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Monks carry posters of 'take action immediately against Jihad fundamentalists' while holding a prayer campaign at the fame Shwe Dagon Pagoda in Yangon on July 4, 2014. (Ye Aung Thu/AFP/Getty Images)

By Antonia Blumberg
March 22, 2015

Buddhist and Muslim leaders in South and Southeast Asia are working to spread a message of peace and dialogue as interreligious conflict continues to threaten stability in Myanmar, Sri Lanka and other nations in the region.

Religious leaders from 15 countries released the "Yogyakarta Statement," named for the city where it was written, on March 5, reaffirming that Islam and Buddhism "are religions of mercy and compassion committed to justice for all humankind." Now the group is working to translate their message into as many languages as possible and give it to Buddhist and Muslim leaders and believers around the world.

The Yogyakarta Statement came out of a summit called "Overcoming Extremism and Advancing Peace with Justice.” The gathering was organized by the Indonesian Ulema Council and the Council of Buddhist Communities, and was sponsored by the International Forum of Buddhist-Muslim Relations.

Both Islam and Buddhism "respect the sacredness of life and inherent dignity of human existence, which is the foundation of all human rights without any distinction as to race, color, language, or religion," the statement says. It also covers topics ranging from hate speech and religious diversity to living in harmony with the environment.

At the end of the document, the signatories committed to having their communities and congregations serve "as a platform for intra-religious and inter-religious initiatives in education and advocacy."

"The statement is currently being translated into local languages and will be disseminated to senior, mid- and grassroots-level Buddhist and Muslim leaders and believers, women and youth groups," said Rev. Kyoichi Sugino, the deputy secretary general of Religions for Peace International, an interfaith NGO.

Much of the ongoing conflict in the region centers around the treatment of the Muslim Rohingya people in Myanmar, who have been denied citizenship and otherbasic human rights. Some of the worst fighting occurred in 2012, when clashes between Buddhists and stateless Rohingya Muslims left at least 192 people dead and displaced 140,000, according to Reuters.

Some fear that the conflict in Myanmar could spill into neighboring countries like Indonesia, fanning the flames of tension and inspiring Islamic militant groups. A 2013 bombing at the Ekayana Buddhist Centre in western Jakarta left people with only minor injuries, but was cause for concern because a note left by the anonymous attackers read: "We respond to the screams of the Rohingya.”

Bellanwila Wimalaratana Anunayake Thera, the president of the Sri Lanka Religions for Peace council, spoke at the summit as a representative of the country's Buddhist community, affirming that violence should not be perpetrated in the name of religion.

“We reject such abuse and pledge to counter extremist religious interpretations and action with our authentic primary narratives of peace,” Thera said, according to the Jakarta Post. "We also recognize the need to strengthen governmental measures against religiously motivated discrimination and violence."

Chandra Muzaffar, a Malaysian academic and social activist, also spoke at the summit as a representative of the Muslim community. Muzaffar said the religious leaders at the summit want to make "effective use of media for positive messaging," the Jakarta Post reported.

“If we want peace and justice, it is very important for Buddhists and Muslims to come together because these are two major world religions," Muzaffar said.

Dan Slater, a political science professor who studies Southeast Asia at the University of Chicago, said the Yogyakarta Statement is a "welcome and encouraging" sign of progress, particularly in its "internationalist spirit." But he said that intra-religious relations should play as much a role in stabilizing the region as interfaith efforts.

Slater's concern is not unfounded. Indonesian stand-up comic Sakdiyah Maruf told HuffPost by email that she recently saw a sign outside of a mosque in Java, where she lives, which read: "Shi'a Bukan Bagian dari Islam." ("Shia is not part of Islam.")

"This is in my opinion, the current daily reality of both inter-religious conflict and conflict within Islam in Indonesia," Maruf said.

Sugino said the religious leaders behind the Yogyakarta Statement worked to avoid "intra-religious difference of interpretations" by highlighting common values drawn directly from Quranic verses and Buddhist canonical texts.

"Among some of the key drivers of religious violent extremism, religious leaders are most equipped and well-positioned to address ideological, religious, cultural and phycological drivers," Sugino said. "Through trainings and workshops for grassroots believers and local religious leaders around the Yogyakarta Statement, we can provide moderate sections of society and ordinary believers with a means to ... question and challenge their leaders about their interpretations and narratives of exclusivity and intolerance."

Tin Tin Kyaw mourns her husband Soe Min, one of two men killed in violent Buddhist-Muslim riots in Mandalay, Myanmar, July 3, 2014 (Photo: Reuters/Soe Zeya Tun)


By AFP
March 22, 2015

Five people have each been jailed for 21 years for spreading false allegations that a Buddhist woman was raped by a Muslim man, which sparked a deadly religious riot in the Myanmar city of Mandalay last year.

The south-east Asian nation's second biggest city was plunged into deadly sectarian unrest in July 2014 when the rumour brought mobs out onto the streets.

At least one Muslim and one Buddhist man were killed in two days of violence which exposed deep religious tensions in the Buddhist-majority nation as it emerges from decades of military rule.

A court in Pyinmama town, central Myanmar, sentenced five people for spreading rumours and creating panic, a lawyer who represents two of those convicted said.

"They each have 21-year prison sentences. I'm going to appeal for my two clients within a month," lawyer Aung Thurein Tun said.

One of those convicted was a woman who the authorities said was paid to make up the rape allegation against a Muslim tea shop owner.

Sectarian violence in Myanmar has overshadowed widely praised political reforms since erupting in 2012.

The unrest has largely targeted Muslims, leaving at least 250 people dead and tens of thousands homeless.

Sectarian clashes have been particularly acute in western Rakhine state, with communal fighting that has displaced about 140,000 people, mainly stateless Rohingya Muslims.

Radical monks have been accused of stoking religious tensions with fiery warnings that Buddhism is under threat from Islam.

"Displaced Rohingya people in Rakhine State (8280610831)" by Foreign and Commonwealth Office - Flickr. Licensed under OGL via Wikimedia Commons.

By Mark Hay
March 22, 2015

Ever since Burma’s military elite began a slow and piecemeal, but highly publicized, march back towards civilian rule in 2010, the former pariah state has received a fair amount of praise from around the world. Diplomats, world leaders, and intellectual luminaries have applauded what they see as efforts to correct old lies, build stronger state institutions, and even put the brakes on their most egregiously violent and enduring local ethnic conflicts.

One of the most recent ostensible triumphs was Burma’s 2014 census—the nation’s first since 1983 and the first truly comprehensive headcount since 1931, which revealed that the nation’s population tallied 51 million, instead of the 60 million the state had touted for years. Many observers saw this monumental undertaking and the honesty of its results (understandably marred by their inability to reach regions of ongoing ethnic conflict) as a sign of the government’s newfound capability, professionalism, and willingness to seek out the truth.

But the unfortunate reality is that, while the census was an orderly affair, it was also a subtly weaponized bureaucratic tool. Sure, the count set right a good many statistical wrongs, paving the way for better management and services in the future, but it also allowed the government to perpetuate their relentless campaign to cleanse the nation of an ethnic Muslim minority, the Rohingya, without publicly lifting a gun. All they had to do was write their identity out of the census, erasing their legitimate existence from state records and forcing them, legally, into a tenuous, liminal space.

As subtle as this move against the Rohingya may seem, it’s outright aggressive at its core, not to mention a sign that the government may not be as fully dedicated to reform as many would like to believe, and may even be explicitly backsliding. This fear has surfaced periodically over the past year, most recently when police cracked down this month on student protestors venting their discontent over the government’s choice to reduce the autonomy of universities. The backlash saw violence and arrests reminiscent of the pre-reform days of the military dictatorship. Yet in the case of these protests, supporters have still managed to cobble together a legal case against the government to openly test the limits of their changing country’s justice system. The Rohingya lack even that recourse.

Rohingya Muslims number around 1.33 million worldwide (their numbers in Burma are estimated to have dropped to 800,000 these days), most of whom are clustered near the towns of Buthidaung and Maungdaw in Burma's Rakhine State, near the border with Bangladesh. And they have the dubious honor of being named one of the world’s most persecuted minorities by the United Nations.

Their persecution isn’t a simple result of their minority status. The majority ethnic Burmese compose only about two-thirds of the population, with the remaining third composed of 135 minorities. Some of these groups (especially the Chin, Karen, Karenni, Kachin, Mon, Rakhine, Shan, and Wa) have been in armed conflict with the state, but many ethnicities still fly under the radar.

The Rohingya, who don’t have much in the way of resources to fight a war, get short shrift largely because they’re Muslims of uncertain origin. In Burma, a violently Buddhist country, home to Ashin Wirathu, the self-professed Osama bin Laden of Buddhism, and his 969 Movement which promotes the removal of the nations 5 to 10 percent Muslim population (which he views as subhuman) to preserve national purity and morality, the Rohingya’s religion alone is tough. But although many claim their ancestors have been in the nation for centuries, the government maintains they were a parasitic extension of the British Empire, arriving in the mid-19th century with their colonial masters. And Burma has for years used killings, concentration camps, denial of services, and blind eyes and hands towards communal violence against the Rohingya in Rakhine to encourage these supposed colonial vestiges to clear out as fast as they can.

It’s rare these days to see soldiers directly threatening genocide against Rohingya (at least publicly or en masse), but the locals in Rakhine have done their fair share to perpetuate hostilities. The past three years have seen a number of communal riots and raids, the worst of which in 2012 killed dozens and pushed up to 140,000 into displacement-cum-concentration camps. The most recent such anti-Rohingya riot occurred just this past January, but the government, although not directly involved, refuses to intervene and censors reporters who write about such events.

Although the Rohingya were recognized when Burma first gained its independence, as of 1982 the military’s Citizenship Laws fail to officially list them amongst the nation’s ethnic groups (although they recognize other Muslim minorities like the Kaman), classifying them externally as Bangladeshi immigrants. The government denies the very existence of the Rohingya so violently that they’ve even slung abuse at United Nations representatives who use the term “Rohingya”.

“There are no Rohingya under the law,” Burma’s Ministry of Interior Assistant Director U Win Myaing told reporters in 2014. “They are illegal immigrants. If they need labor in the United Arab Emirates, why don’t they ask people to go there [so they can get out of Burma]?”

There was some hope leading up to the 2014 census that, since Burma was cooperating with the United Nations to make sure they complied with international census standards and receiving support from countries like Australia, Germany, and Norway, they would count and thus legitimize self-identifying Rohingya, forcing the state to confront its problems. But days before the census began in March, the state announced that Rohingya would explicitly not be an identifiable category on the census. Then they turned around and announced that they would attempt to conduct a census of their illegal Bengali population (read: use census tools to exhaustively label and segregate Rohingya as interlopers ready for deportation) by March 2015.

Over the past few months, Burmese officials have tracked down Rohingya, especially those trapped in “displacement camps,” and cajoled them into accepting government-issued cards that mark them as illegal aliens in their own country—cards that come laden with threats of imprisonment and deprivation. The government supposedly wants to create an amnesty path to citizenship for these native-foreigners, but many suspect the restrictions on this path, and the slow erosion of rights of cardholders (this February they lost the right to vote), is really preparation for the deportation of non-illegal-illegals by semi-legal means via a deep bureaucratic paper cut.

“We tried our utmost not to apply [for citizenship] with the Bengali identity,” Ha Shwe, a 44-year-old woman living in the Rohingya camps, told reporters in late 2014. “But we were fearful, so in September we applied. I feel as if I was a tree that was uprooted. For so many days I was unable to take a regular meal.”

These suspicions seem to be borne out by military leader-slash-president Thein Sein’s official suggestion in late 2014 that the best way to end ethnic violence in Rakhine would be to ship all the Rohingya off to another country. It’s a plan that Phil Robertson, the deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, deemed a “blueprint for permanent segregation and statelessness that appears designed to strip the Rohingya of hope and force them to flee the country.” And it appears to be working, as tens of thousands of Rohingya are currently fleeing the nation, much like they did after the military and local civilians directly attacked them during flare-ups in 1978.

This plot in Burma, to avoid direct extermination but to carry out an ethnic cleansing simply by using the accepted tools of good statecraft—census, survey, and supposed rule of law—is not new. It’s highly reminiscent of the way Joseph Stalin used the Soviet censuses of the 1930s to write entire groups of Central Asians out of existence (although, like Burma’s state, Stalin wasn’t above throwing force into the mix as well). Forcing the Rohingya to abandon their identity on paper, before forcing them to leave the nation, is a supreme form of hostility. It’s the destruction of an identity wholesale, not solely within one’s borders. But it’s so genteel that few people get up in arms about it in the same way as other forms of ethnic cleansing. Yet the pain and dislocation is doubly poignant thanks to this bureaucratic slight, as becomes apparent when one hears the words of those stripped of their identities and still facing the uncertain specter of deportation, and who knows what other indignities:

“I have been Rohingya for 66 years,” a camp resident named Albella told reporters last fall. “It’s more than a betrayal [to officially become a Bengali migrant]. I no longer trust my own identity.”



By Sarah Judith Hofmann
Deutsche Welle
March 21, 2015

Myanmar's constitution guarantees religious freedom. But some radical Buddhists have been railing against Muslims – a tendency which has reached the lawmakers by now.

Everything seems normal as children in red clothes play football on a dusty patch. However, this patch is the courtyard of a monastery and the young players with their rolled-up shirts and bare arms are Buddhist novices. Their teacher, U Nayaka, laughs at the notion that a monastery is supposed to be a place of meditation. "It is never quiet here, my students always make noise," said Phaung Daw Oo, director of the monastery school, who is a cheerful person and ends each of his utterances with a laugh.

Since 1993, Nayaka is providing education to children whose families would otherwise not be able to afford to send them to school. The school started with 400 students, who number around 8,000 today, with 450 of them living on the premises. Boys and girls, farm boys and street children, some are monks while others are not – even some Christians and Muslims are being taught in this school, says Nayaka with pride.

The Rohingyas have been taking the brunt of the hate campaign

"The Buddhist way of thinking is to think critically” – Nayaka is very clear about that and wants to implant it in his students. His school receives aid and support mainly from countries like Japan, Australia, England and Germany. The girls' dormitory was built a few years ago by the the Friends of Myanmar association of Germany, with financial help from the German government.

Several international volunteers are working at the school. Their objective is to teach critical thinking to the students, of which the peaceful coexistence of religions forms an integral part, Nayaka is convinced.

For the protection of race and religion

The monk U Maung Maung is not in favor of the coexistence of religions. His association, Ma Ba Tha, advocates "the protection of race and religion" with the objective of saving Buddhism from the perceived potential threat of Islam. The hatred is primarily directed against the Muslim Rohingya ethnic minority who live in Rakhine State along the borders with Bangladesh, and who do not possess the Myanmar citizenship.

According to Ma Ba Tha "the Bengalis" have no place in Myanmar. "They commit severe crimes," Maung thunders in his monastery on the outskirts of Yangon, Myanmar's economic hub. "They rape and try to marry as many of our women as possible," he rails.

Ma Ba Tha and their followers fear that the Muslims want to Islamize Myanmar. About 90 percent of the 51 million inhabitants of Myanmar are Buddhists; only about five million are Muslims.

Special law to marry Buddhist women

Ma Ba Tha's phobia is shared by radical monk Ashin Virathu, the brain behind the so-called "969" movement. Virathu has been described as "the face of Buddhist terror" by international media. For years, his followers have been running a campaign for the boycott of Muslim shops. They put stickers with their logo on buildings which should remain in Buddhist hands, in their opinion. And now their propaganda is about to find its way into legislation.

President Thein Sein had submitted a package of proposed legislation by December, with the aim of turning them into law before the presidential elections scheduled to take place in autumn.

These laws are supposed to serve "the protection of race and religion," but Amnesty International has criticized them as being "discriminatory" and "contrary to fundamental human rights."

One bill stipulates that a change of religion will only be possible after the application has been approved by the appropriate authorities. This will also apply to Buddhist women desirous of marrying a spouse from another religion.

Whether permission will be granted or not will be decided by a local body consisting of government officials and community leaders. Amnesty also criticized the proposed monogamy law as malicious propaganda, since polygamy is already forbidden in Myanmar.

'A handful of monks'

The Mogul Shiite Mosque, the biggest in Yangon, is located on the 30th Street of the Padeban township. The mosque was built towards the end of the 19th century by wealthy Persian merchants who had settled in Myanmar. Up to 300 Muslims gather here for their Friday prayers.

Buddhists and Muslims have lived in peace for centuries in Myanmar

Buddhists and Muslims have lived in peace for centuries in Myanmar, but attacks against the Muslim community have been increasing of late, a situation which makes Imam Bakr Mohammedi of the Mogul Mosque feel less upbeat.

"It's just a handful of (Buddhist) monks who preach hate and violence in their sermons," Mohammedi says, "but that is enough to cause riots in certain parts of the country." The situation is not so acute in Yangon, "but the violence in Rakhine State has caused concern among the Muslims here as well." Muslims are fleeing in greater numbers from other parts of the country to Yangon, according to the Imam.

Liberal monk Nayaka is not prepared to talk about the firebrand monk Virathu. Nayaka's own monastery is not very far from Virathu's Maseyein monastery. Nayaka is well acquainted with Virathu and his ideas; nevertheless, Nayaka would prefer not to comment upon them, despite the fact that he does not seem to lack courage.

By Brian Pellot
March 19, 2015

I’ve spent more than a few nights sipping cocktails at Buddha-Bar Dubai surrounded by statues of the eponymous sage. The popular franchise has locations in Moscow, Manila, Monte Carloand more. None in Myanmar.

On Tuesday, a Myanmar court sentenced New Zealand bar manager Phillip Blackwood and locals Htut Ko Ko Lwin and Tun Thurein to two and a half years imprisonment with hard labor for insulting religion.

Their offense? Promoting their swanky new tapas bar and restaurant on Facebook with an image of the Buddha wearing headphones:

Screenshot of the original Facebook post showing the Buddha with headphones. Photo via Facebook screenshot in December 2014

Compare that to the Buddha-Bar franchise’s homepage, which features the Buddha flanked by speakers:

Buddha Bar flanked by speakers on Buddha-Bar’s international website. Screenshot of Buddhabar.com taken March 18, 2015.




Blackwood’s Facebook post was hardly original. In different contexts it may not have even raised eyebrows. But in Myanmar, with Buddhist nationalism on an epic upswing ahead of this year’s general election, it was deemed criminal.

The world has watched Myanmar’s recent political reforms with hope — hope that freedom of expression, democratic processes and religious tolerance would improve. Undeniable progress on some of these fronts has been tempered by crippling backslides.

Websites have been unblocked and newspapers can now print opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s face on the front page, but journalists are still being imprisoned for “upsetting the government” and killed in military custody.

Students are no longer dying by the thousands while protesting, as happened in 1988, but theyare protesting and being forcibly dispersed and arrested in the process, feeling increasingly disillusioned and disenfranchised.

It’s hard to cite slight silver linings on the religious tolerance front when clashes, primarily between Buddhists and Muslims, have left at least 240 people dead since 2012.

Myanmar law prohibits exploiting religion for political gain. This hasn’t stopped politicians from appealing to politically expedient and widely held fears that Buddhism is under serious threat, primarily from the country’s Muslim minority, which represents just 5 percent of the total population.

Such fears have bolstered support for controversial “protection of race and religion laws,” which would restrict religious conversion, interfaith marriage and other common rights if enacted.

They’ve also contributed to the dire situation of predominantly Muslim Rohingyas in western Rakhine State, the plight of which I wrote about most recently in December after having spent much of October and November traveling across Myanmar and training journalists.

With Myanmar’s general election scheduled for this fall, politicians are veering hard to the right (à la “King BiBi” ahead of yesterday’s election in Israel) to shore up support among a frightened, overwhelmingly Buddhist constituency.

In this context, I suspect that the “Buddha headphones” arrest and imprisonment—significant and chilling in its own right—will be just one in a series of more ridiculous and egregious human rights violations to come.

I return to Myanmar on Monday for the International Press Institute’s World Congress. Journalist Hannah Beech, who wrote the controversial “Face of Buddhist Terror” TIME Magazine cover article in 2013, was denied a visa to join us at last year’s International Media Conference in Yangon, allegedly for her own safety and so as not to disrupt the proceedings.

Amid Myanmar’s escalating crackdown on free speech, I sincerely hope that this article and previously expressed thoughts don’t get me blacklisted from a country I’ve come to love. More importantly, I hope that real democratic reforms bring real freedom of expression and freedom of religion or belief to Myanmar in the coming year.

Yanghee Lee speaks to reporters in Rangoon at the end of a 10-day visit to Burma in July 2014. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

By Tom Miles
March 19, 2015

GENEVA — A UN human rights investigator said on Wednesday she expects Burma to guarantee her security, despite failing to censure a radical Buddhist monk who called her a “whore” and incited his followers against her.

Yanghee Lee, UN special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, has angered the country’s government by criticizing its restrictions on political freedom and by demanding citizenship rights for the Rohingya Muslim minority in Arakan State.

That has also made her a hate figure for Buddhist monks led by U Wirathu, who once called himself “the Burmese bin Laden” and mosques “enemy bases”. He denounced Lee as a “whore” and a “bitch” at a public rally in January.

After Lee submitted her latest report to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva last week, U Wirathu posted a threatening riposte on his Facebook page.

“Dear patriots, let us find ways and means to teach the beastly woman a lesson,” he wrote, according to a translation by the U.N. Human Rights Office.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein is “disgusted with the latest comments”, his spokesman Rupert Colville said.

“He sees it as a clear and personal incitement to violence … and he wants to stress that it’s absolutely the responsibility of the government of Myanmar to deal with threats of violence and incitement and to ensure the safety of the special rapporteur when she visits.”

Lee told reporters there was “always a great possibility” that her personal safety could be jeopardized.

“I have confidence in the Myanmar government that they will see that my security and the security of my staff is their utmost priority. But it doesn’t mean that any individual couldn’t do something very crazy.

“However, I am disappointed that the government has not disassociated itself from these remarks, and the government has blamed me for leaving the country with this distrust, discord and incitement.”

Under Burmese law, all slogans and logos for any rally must be cleared with authorities beforehand, Lee said, so the government could have prevented U Wirathu’s 10-minute-long inflammatory speech.

U Wirathu was jailed for 25 years in 2003 for distributing anti-Muslim pamphlets that incited communal riots in his hometown, where a Buddhist mob killed at least 10 Muslims, but he was freed in 2011 during an amnesty for political prisoners.

A Reuters investigation in 2013 found that organized attacks on Muslims in late 2012 were led by Arakanese nationalists incited by Buddhist monks and sometimes abetted by local security forces.

A woman in a displacement camp in Arakan State’s Myebon Township holds up her white temporary identification card in October 2014. (Photo: JPaing / The Irrawaddy)

By Yen Snaing
March 18, 2015

RANGOON — The National League for Democracy (NLD) has expelled more than 20,000 temporary identification card holders from the party’s membership, purging noncitizens from its ranks in compliance with a legislative mandate.

The expulsion of the so-called “white card holders”—described as such because their temporary identity document is white—was prompted by a change to legislation dictating the operational bounds of Burma’s political parties and follows a ruling by President Thein Sein stripping the group of suffrage last month.

The amendments to the law restrict party membership to holders of full citizenship in Burma, precluding associate citizens, naturalized citizens and white card holders.

“Since the NLD has more members, the party has asked for an extension of the deadline to submit the [updated] list. Actually, the list was supposed to be submitted [to the Union Election Commission] by the end of January,” Nan Khin Htwe Myint, an NLD Central Executive Committee member, told The Irrawaddy.

Hla Maung Cho, deputy director of the Union Election Commission (UEC), said many of Burma’s registered political parties had already submitted similar lists, which the UEC is checking against previous membership rosters. The UEC official said he could not disclose how many people in total were expunged from the memberships of the approximately 70 registered political parties in Burma.

“Some parties submitted that they do not have white card holders on their membership lists. We will verify that,” he said.

Nan Khin Htwe Myint said the NLD had been granted a deadline extension but was required to submit its updated list this month. She added that parties were expected to vet their own rosters, with the UEC serving in an overseeing role.

Parties found noncompliant risk potential deregistration by the UEC.

Parliament voted in September to amend Article 4(a) and Article 10(a) of the Political Parties Registration Law, which cover who is eligible to found and join a party, respectively. The changes stripped both provisions of previous wording that allowed any “[full] citizen, associate citizen and naturalized citizen or white card holders” to participate in party politics, restricting eligibility to full citizens only.

The disenfranchisement of white card holders has included revoking their right to vote in a constitutional referendum slated for May, and a general election due late this year, because of a presidential ruling last month that will see the cards expire on March 31. In addition to the loss of suffrage, current white card holders will likely see their ability to travel around the country curbed due to a lack of identity document.

The government has said white card holders will have the opportunity to obtain a level of citizenship by undergoing the national verification process, an ill-articulated procedure that involves applicants proving that their ancestry was born in the country.

Many of the country’s white card holders are Rohingya Muslims, a persecuted minority largely based in western Arakan State.

Burma’s Immigration Minister Khin Yi told The Irrawaddy last month that there were an estimated 700,000-800,000 white card holders countrywide.



Media Release From Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK

For Immediate Release 
March 18, 2015

Rohingya Panel Discussion At Human Rights Council, Geneva

Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK has participated in a panel discussion on the Rohingya crisis in Burma with the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma at the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK President, Tun Khin, participated with Yanghee Lee UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Burma, Chris Lewa Director of Arakan Project and Lilianne Fan, Research Fellow at the Overseas Development Institute's Humanitarian Policy Group spoke at 28th Session UN Human Rights Council at the side event. The panel was organised as a side event by the International Peace Bureau.

UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee warned that the country is backsliding. She witnessed the ongoing discriminatory restrictions on the freedom of movement of Muslim IDPs, which also impacts other basic fundamental rights. She stated that the expiry at the end of March 2015 of the temporary white cards held by many Rohingyas as identity documentation raises more uncertainties and further increases their vulnerability. She highlighted that there have still been no credible investigations into the serious human rights violations that took place in 2012 and 2014.

Tun Khin, President of Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK described how a combination of violent human rights abuses, repressive government policies and the creation of a humanitarian crisis are all part of a systematic plan by President Thein Sein’s government to drive the Rohingya out of Burma. He called on UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to personally take the lead in negotiating unrestricted humanitarian access in Rakhine State. He also called for the Human Rights Council Resolution on Burma to include the creation of a UN Commission of Inquiry into human rights violations and government policies against the Rohingya.

Chris Lewa denounced the citizenship verification process and the cancellation of white cards, which could lead to a total exclusion of the Rohingya in Myanmar. The withdrawal of the temporary ID cards (white cards) issued under the 1949 Burma Residents Registration Act goes far beyond denial of their right to vote and risks leaving them without any legal documentation and even the right to reside in Myanmar. This appears to be a tactic to force Rohingyas to go through the citizenship verification exercise by self-identifying as Bengali, which most refuse. 

Lilianne Fan presented an analysis of the humanitarian consequences of the protracted human rights and statelessness crisis in Rakhine. 70% of Rohingya have no access to safe water and sanitation and in some districts there is only one doctor per 160,000 people. Under 5 malnutrition is almost two times higher than the national rate, vaccinations were dangerously low and women and girls were vulnerable to gender based violence. However, humanitarian aid faced serious obstacles from both communities and government. 

For more information contact Tun Khin on +44(0)7888714866

Buddhist monks protest against a UN resolution urging Myanmar to offer Rohingyas full citizenship [EPA]

By Richard Bennett
March 18, 2015

Myanmar's proposed 'race and religion laws' fuel hatred and fear.

In October last year, Htin Lin Oo, a writer and former information officer for Myanmar's main opposition party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), gave a speech condemning religious extremism in the country. The comments appeared innocuous enough - Htin Lin Oo, who addressed a crowd of around 500 people, criticised how some groups take advantage of religion to stoke discrimination. 

But then a short excerpt from his speech was circulated on social media, where many of Myanmar's Buddhist nationalist groups have a growing presence. Taken out of context, the comments caused a storm that led to his arrest shortly after. Today, he is languishing in a prison in the central Sagaing region, facing trial for "wounding religious feelings".

The uproar against Htin Lin Oo's comments is no surprise. The past years in Myanmar have seen a disturbing rise in religious intolerance, often fuelled by hardline Buddhist nationalist groups, directed particularly at Muslims.

Fanning intolerance

But instead of tackling these issues head on and trying to defuse tensions, the Myanmar authorities continue to take steps that could fan the flames of intolerance even further.

At the moment, parliament is debating a series of repressive bills - ostensibly aimed at "protecting race and religion". If they become law they would not only give authorities free rein to further discriminate against minority religious groups and women, but could also provide the spark for further ethnic violence.

To understand why the laws are so troubling, consider the context in Myanmar. As hardline Buddhist nationalist groups have gained support and grown in influence, so has their hate-filled rhetoric. The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, got a taste of this when she visited the country in January this year and was branded a "whore" by the leader of one such group - simply because she had dared to raise the human rights of Muslim minorities.

Most of the rhetoric has been aimed at Myanmar's non-Buddhist groups, in particular the Rohingya minority. The Rohingya have faced decades of institutionalised discrimination - they are denied citizenship and with that access to basic services. Waves of violence dating back to 2012 have left scores dead, and hundreds of thousands of people - mainly Rohingya - are today languishing in displacement camps in desperate conditions.

Worst stereotypes

There is also a disturbing gender aspect to the nationalist groups' rhetoric. Anti-Muslim sentiment or even attacks has been sparked by their often unfounded accusations of violence - including rape - committed by Muslim men against Buddhist women. Too often, notions that "vulnerable" Buddhist women need "protection" from other religious groups are propagated.

The bills currently tabled in Myanmar's parliament play into some of the worst - and patently false - stereotypes being spouted against Muslims and women in particular.

If passed, one of the laws would require those who want to convert to a different religion to apply through a government-body, even though international law guarantees the right to choose one's belief. 

Vaguely-defined local "Registration Boards", made up of government officials and community members, would "approve" applications for conversion - essentially opening the door for local authorities to further discriminate against minorities.

Another bill - the Buddhist Women's Special Marriage Bill - imposes a series of "provisions" on non-Buddhist men who marry Buddhist women. Not only is the law inherently discriminatory on a gender basis, since it imposes no similar provisions on the wife, it also blatantly plays to stereotypes that non-Buddhist husband will seek to forcibly convert their Buddhist wives.

State population control

Another bill ostensibly aims to provide family planning for communities living in poverty, but could at worst become a blueprint for state population control. The bill, which apparently plays into fears that minority groups are having more children than the Buddhist majority, establishes a 36-month "birth spacing" interval for women between child births, though it is unclear whether or how women who violate the law would be punished. 

Family planning is to be encouraged, but should never be imposed by the state. An almost complete lack of human rights safeguards means that the bill could even pave the way for state-enforced contraception, abortions or sterilisation.

Myanmar is entering a crucial year with elections in November. The country is facing a range of serious political and economic issues - ranging from widespread poverty to questions over the progress of political reforms that were introduced in 2011. The proposed "protecting race and religion" laws are a distraction from these serious issues - they should never have been tabled in the first place and must be scrapped.

Myanmar's authorities should work for reconciliation between religious and ethnic groups and address the range of pressing issues facing the country - not play into hatred and fear, and seek to cement already widespread discrimination.

Richard Bennett is the Director of Amnesty International's Asia Pacific Program. He has previously worked for the United Nations in a number of human rights-related roles across Asia, including as head of the human rights unit of the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan between 2004 and 2007.

(Photo: Thet Ko/Mizzima)

By Esther Htusan 
March 17, 2015

Yangon, Myanmar -- A Myanmar court on Tuesday sentenced a New Zealand bar manager and his business associates to 2 1/2 years in prison for insulting Buddhism in an online advertisement that showed a psychedelic depiction of Buddha wearing headphones.

Philip Blackwood, 32, Tun Thurein and Htut Ko Ko Lwin were given two years of hard labor for insulting religion and six months for disobeying an order from a public servant. After the sentencing, Blackwood told reporters as he was getting into a police van that he would appeal.

About 90 percent of Myanmar's people are Buddhist. Perceived insults to the religion are taken seriously, especially in the context of the religious-based violence in the past few years pitting Buddhists against Muslims.

The sentences drew strong rebukes from human rights groups.

"It is ludicrous that these three men have been jailed simply for posting an image online to promote a bar. They should be immediately and unconditionally released," said Rupert Abbott, Amnesty International's research director for South East Asia and the Pacific, in a press release.

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of Human Rights Watch, said the three men acted in a culturally insensitive way but should not be sent to prison. "What this shows is freedom of expression is under greater threat than ever in Burma (Myanmar) just as the country heads into a pivotal election year," he said in an emailed statement.

The trial of V Gastro manager Blackwood, bar owner Tun Thurein and employee Htut Ko Ko Lwin came as Myanmar grapples with a surge of religious nationalism, including violence against Muslims.

About half a dozen monks and hard-line Buddhists gathered outside the Yangon court to hear the verdict.

"The verdict is fair. This punishment will deter others from insulting Buddhism or other religions," said Paw Shwe, a member of a Buddhist organization.

The three were arrested in December after the image was used to promote the tapas bar and lounge, and have been detained in Myanmar's notorious Insein prison. The online ad was removed and an apology was posted.

Blackwood's father Brian Blackwood at his home in Wellington told Fairfax Media that he was devastated and could not believe the sentence his son had received.

"We hoped common sense would prevail and he would be found not guilty because it was not a malicious or intentional act, which it was supposed to be," he said. "We were hoping he would be found not guilty or at the very least deported."

Amnesty International said it was deeply worried about shrinking religious freedom and the growing influence of hard-line Buddhist nationalists. "Authorities should do all they can to reverse this disturbing trend - not seek to inflame the situation further by pursuing cases like this," Abbott said.

———
Associated Press writer Nick Perry in Wellington, New Zealand, contributed to this report.



March 17, 2015

UN expert visited Rohingya Muslim camps in January 2015

GENEVA -- The situation in Rakhine State in Myanmar remains "dire" and conditions of camps of internally displaced Muslims are "abysmal," UN expert warned on Monday. 

Speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Yanghee Lee, special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, said discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities in Rakhine State was rampant. 

"The situation in Rakhine State remains dire. The atmosphere between communities is hostile. There have still been no credible investigations into the serious human rights violations that took place in 2012 and 2014," she said. 

Violence in the country had erupted between Buddhists and the long-persecuted Rohingya Muslims in 2012 and the state security forces took part in these serious human rights violations against the Rohingya Muslims, various NGOs have reported. 

Since an outbreak of communal violence between Buddhists and Muslims in 2012, the latter have been forced to live in camps from which they are forbidden to leave. 

"Conditions in Muslim IDP camps I visited were abysmal. People said they had only two options: "stay and die" or "leave by boat". No one should ever feel faced with such a choice." 

"The justification given by the government to the confinement of Muslims in camps for their own protection is troubling," Lee noted. 

"During my visit to the region, I met with local authorities and community leaders and visited camps for Buddhists as well as Rohingya Muslims. I witnessed the ongoing discriminatory restrictions on the freedom of movement of Muslim IDPs, which also impacts the enjoyment of other basic fundamental rights," Lee said. 

The South Korean rapporteur Lee made her second and last official visit to the country from Jan. 7 to 16, 2015.

Thousands of Rohingya helpless after violence in Myanmar (Photo: Al Jazeera)

March 16, 2015

JEDDAH — More than 170,000 Burmese nationals who have been living in the Kingdom without identity papers have been issued with free iqamas (residence permits), Al-Hayat reported on Sunday.

“We have turned our dream of legal residence in Saudi Arabia into reality thanks to the correction procedures for the Burmese community approved by the government of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques,” community leader in Makkah Abu Al-Shamie Abdulmajeed said.

He said about 250,000 Burmese were recognized as Rohingyas who fled their country long ago to escape persecution from the authorities in Myanmar.

“The Rohingyas have been living in Saudi Arabia for up to 70 years without official identity papers,” he added.

Abdulmajeed said the iqamas have solved a number of problems for the Burmese and will enable them to work, obtain medical services and join government schools from elementary to secondary stages.

“We can now move freely and join the general education system instead of obtaining education at the private charity schools,” he said.

According to him, the Burmese were recognized by a correction committee from the Makkah Governorate.

He said the majority of the Burmese live in Makkah.

Majeed, however, said their dream of going back home has forever vanished because of the persecution against Muslims still ongoing in Myanmar.

He said most of the Burmese work in the field of construction and teach the Holy Qur’an in memorization rings.

Local Rohingyas stand on a road in Aung Mingalar, Sittwe (Lux Capio Photography)

By Alex Bookbinder
March 16, 2015

The recent re-sentencing of three prominent Rohingya community leaders in Arakan State and the ongoing detention of two others points to the uneven application of the rule of law in the restive region, their lawyer claims.

The trio – Ba Tha, Kyaw Myint, and Kyaw Myint’s son, Hla Myint – were sentenced by Sittwe’s Appellate Court to eight years in prison on 27 February for their alleged role in inciting violence against government officials, and remanded into custody on 8 March.

Their sentencing stems from an incident that occurred in April 2013, when a delegation visited the Rohingya village of Thet Kay Pyin near the state capital of Sittwe to forcibly register its inhabitants as “Bengalis.” Another Rohingya community leader, Kyaw Khin, was sentenced in absentia to five years in prison on the same day and is currently in hiding, according to a statement issued by Thailand-based watchdog Fortify Rights.

The officials’ arrival at Thet Kay Pyin, on 26 April 2013, prompted a group of some 200 villagers to demonstrate against the registration process, spearheaded by Burma’s Ministry of Immigration and Population as part of a contentious “citizenship verification” process that was paused in February 2015.

The Burmese government does not recognise the Rohingya as one of the country’s 135 “national races”, and most Rohingya reject classification as “Bengali”, a term they consider pejorative that implies origins in neighbouring Bangladesh. The trio were sentenced to one and a half years in prison in May 2013, but were released as part of a presidential amnesty in October 2014.

At Thet Kay Pyin, the villagers defiantly chanted, “Rohingya! Rohingya! Rohingya!” in protest, and the demonstration turned violent. Although the circumstances under which violence broke out remain disputed, government officials allegedly sustained injuries after coming under attack by incensed villagers.

Two other individuals charged by the authorities in May 2013 – Suleyman Begum and Muhammad Hashim –remain in prison after being sentenced to three and a half years on charges relating to robbery, intimidation and disturbing civil servants. On 27 February, five additional years were added to their sentences.

According to Hla Myo Myint, a Rangoon-based lawyer representing the Thet Kay Pyin prisoners, the re-sentencing of the three community leaders was prompted by allegations that they abetted the rioters by compelling them to reject registration as Bengali, a charge the trio deny.

“There’s no rule of law. It’s all bias of race in conflicts,” Hla Myo Myint told DVB. He claims that the evidence presented by the prosecution was accepted blindly by the court, and relied heavily on the testimony of one policeman, which he classified as “tainted.”

The eight-year sentence was passed down after the defendants were found guilty of violating three sections of Burma’s Penal Code: 147, 333, and 395, for rioting, causing “grievous injury” to a public servant, and “dacoity,” or banditry, respectively.

Burma’s penal code is a piece of colonial-era legislation that was penned back in 1861. Its outdated statutes give the authorities sweeping, arbitrary prosecutory powers, offering the accused few avenues for recourse or a meaningful appeals process. Across Burma’s justice system, 90 percent of charges end in conviction, and free legal counsel is not a legally enshrined right.

Hla Myo Myint feels that his clients were arbitrarily singled out due to their prominence in the community. He claims that the authorities have no way of knowing who was responsible for starting the conflict, leading them to slap his clients with trumped-up charges in an attempt to stifle further dissent.

Three years of the sentence justified under Section 395 for “dacoity”, for example – a term that originally referred to roving bands of thieves in colonial India – was passed down because the mobile phone of an immigration official went missing during the riot, he claims.

Bias by the ethnic Arakanese [Rakhine Buddhist] judges overseeing the cases – who many feel are likely to be prejudiced against Rohingya plaintiffs – has made a mockery of justice, he feels. “The real problem is the evidence in the case, the justification for punishment. They don’t have any evidence,” he said. “But Thein Aung, the appellate court judge, is Arakanese, and he is sensitive towards the Rohingya. He can change the primary order, and give punishment.”

The government has demanded that stateless Rohingyas currently possessing “white cards” that provide them with temporary identification turn them in at the end of the month, a factor that has contributed to heightened tensions across the state. Despite their non-citizen status, voting rights – facilitated by the possession of “white cards” – have been among the few privileges afforded to Rohingyas by Naypyidaw in recent years, albeit out of self-interest as their votes offset popular support for Arakanese nationalist parties in the 2010 polls.

Hla Myo Myint – an ethnic-Burman Buddhist with close ties to the opposition National League for Democracy – has forged a career taking on contentious cases. He has represented farmers embroiled in land disputes in the Irrawaddy Delta and leading monks in the 2007 “Saffron Revolution” uprising against military rule. In 2009, he represented Aung San Suu Kyi after an American citizen, John Yettaw, swam to her lakeside residence, prompting the authorities to extend her house arrest for an additional eighteen months.

It is exceedingly rare for lawyers in Burma to advocate on behalf of Rohingya clients, owing to their pariah status both in and out of the corridors of power.

But Hla Myo Myint feels that to deny anybody counsel on the grounds of ethnicity would amount to a dereliction of duty. “I’m an advocate, and because I follow the ethic of an advocate, I will take every case. I have no choice. Ethically, I am obligated,” he said.

He intends to bring the Thet Kay Pyin prisoners’ case to Burma’s supreme court in Naypyidaw, but it remains to be seen if the case will be re-opened. As far as he is concerned, however, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be. “I have good legal grounds for revision,” he said.

(Photo: Al Jazeera America)


RB News 
March 15, 2015

Coxs Bazar, Bangladesh -- A clash at Nayapara Refugee Camp between a group of Refugees and Anser Battalion and police on Sunday, the 15th of March. The clash happened when a group of Anser battalion and police led by the Camp-in-Charge entered the camp and tried to arrest a man, Sadek Hossain 24 years old from the I block of the Refugee Camp. 

Upon hearing news of his arrest, Sadek Hossain's relatives went to try to plead for his release at the junction point from I block. The Anser Battalion and police refused their pleas, and a scuffle broke where Sadek Hossain's relatives tried to take him from police. 

It was then that the police and Anser battalions started shooting at the group of Refugees. Reports from witnesses say members of the Battalion shot a total of 6 bullets from rifles. They fired twice upward as warning shots and then 4 times towards the group of men. 2 people were injured including a child. One man succumbed to his injuries after being shot by blank fire by the Anser battalion and police. Abdul Hafez 32 years, received 3 rifle bullets to his abdomen. The people were only permitted to take him hospital after an hour had passed and they tried to rush him to the IPD of Nayapara camp. He was then referred to Cox's Bazar Sadar hospital where the doctors pronounced him dead. His body was then sent to the morgue for autopsy. 

The Police, Anser Battalion and BGB have since been seen roaming the camp sprodicaly and beating the innocent Refugees, whom ever gets in their way. As news spreads through the camp many stay inside their sheds as to not draw unwanted attention to themselves. There were reports that the authorities are spreading news that the murder was committed by refugees and that they had no involvement. 

At this present time it is not known why they had earlier wanted to arrest Sadek Hossain.

U Kyaw Min
RB Article
March 15, 2015

Throughout history Muslim population in Arakan was either majority or proportionally even with Rakhine people. Except a small portion of Muslim who is called Kaman or Kamanthei, the rest identify themselves as Rohingya. Myanmar had a first stage random census in 1953/54. People were not aware of what it was. Again in 1973 census Muslim registered themselves as Rohingya, but in the census report they were categorized as Pakistanis and Indians. But 99.7 percent of total population including Rohingya was described as citizens whereas only 5316 persons were shown as foreigners.

In 1983 census, despite the respondent’s claim to be Rohingya, the reports designated them as Bangladeshi. But in that census, there were no clarification of citizenship. It is obvious, that state policy from then was, to make these Muslims of Arakan, Bengali. It is amazing to think of how the Pakistanis and Indians in 1973 census were converted into Bangladeshi in 1983 census.

So this Muslims are at the crossroad now. They identify themselves as Rohingya where the government along with Rakhine people calls them Bengali.

The crucial thing is, either they are Bengali or Rohingya or Muslims, they have been there in Arakan since the creation of the earth. This is not a hypothetical assertion; it is not an illusion. It is a reality. If we go through “The Missing links in Arakan History” by S. N Goshal, we will find it. Rohingya belong to ancient Darvavadi and Vessali period. Time, space, personalities and vested interest had created a false picture of Arakan history; and Rohingyas were deprived off their history. Now they are branded as Bangladeshi fresh illegal immigrants. Knowing this distortion of history, Nobel laureate, Harvard professor Amartya Sen, at a Harvard seminar, last year declared; "it is not the Rohingya who came into Myanmar it is Myanmar who went into Rohingya land" It is because historians say Arakan was an Indian land before10th century and its peoples were like that of Bengal. Myanmar people from the east get their settlement only after 10th Century. This Myanmar in British records is Mug. In many Rakhine native chronicles e.g. “Danyawaddy Aredawpon” the author claimed to be Myanmar. Today Rakhine in Bangladesh identify themselves as Mramar too.

Burmese laws stipulate that those whose permanent residence happened within present day map of Myanmar territory anterior to BE 1180 and 1823 AD are Myanmar indigenous peoples: The Muslims of Arakan today, Bengali or Rohingya, or Kalar whatever we call, they have been there before that date line which we can vividly observe in the earlier chapters of this treatise.

Sultan Kadirshah, (Rakhine versions: kala Sultan katera) a Muslim became 37th king of Maruk-U in 1737 AD. When he was dethroned, in 1738 AD there was a country wide insurrection of Muslims. (Rakhine state council chronicle (politics) 1984, P-77)

From AD 1685 to 1708 AD i.e. from Weradammaraza to Sanda Thuriaraza nine Successive kings were powerless. The royal bodyguards of Kaman force took fire in their hands and could roam around the country freely. They made and unmade kings at their will; some kings were dethroned within days. They were then known as king maker of Arakan (W.S.desai, the pageant of Burmese history 1961, P-61, 63)

Nat Myint Sann Aung a Rakhine author writes: “Sandawizeya 1709-1731 was an able, qualified king. He managed to maintain and sustain his rule. He suppressed and persecuted Muslims. He deported the Kaman force to off shore islands of Akyab and Rambre. Many had fled to Bengal and Myanmar proper. After him the country’s situation again became Chaotic. Kalas (Muslim) in the west were interfering in the internal affairs. Some Rakhine nobles and princes were taking help of kalar (Mulims). Abaya Maharaza (AD 1764-1773) was revolted by DahbaingGyiThauk-kra. He organized and honored the native kalar (Muslims). He recruited a kala army to seize the throne. He became king in 1773-1777 AD with the title, Sanda Thumanaraza. But he too was killed and DamarazRaza became the king in (1777-1782) But native kalar (Muslim) are not contented. They sending off their families (women and young ones) to Panwa (Ramu) organized a revolt. Some Rakhine noble and grandees co-operated with the kalar (Muslims). Consequently the last Arakan king MahaThamadaraza (1782-84 AD) was enthroned.[1] Professor Harvey said he was from the despised race of Ramree.[2] Some say he would not worship idols. So he is assumed to be from the Muslim Kaman race. Some Rakhine including the father of king Berring( ChanPyan) invited Ava king BodawPhaya to take over Arakan. BodawPhaya who was waiting for that chance and sent a force, under the command of his eldest son and easily could take over Rakhine under its sovereignty.

To sum up Muslim in Arakan were neither mercenaries nor aliens. They were part and parcel of Arakan (Rakhine) society. The politics of Arakan, especially during the third phase of Mrauk-U dynasty was monopolized by Muslims. During Myanmar king BodawPhaya’s rule Muslim community was allowed to settle their religious and social dispute according to their Sharia law. In 1807.Bodawphaya issued a royal decree (see on P….) in this regard. First a single Judge (Qazi) was appointed, then there were region wise Judges (Qazi). Till today there are Qazi villages and Qazi mosques in various places in Rakhine state. British preserved this Qazi system until early 20th century. (A Qazi appointment letter of British time is attached here by. (see the appendices)

Dr. J. P. Leider writes in 1807 the Muslim community of Arakan came under the authority of a single Burmese Muslim leader appointed by the king. Under BodawPhaya’s rule Arakan was under four governors and to settle Muslim affairs there was a special Muslim governor. He is said to be Rama wadyMyowanSyagyi, U Nu.

Dr. J. P. Leider precisely says, “The major political problems of the period 1685 to 1710, were the revolt of native populations north of Naf River and the rebellion of Mons that the royal guards proved unable to tackle”.[3] Here native population in the north means Muslim. So SandaWizeyaraza who came in power in 1709-1730 AD tried to get rid of Muslims. He began to persecute Muslims. Kaman body guards were deported to offshore islands of Ramree and Akyab. Many other native Muslims had to flee to Bengal and Ava, whom Ava king Sney Min had settled in 12 different places in Myanmar (see on page ---) Dr. Than Tun described them as Indians who came from Arakan. Here it is most probably this Muslims were not Rakhine speaking but Indian speaking. Most of this Muslims and their descendants served with Myanmar king’s army. In BagyidawPhaya’s diehard army there was a die-hard Rakhine Muslim unit. There are two Rakhine mosques in Yangon which were gifted by the king to his Rakhine Muslim army units.

Further the Economy of the country was under Muslim control. Most of the traders used to come to Arakan were Muslims[4] (see U Hla Tun Pru; Arakan treasure troves 1984, P-327 and Pamela, 2001, 136)

According to Dr. J. P. Leider “Dutch sources confirmed the presence of Muslim officers in Arakan court and the Shahbanders (masters of the port) of the capital port were always a Muslim until 1785. There were also Muslim poets and artists in the court. This is a sparkling element of cultural refinement at the Arakan court”.[5] (J. Leider, Poet and traders in Mrauk-U 2011)

Arakan kings had a conception to increase its population. So the captives brought from Bengal coast by Arakanese themselves were not to be sold as slaves but to serve this kingdom on various capacities. They were employed as sweepers; artists, technocrats, Farmers and boatman in Arakanese Navy. Some served in higher ranks too.[6]

Muslim cultural influence in Arakan was remarkably extensive too. Emil Foch hammer, British time director of archaeology in describing the Badar mokan Mosque of Akyab (Sittwe) writes: “the principal mosque has become the prototype for Buddhist temples like the one on the plate XLIII, (Andawceti in Sandoway). This pagoda is the most perfect type of blending of Indian Mosque and Burmese turreted spire”.- - - Again in describing phyalah ceti in Sandoway, he writes: it represents a combination of the style of native image house and the Mohammadan Mosque (see plate No. XLIV)[7]

Dr. Pamela says, “in 15th and 16thcenturies Arakan was the recipient of dramatic cultural influences from Islamic world and Europe which resulted in the renaissance, expressed in the originality of its shrines and sculptures. The close proximity of Bengal and the initial dependence of Mrauk-U ruler and their Islamic counter parts saw Muslim influence even in Buddhist architecture”. - - - In describing shit Thaung Pagoda of Mrauk-U she writes: “the total effect being remarkably similar to the Mosque architecture of Sixteenth century Gaur, the capital of Bengal. Both the lattan Masjid and Bora Suna Masjid, for instance, have multi arched faces and are surrounded by series of domes.[8] (Dr. Pamela, The lost Kingdom of Burma) Dr. Pamela further rea marked in her “Ancient Arakan”, people in Arakan specially in the north nearing to Bangladesh still speak language mostly similar to the inscriptions of ancient Arakan.

This shows cultural interconnection in Arakan in the early period. To sum up Muslim involvement in every sphere of Arakan life is not from colonial period but it can be traced from time immemorial. Thus I hope we have still space in Arakan to peacefully coexist and to be treated as equal for a better future.

Rohingya today are accused of not to be faithful to the country. But history proved Rohingyas fought along with Myanmar army, whereas Rakhine fought along with British in the first Anglo-Burma war. (See Captain Robertson, First Anglo Burma war)

Rohingya insurgent Mujahids surrendered in 1961. Until now there is no Rohingya armed group on ground. Rakhine have various armed groups on the ground. Before independence there were armed militias led by U PinyaThiha, Bo Mra Hla Aung, (see Thakin Tin MyatBonbuwa Ma Phyint). There were an Arakanese tan movement instigated by U TunAungKyaw and U Hla Tun Pru, who later became state councilor in U Ne Win’s Government. (U Kyaw Win +3. Myanmar history 1958-62) Yet it is said this people are faithful, only Rohingya are not.

Mujahids surrendered because firstly they did not enjoy Public support. In those times police force in Maung Daw Buthidaung region was mostly composed of Rohingyas. Secondly the Mujahids Could not resists the operational attacks continuously carried out by above Rohingya police force led by their Rohingya officers. Mujahids were so literally suffocated that they could not find place to hide out, and finally they surrendered.

In support of above notion here by I am attaching some certificates of honor and appreciation given by the Government to the Rohingya police officers. (see at the appendices.)

The last message of this author is Rohingyas desire a peaceful life. In Arakan king’s period they were a respected community. In defense and administration they were important actors. During British rule all including Rohingyas were equal subject peoples. No exploitation and discrimination of one race by another. Post-independence Burmese governments gave equal rights: and no classification in citizenship there. All hold the same National Registration certificates NRC. Hence there were no racial disunity, conflict and violence No privileged race; playing field was level. Thus the society was Co-operative and harmonious.

From U Ne Win’s Coming in power, racial discrimination was introduced. Hatred against Rohingya has been breeded. Rohingya’s rights were stripped of one after another. There were dozens of joint operation against the populations which culminated in the out flux of Rohingya in hundreds and thousands. Lastly Rohingya’s citizenship right was taken away by enacting 1982 new but arbitrary citizenship law. They were kept in a sort of quasi- statelessness. Then came non-stop propaganda to blame this Rohingya as illegal Bengali. This Fermented Rakhine people’s mindset. They want to get rid of these so called illegal. Subsequently there came all this violence, violations which can be termed as crime against humanity

When there were institutionalized discrimination, classification, polarization and segregation, there we saw conflicts and violence. Once all citizens enjoy equal status, such as in South Africa, Indonesia, Malaysia, there society became Peaceful and country’s economy had developed too. No grades of citizens there. The state protect all including minorities. Bali in Indonesia is a minority dwelling island but it is very peaceful and attracts the world’s largest tourists.

We invite all to racial harmony and urged to forget the past grievances and work together in unity for the future. What to note is, hatred breed hatred which will lead to unwanted conflict and destruction.

References

[1] Nat Myit Sann Aung; “Sak activities in the time of Rakhine kings” RakhineTasaing magazine 1977-78, P-142-143. 
[2] Harvey, The outline of Burmese history, 1944, P-92 
[3] J. Leider, these Buddhist king with Muslim names EFEO, Parl’s 1998. 
[4] Dr. Pamela Gutman, Burma’s lost kingdoms 2001, orchid press, Bangkok. 
[5] Dr. J.P. Leider: These Buddhist kings with Muslim names EFEO Paris, 1998 
[6] J. Leider Arakan’s ascent during Mrauk-U period, 2003, P-31. 
[7] Forcahhmmer, Arakan 1891, P-61-62. 
[8] Dr. Pamela; Burma’s lost kingdoms 2001, P-28, 93

This article is part of U Kyaw Min's long Thesis : An analytical approach to Rohingya's historicity.


    • Rohingya Exodus