanmar is serious in its quest towards democratic transition once again was challenged by recent events in Myanmar. The cynicisms and skepticisms of people whether Myanmar is serious and genuine in pursuing democracy grew more due to the worst ever humanitarian disaster on the planet that happened just in the recent past, and that’s the enormous “genocidal vehemence” against the “Rohingyas”. These apartheid atrocities against the “Rohingyas” already claimed thousands of lives of ethnic-civilian “Rohingyas”. It is being estimated that around 1.3 million “Rohingyas” from Myanmar’s Western Arakan/Rakhine region have been uprooted since June 2012. “Rohingyas” are victims of intermittent religious violence, killings, internal displacements, and most of them ended up in filthy camps for internally displaced peoples in countries like Thailand, Bangladesh, and Malaysia to mention the least. In these countries, “Rohingyas” are seen as illegal migrants and they writhe from stern discriminations, hefty restraints on marriage, religious activities, health, and educational opportunities. In extreme cases, they are not even permitted to identify themselves as “Rohingyas”, and are forced to ascertain themselves as “Bengalis”. 

“Rohingyas” are a minority ethnic group who practice Islam. They speak “Rohingya”, an Indo-European language of the Easter Indic branch, closely related to “Chittagonian” of Bangladesh, and more distantly to Bengali. The UN ascertained that these people are one the most discriminated and persecuted minority groups so to speak of this day and age. Their sojourn in Myanmar is disputed. 

Some claim that they are to some extent indigenous inhabitants of Rakhine/Arakan state given that they settled in this part of Myanmar for thousands of years already. But many Burmese, most especially the Buddhist Rakhines are challenging this claim. They are saying that “Rohingyas” are originally from Bengal (Bangladesh) and therefore are “Bengalis”. Accordingly, “Rohingyas” migrated to Myanmar during the British rule. Thus, they are not indigenous to Myanmar and are categorically being labelled as illegal migrants. 

Sadly, the perpetrators of this “genocidal infringement” against the “Rohingyas” are said to be government-sponsored “state security forces”, and the “Rakhine Buddhist extremist militias”. Just this year (2014), the so-called “civilian government” of Myanmar disqualified “Rohingyas” from participating in the census. The same government according to reports just last September also drafted a plan conscripting “Rohingyas” to identify themselves as “Bengalis". In any case, “Rohingyas” remain stateless and many of them are unfortunately forced to stay in detention camps, ghettos, are internally displaced, and worst of all, those who fled from Myanmar to take refuge in other countries like Thailand, Bangladesh, and Malaysia suffer from severe discriminations, and are way too far being treated as lesser mortals. The plight of these people is indeed somewhat bleak and precarious. 

Many have observed and even the Burmese people in general alleged that the root cause behind all the atrocities against the “Rohingyas” are far more complex and has historical underpinnings. Nonetheless, whatever the root cause of these persecutions and discriminations against the “Rohingyas”, one thing is clear, a government that claims to pursue a democratic path, and in this case the current “civilian government” in Myanmar, must not turn a blind eye to the quandary of these people. One of the basic tenets of democracy is the recognition and respects of the basic rights and existence of people including minority/indigenous groups like the “Rohingyas” regardless of their creed, religion, color or race. Recognition and respect are not always or not necessarily and directly denote political recognition if the situation does not seem right yet given the volatile political landscape of the country. However, at the barest minimum, recognition and respect of the basic rights of peoples, and in this case the “Rohingyas” can mean accepting that indeed these people exist, that they are human beings, and that they need to be respected and treated accordingly and humanely.

If indeed, the so-called “civilian government” in Myanmar that claims to be crisscrossing the pathway towards democracy is serious in its democratic pursuits, then by all means, they should resolve and do whatever is necessary to put an end to the atrocities, discriminations, and persecutions accorded to “Rohingyas”. This same government in Myanmar, if it truly wants to pursue a democratic path where recognition and respect for the fundamental freedoms of human beings flourish, must extend to the “Rohingyas” the rights to self-identification and citizenship. Only through this democratic act, to a greater extent, one can ascertain that indeed Myanmar is truly in its path towards a genuine democracy. 

Anna Malindog is the human rights advocate. She is also an academic. You may get in touch with her through armalindog@mail.com

Democratic Voice of Burma

December 23, 2014

By Tom Andrews

Huffington Post

December 22, 2014

After his second arrest, Rafique Ahmad worried that the next time the police came for him at his home in Nyaung Chaung Village in Rakhine State Burma, he would be sent to prison. His crime? Talking too much.

Rafique worked with development NGOs serving the desperate Rohingya community in Rakhine State here in Burma. He later worked with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees helping the UN agency link to the community. When his village was wracked with violence last year, he knew that he would be targeted by police so he slipped from his village and made his way to Malaysia where he would try to find the means to bring his wife and four children.

The military dominated government of Burma does not want you to know about Rafique and the horror that is life as a Rohingya in Burma. That is precisely why he is so dangerous - he talks. And, it is precisely why I am here in Southeast Asia - to listen. I write this from Burma having arrived from Malaysia where I travelled to meet Rohingya families who barely escaped from their villages in Burma's western Rakhine State.

Rafique's Journey

I met Rafique and his family in Kuala Lumpur a few days ago. His wife and three of his children had arrived in Malaysia the day before after an arduous journey that included fifty days on a boat carrying 500 other desperate refugees and an another several days in a Thai jungle camp where they were held by their traffickers. His wife described the hell that they went through to get there. The boat was overcrowded and filthy. There was little food and water.

The traffickers set off with a week's worth of food and water for a fifty day journey. There were one hundred women and fifty other children on board. They clung to the hope that they would survive the journey and their great sense of relief at being free of the hell that was life in Rakhine.

The good news is that Rafique was, incredibly, able to raise the $4,000 he needed to buy the release of his wife and three of his children from the traffickers and get them to Malaysia from the Thai jungle camp where they were being held.

The bad news is that he was unable to raise what he needed to buy the release of his eldest son, 17 year old Faruk. Faruk remains captive in the Thai camp while his father works desperately to raise the $2,000 additional dollars he needs for his son's freedom.

Rafique and his family are part of an extraordinary and escalating boat exodus of equally desperate Rohingya from Rakhine State in Burma. More than 100,000 escaped on boats in the last year. I was told that the rate has jumped 50% from the year before and that there is every indication that the number of Rohingya who are willing to risk it all rather than remain in Burma will continue to spike upward.

Rafiique explained that the Rohingya refugees are held in the Thai jungle camps until they are paid the equivalent of $2,000 dollars - an unthinkable amount of money for almost every one of their families. If their families fail to deliver the cash for their release, they are sold to other traffickers. Some end up on fishing boats. Some on rubber plantations. Others are sold into the sex trade.

Burma's Third Rail: The Rohingya

There is little to no pressure within Burma to stop this horror. I was told that standing up for the Rohingya was a bad move for a politician or political party to make - including Nobel Peace Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi - who remains largely silent.

"Think of it as a third rail in Burmese politics", I was told by a political operative, "touch it and you die - there is no constituency here for the Rohingya. Only trouble for those who stand up or speak out on their behalf."

So there is no restraint on those who would prefer every one of the 1.3 million Rohingya to be driven into the sea. No restraint on the government who leveled a death sentence for untold numbers of Rohingya earlier this year when it announced that the only source of health care for most Rohingya, Doctors Without Borders, would no longer be allowed to treat them.

And there is more bad news: As Burma's 2015 elections draw closer, political leaders and parties are seeking to advance even tougher and more repressive measures into law.

In January, Burma's parliament will take up legislation that would restrict religious conversions, limit the number of children people can have in certain regions, and require Buddhist women to seek government permission to marry a non-Buddhist man.

Seeking Hope

Rafique - and every other Rohingya I have met with - were thrilled when President Obama raised the plight of the Rohingya during his visit this fall. "We are desperate", I was told, "and without friends." "You don't know how much your support means to all of us." For many, it provided what has long been missing for the Rohingya here - hope.

It is easy to think of this massive exodus from Burma, if we do at all, in abstract terms. But, I will forever think about Rafique and his family - including his son who remains locked in a Thai based camp. And, why it is so important for us to redouble our efforts to help stop the living hell that they face not because of anything that they have done, but because of their ethnicity, the color of their skin and the God who they pray to.

Tom Andrews is president of United to End Genocide.

By Naw Noreen 

Democratic Voice of Burma

December 22, 2014

A 50-year-old local woman was killed and at least four other villagers seriously wounded after protestors clashed with riot police near the site of Latpadaung copper mine in Sagaing Division on Monday afternoon.

A resident from Sete village, situated inside the mining project site, said Myanmar Wanbao company staff arrived with police security on Monday morning to lay fences across land plots that villagers have refused to give up [by not accepting compensation].

“The police stood in a line, armed with riot shields, and warned the villagers they would be shot if they did not move,” said the Sete villager. “The protestors tried to block them from entering the plots and refused to give in.

“The police killed a woman named Khin Win from Mogyopyin village. She was shot in the head,” he said.

DVB has learnt that protestors had launched stones from slingshots at the police and that the security forces had responded in kind before shots were fired.

Khin San Hlaing, a union parliament MP from nearby Pale Township, said she was informed by locals that Khin Win was shot dead by police.

“I was told by the villagers that Daw Khin Win was shot in the head when the police opened fire. The photos we received showed a bullet wound entering her forehead and exiting through the back of her head,” she told DVB by telephone at 3:30pm local time.

“Her body was still lying in the sesame field and no one had the courage to go pick it up,” the MP added. “We were also informed that another villager, U Hmine, from Mogyopyin village was shot in the thigh and was bleeding out. But he was yet to be taken to hospital.”

She added that a third villager, a woman named Ma Kyu, was injured in the eye.

Pho La Pyae, a resident from Mogyopyin village, said around 200 farmers from Myogyopyin, Sete and Tonywa villagers had confronted the police that morning and prevented them from coming onto their land. He said that 20 people were injured by police gunfire.

So far, no government official, police spokesperson or representative of Myanmar Wanbao has made an official statement.

Zaw Myo Nyunt, the administrator of nearby Yinmarbin village, told DVB by phone about an hour after the incident that he was unaware of any violence.

A DVB reporter at the scene said the protestors were dispersed from the area at around 4pm, whereby mining staff resumed erecting fences around the 1,000 acres of land in question.

The incident follows an official press release on 22 December by Myanmar Wanbao, a joint venture between military-backed Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings and China’s Wanbao Company. The company stated that it would soon commence work on an extended area of land allotted by the Burmese government for use in the copper mine project.

“Myanmar Wanbao Mining Copper Limited is pleased to announce that, under the direction of the Myanmar Government, the company will be extending its working area in the Letpadaung copper project to comply with requirements of its investment permit granted by the Myanmar Investment Commission. Construction is proceeding as a result of broad community support for the project.”

In addition to claiming that the project has the overwhelming backing of the local people, the firm went on to detail the amount it is has paid to villagers as compensation for assuming their land, and said that it has donated much money into the local community, as well as creating jobs and investing in local infrastructure.

Hundreds of local villagers and their supporters have been protesting the Latpadaung copper mine since its inception more than 10 years ago. Many have been displaced to make way for the project which was originally contracted to a Canadian firm, Ivanhoe Mines.

The controversial mine was temporarily suspended when activists and monks staged a mass sit-in protest in 2012. The protest was broken up brutally by riot police on 29 November that year when some 80 protestors were injured, including several Buddhist monks, many with horrific burns that experts have attributed to white phosphorous bombs.

A subsequent investigation headed by opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi failed to pronounce anyone guilty for the violent crackdown, and to many villagers’ dismay, recommended to the government that the project be resumed.