Forgotten Rohingya,Prisoner in Own Homeland,
The most human right violation in the world going on this part of world. Its bigger then other problem of UN. As a citizen of Burma we have to live outside other country. People killed, Forced labor and rape is common thing inside Burma by SPDC Govt. We are without arms, lots of people killed when they showed voice against Military Junta.
(Reuters) - Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama on Tuesday decried Buddhist monks' attacks on Muslims in Myanmar, saying killing in the name of religion was "unthinkable."
The Dalai Lama, a foremost Buddhist leader, told an audience at the University of Maryland at the start of a U.S. tour that the root of seemingly sectarian conflict was political, not spiritual.
"Really, killing people in the name of religion is unthinkable, very sad. Nowadays even Buddhists are involved in Burma," another name forMyanmar, with monks attacking Muslim mosques, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate said after delivering the Anwar Sadat Lecture for Peace at the university.
"I think it is very sad," he said, adding, "I pray for them (the monks) to think of the face of Buddha," who had been a protector of Muslims.
A wave of sectarian violence erupted in March in the central Myanmar town of Meikhtila, causing 44 deaths and displacing an estimated 13,000 people, mostly Muslims.
A Reuters investigation found that radical Buddhist monks had been actively involved in the violence and in spreading anti-Muslim material around the country.
Sectarian clashes between Buddhists and Muslims, who make up about 5 percent of Myanmar's population, have erupted on several occasions since a quasi-civilian government took power in March 2011 after five decades of military dictatorship.
The 77-year-old Dalai Lama, whose name is Tenzin Gyatso, also urged his largely student audience of 15,000 to create a new world in the 21st century, saying that he was a man of the last century.
"That group of individuals of the 20th century are ready to say bye-bye," Tibet's most revered spiritual leader said. "You have the responsibility to create a new world based on the concept of one humanity."
China brands the Dalai Lama, who fled into exile to India in 1959 after an abortive uprising against Chinese rule of Tibet, as a separatist. The Dalai Lama says he is merely seeking more autonomy for his Himalayan homeland.
The address in College Park, Maryland, was the start of a U.S. visit that includes stops in Oregon, Wisconsin, Kentucky and New Orleans, Louisiana.
(Reporting by Ian Simpson; Editing by Scott Malone and Kenneth Barry)
ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan urges the international community to take a more effective stance and faster pace in helping settle Myanmar’s Rohingya problem, since the conflict poses strategic and security challenges that could destabilize Southeast Asia.
“They are now under tremendous pressure, pain and suffering. If the international community, including ASEAN, are not able to relieve that pressure and pain, conceivably, [the 1.5 million of Rohingyas could become radicalized and the entire region could be destabilized, including the Malacca Straits,” Surin said in Jakarta on Monday.
If they became radicalized, he said, the area risked becoming a zone of violence that could damage cooperation in ASEAN and East Asia. “I think it has wider strategic and security implications.”
He also saw potential dangers for the major sea-lane of the Malacca Straits. The area serves as the main shipping channel between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, linking major Asian economies such as India, China, Japan and South Korea.
Myanmar’s government said on Monday it had boosted security in the western state hit by ethnic unrest as the number of displaced rose to 28,000, most of whom were Muslims.
The latest violence between ethnic Rohingya Muslims and Rakhine Buddhists, which began Oct. 21, killed at least 84 people and injured 129 more, according to Myanmar’s government. Human rights groups believe the true toll could be far higher.
When asked about concrete ways ASEAN could prevent a worsening of the situation, Surin urged ASEAN to engage in humanitarian efforts, as had been done when Myanmar was hit by cyclone Nargis in 2008. “I think ASEAN is in the position to repeat what we had done in cyclone Nargis, that was humanitarian engagement — relieve them from the suffering.”
He also noted that help and support to relieve people from poverty, dislocation, displacement, should be extended to all sides, the Rohingya and the Rakhine people. “Let’s see what we can do to relieve them from poverty, shortages of food, shelter and sanitation.”
Matters regarding security, political, human rights and democracy issues, Surin said, would be the work of the government in Myanmar and the relevant international agencies.
Surin also underlined that the Rohingya problem was not a religious conflict between Muslim and Buddhist. “It is strategic and security issue. We have to be extremely careful.”
Rakhine state spokesman Myo Thant said that security had been stepped up in the state, with additional police and soldiers deployed, but he declined to give details.
The UN Development Program’s resident representative director in Myanmar, Ashok Nigam, said the figure of 28,000 displaced people was likely to rise because some who had fled along the coast by boat had yet to be counted.
An estimated 27,300 of those displaced were Muslims, Nigam said, adding that the UN figure was based on statistics from local authorities.
Human Rights Watch has said that the Rohingyas have suffered the brunt of the latest violence.
Tensions have simmered in the region since clashes first broke out in June, displacing 75,000 people — also mostly Muslims.
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During the past two decades, Bangladesh accepted and sheltered more than 300,000 Rohingya refugees, who not only stayed back but also put heavy economic and social burden on the world's most densely-populated nation.
After violence erupted in the Rakhine state in early June, Bangladesh refused giving shelter to any Rohingya. Although the refusal drew criticism from human rights activists, it has attracted the attention of the international community to the Rohingya issue.
It is worthwhile to note that the 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has launched a major international campaign to put an end to the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya Muslim minority in the Rakhine state of Myanmar and protect their legitimate rights. OIC offices in Geneva, New York, and Brussels are making intense efforts to foster international intervention in the issue.
The OIC is believed to be in touch with the United Nations, UN Human Rights Council, European Union and other international organisations to halt the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar.
OIC Secretary-General Ekmeledin Ihsanoglu strongly condemned the situation which has resulted in deaths of innocent civilians, burning of their homes and forced eviction from their homeland. Ihsanoglu further hoped that the Myanmar government would respond to the concerns of the international community in a positive and constructive manner, so that all its Rohingya Muslims are able to return to their homeland with honour, safety and dignity.
Furthermore, the issue was raised at the recent Asean Foreign Ministers' meeting in Cambodia. The Asean is seeking an explanation from member state Myanmar about recent ethnic violence targeting minority Rohingya group. "There will be a full explanation from Myanmar because this is an important and critical issue for Asean as a community," Asean Secretary General Dr. Surin Pitsuwan reportedly said.
On July 28, it was reported that the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Judge Navi Pillay, called for an independent investigation following claims of abuses toward Rohingyas by security forces in Myanmar.
On July 25, Aung San Suu Kyi called for new laws to protect Myanmar's ethnic minority groups, highlighting one of the country's most challenging issues as it opens up to the outside world.
She urged the government to pass "necessary laws or amend laws to protect the rights of ethnic nationalities," and said protecting minority rights required more than just maintaining ethnic languages and cultures. "The high poverty rates in ethnic states clearly indicate that development in ethnic regions is not satisfactory and ethnic conflicts in these regions have not ceased," she said. She didn't, however, mention the recent violence in the Rohingya area.
Ms. Suu Kyi called for an end to discrimination against ethnic minorities as part of the "emergence of a genuine democratic country," the Associated Press reported. By focusing on the country's ethnic divisions in her first parliamentary address, Ms. Suu Kyi rightly drew attention to an issue that needs to be resolved speedily and peacefully.
While, in May, Suu Kyi met thousands of Myanmar refugees at a Thai border camp and promised to try as much as she could to help them return home, she was conspicuously silent on the Rohingya issue. During the recent trip to Europe, she talked about need for "the rule of the law" in the country and avoided the Rohingya issue, which disappointed many human rights organisations overseas.
Human-rights groups, meanwhile, have criticised Ms. Suu Kyi for failing to speak out more in favour of the Rohingyas, whom most people in Myanmar consider "illegal settlers" in Myanmar.
In mid-July, Myanmar's president told the UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres: "We will take responsibility for our ethnic people but it is impossible to accept the illegally entered Rohingyas, who are not our ethnicity," according to the president's official website. However, the UN high commissioner reportedly did not agree with the views of the president on the Rohingya issue.
Since its independence, Myanmar has suffered from intense ethnic divides. More than a half-dozen ethnic groups claim autonomy from the centralised government system dominated by the Burman ethnic group.
At least one group, the Kachin, is waging a low-level war against the government, while violence in western Myanmar in early June between Buddhists and Muslim Rohingyas in Rakhine state (Arakan) left at least 78 people dead and led to the declaration of emergency in the state by the government.
The administration of President Thein Sein is to be credited as it has reached cease-fire deals with some restive minority groups, but peace with the Kachin has yet to take place. Many analysts say more radical changes are needed, including enactment of new laws to recognise the ethnicity of minorities in Myanmar.
It is important to note that many of the groups occupy areas crucial for the country's economic plans because they are home to large portions of Myanmar's rich natural resources, including natural gas and mined commodities.
Although Myanmar authorities have focused recently on trying to steer more economic development into ethnic areas, many investors remain wary of sinking money into regions where conflicts could flare up. The Rohingya conflict, in particular, has reportedly unnerved investors and upset rights advocates who fear the violence could escalate and destabilise Myanmar.
Myanmar will chair Asean in 2014 and, given that perspective, analysts say the Myanmar government needs to sit down for a dialogue with all ethnic groups including Rohingyas to grant equal rights and autonomy in Myanmar's political system. The deal with the ethnic groups in the late '40s (so-called Panglong Agreement) collapsed after late General Ne Win took power in a 1962 coup.
The writer is former Bangladesh Ambassador to the UN, Geneva.
Myanmar continues to pursue reforms at an impressive pace, but the
plight of the country’s Rohingya population remains a disgrace for a
state seeking to engage the international community. That disgrace is
not the government’s alone—it is shared by the opposition movement,
including its leader Aung San Suu Kyi as well as the country’s neighbors
and the international community.
The more than 800,000 Rohingyas that live in Myanmar today, most in
western Rakhine state, are denied citizenship by the government and face
a range of abuses including forced labor, marriage restrictions, and
unlawful detention. Their suffering is so severe that many have sought
refuge across the border in Bangladesh, while others have fled on
dangerous voyages by boat to Thailand and Malaysia. Amnesty
International July 20 noted that both security forces and Buddhists in
Rakhine state have been carrying out “primarily one-sided” attacks,
including massive security sweeps, detentions, and killings, against the
Rohingya in the weeks after a wave of communal violence erupted between
the area’s Buddhist and Muslim populations.
During the recent communal violence, the country’s news outlets
engaged in base fear-mongering, equating Rohingyas with “terrorists,”
and the government did nothing to dispel these assertions. Officials and
most commentators from Myanmar’s majority Burman ethnic group insisted
that the Rohingyas are recent migrants from Bangladesh and do not
qualify as one of the country’s roughly 135 ethnic minorities.
Immigration Minister Khin Yi said this week that they will not be
included in the country’s 2014 census. Popular Myanmar News Journal has
reported that he told Bangladesh’s ambassador to Myanmar that Rohingyas
are not citizens because they only began migrating to the country after
1824.
The impossible situation in which Rohingyas find themselves has been
on display since the eruption of violence nearly two months ago. Many
have attempted to flee to Bangladesh with their families, where they
have been stopped at the border and refused entry. Those who made it
across the border face detention and deportation back to Rakhine state.
Myanmar’s president Thein Sein announced that only those Rohingyas with
proof of citizenship would be permitted to return to their homes, but
the government has long denied Rohingyas the right to legal
documentation of any kind. The president said Myanmar will not accept
“illegal immigrants” and has requested that the United Nations refugee
agency either place the Rohingya in refugee camps or deport them to a
third country, which the UN understandably refused.
On the opposition side, the widely respected Aung San Suu Kyi has
avoided the subject. During her June trip to Europe, which coincided
with the outbreak of communal violence in Rakhine state, she said only
that the country must clarify its citizenship laws. Whether such
clarification would embrace or dispossess the Rohingya was left unclear.
In her first parliamentary speech July 25, Suu Kyi spoke of soaring
poverty rates and other roots of violence in “ethnic states,” but did
not mention the deadly violence in Rakhine state or the government’s
treatment of Rohingyas. Other leaders of her National League for
Democracy have made clear that they are of one mind with the government
in declaring the Rohingya squatters on their own land.
Some international commentators argue that the opposition’s position
is to be expected since the issue is politically sensitive and most
citizens hold extremely hostile views toward the Rohingya. But that is
no excuse for silence in the face of killing, rape, and abuse of a
helpless people. Some have argued that Suu Kyi herself has her arms tied
now that she is an elected member of parliament from a conservative
district. This wildly underestimates the influence of “the Lady.” Suu
Kyi is much more than a parliamentary opposition leader; she is the
scion of the nation’s greatest hero, the symbol of resistance to what
was until recently one of the world’s most repressive regimes, and to
many of her countrymen a bodhisattva, one on the path to enlightenment
and Buddhahood.
The government of Myanmar needs to snap out of its denial and
confront the Rohingya issue head on. The nearly million Rohingyas in
Myanmar are the country’s responsibility, and proper rights must be
accorded to
them. President Thein Sein should also have a frank and practical
discussion about repatriation issues with his Bangladeshi counterpart
during his upcoming visit to Dhaka.
Aung San Suu Kyi must break her silence on the issue. She cannot
change the collective opinions of an entire country over night, but her
voice is critical in getting the ball rolling. Even if the government
tomorrow decreed the Rohingya citizens of Myanmar, most of the
population would still see them as intruders. Only Suu Kyi’s opinion can
carry enough weight with the Burman majority to make a dent in that
prejudice.
The international community also should play a stronger role. It is
encouraging that ASEAN secretary-general Surin Pitsuwan has taken a
“personal interest” in the issue and spoke directly to Myanmar and
Bangladesh during ASEAN meetings in Cambodia in July. However, the
organization and its member states can do much more to facilitate a
solution. A good opportunity will be at an upcoming international
conference on the Rohingya in August, where progress can hopefully be
made toward allowing access for aid that is currently being blocked by
the government. The conference was announced by the Malaysian
International Islamic Cooperation Institute, but the exact location
remains undecided.
Other concerned actors ranging from the United States to the
Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) should also hold Myanmar’s feet
to the fire on this issue since it remains an enormous blemish on the
country’s path to reform. The United States and Europe have spent
decades condemning the treatment of the country’s other minorities,
particularly the Karen and, more recently, the Kachin. Their response to
the plight of the Rohingya has been, by comparison, remarkably muted.
At the very least, they should support the call by the United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights for an international inquiry into the
widely reported abuses against the Rohingya by security forces in
Rakhine state.
UN special rapporteur on human rights for Myanmar Tomas Ojea Quintana
traveled to Rakhine state this week to assess the situation. He was
told dismissively by Immigration Minister Khin Yi that “this is just a
regional but not an international issue . . . so I don’t think the
government will accept the call to open an inquiry as if this were an
international issue.” The international community must make clear that
the problem will not simply go away. The plight of the Rohingya may well
constitute crimes against humanity, according to a June report by
respected researchers at the Irish Center for Human Rights. Myanmar’s
civilian government, its democratic opposition, the country’s neighbors,
and the global community all have an obligation to confront this
reality and ensure that it is rectified. (This Commentary first appeared
in the August 2, 2012, issue of Southeast Asia from the Corner of 18th
and K Streets.)
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu (R) shakes hands with the Myanmar President Thein Sein on Aug. 9, 2012. (Photo: AA)
Sourece :9 August 2012 / TODAY'S ZAMAN, ANKARA
A Turkish delegation led by
Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, and which includes Prime Minister
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's spouse and daughter, arrived in Myanmar early on
Thursday in a bid to both “boost bilateral relations” and “bring
international attention to the plight of suffering Rohingya Muslims.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoğlu, accompanied by a Turkish delegation, paid a visit to Myanmar
in a bid to both “boost bilateral relations” and “bring international
attention to the plight of suffering Rohingya Muslims.”
The
delegation includes Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's spouse and
daughter, Davutoğlu's spouse, several deputies, bureaucrats,
representatives of charities and journalists.
Davutoğlu was
received by Myanmar's President Thein Sein, who expressed his pleasure
about the fact that Turkey opened an embassy in his country, on
Thursday. Sein stated that Myanmar would also open an embassy in Turkey
as soon as possible, adding relations between the two countries would be
developed by this move. Turkey opened an embassy in Myanmar in March
2012.
On the same day, Davutoğlu also met with his counterpart in
Myanmar, Wunna Maung Lwin in Myanmar's capital Naypyidaw. Davutoğlu said
that Turkey and Myanmar were the two big states of Asia, adding that
his visit had been the first high-level one from Turkey to Myanmar.
Davutoğlu's meetings with both Sein and Lwin were closed to the press
corps. Davutoğlu is also scheduled to meet with Myanmar opposition
leader Aung San Suu Kyi.
Davutoğlu stated that they arrived in
Myanmar to establish bilateral relations and reach Arakan, the location
of the recently escalating violence against Rohingya Muslims by
extremist Buddhists. “We would like to carry on with both of our aims,”
said Davutoğlu.
He said that the Myanmar government's decision to
grant their visit reflects Turkey's influence in the international
field. “Myanmar did not do the same for any other countries. Our
ambassador worked hard,” said Davutoğlu.
Davutoğlu stated that the
government in Myanmar was only allowing United Nations (UN) and their
members of staff to get into the Arakan region.
Sein declared a
state of emergency in Arakan province following clashes between
Buddhists and Muslims and deployed troops to restore stability.
Replying
to questions of journalists on his flight to Myanmar, Davutoğlu stated
that this was the first high-level visit between Turkey and Myanmar. He
added that they could see Myanmar's government opening up to the world
step by step.
Davutoğlu also restated that he had given two
instructions to the ambassador who was appointed to Myanmar, adding
first one was to find the graveyards of the 1,500 Turkish soldiers who
were taken to Myanmar from Çanakkale and Egypt during WWI and were
killed there. “I am following very closely the graveyard issue. We are
greatly indebted to those soldiers,” said Davutoğlu, adding he has
written a letter to Lwin regarding the martyrs' cemeteries.
Davutoğlu
added that the second instruction was to make contact with the Muslims
in Arakan. He added that the problems in Arakan have gone on for decades
and said that the aid they brought will be primarily taken to Muslims
in Arakan then taken to Buddhist camps too. “At the moment our first aim
is to set up good relationships with the government in Myanmar, then
distribute humanitarian aid."
Davutoğlu stated that what the
Western world can do about the Rohingya Muslims is limited and said that
they will ask Indonesia to cooperate with Turkey regarding the Rohingya
Muslims under the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC). The
Turkish foreign minister underlined that Turkey is a member of the
Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), adding that Turkey's aid
to Arakan will increase its visibility in ASEAN and around the globe.
Meanwhile,
the Turkish Prime Ministry's Disaster and Emergency Management
Directorate (AFAD) has stated that so far they have collected TL 2.1
million in their aid campaign for Muslims in Myanmar, who are facing
violence and discrimination. AFAD thanked the Turkish citizens who have
supported the Muslims suffering from civil war, ethnical massacre and
poverty in the Arakan region of Myanmar.
Myanmar may not even be aware of it, but it is
digging its way into a huge diplomatic hole over the recent communal
riots in the country's western region.
Over the past few weeks, the Nay Pyi Taw government has turned
progressively secretive, censorious and combative over the June riots
and continuing unrest in Rakhine state. In short, it is taking entirely
the wrong direction over the violence.
The riots in the region formerly known as Arakan peaked in June.
Truthful reports on casualties and damage are as difficult to come by as
details of the fighting and how the Myanmar authorities responded.
However, available reports indicate that several hundred people died or
were maimed, the number of buildings destroyed was more than 1,000, and
the army and police behaved atrociously.
Myanmar's current problem, apart from trying to calm Rakhine state, is how to deal with international concern and anger.
The instinctive reaction of the Myanmar authorities is still to try to clam up and ignore the world's concern.
This will not do, not from a country demanding attention as a newly
emerging democracy trying to throw off the shackles of a 50-year
military dictatorship.
Everything that Myanmar has done since the riots has been wrong. Its
refusal to open the region to objective reporters and its own media
caused massive anti-government press from virtually everywhere outside
its borders. Human rights groups have "demanded" _ a favourite word _
impartial reporting.
The result was that Myanmar, almost unbelievably, cracked down on the
press again. Last week, the government banned two newspapers for
refusing to submit stories to official censors. On Saturday, Myanmar
reporters staged a public demonstration to demand an end to the
censorship system.
Worldwide, members of the free press automatically sympathised with
the Myanmar media who were brave enough to defy the system. The United
Nations' Special Rapporteur for Myanmar, Tomas Ojea Quintana, suggested
the country hold a truth commission to try to discover the causes and
effects of the riots, and come up with ways to prevent more communal
battles.
Foreign Minister Wunna Maung Lwin criticised the UN official for
daring to suggest that the army and police might have used excessive
force, specifically against the Rohingya Muslims of Rakhine.
And that extremely unthoughtful outburst caught the attention of the
Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. The OIC proposed sending a mission
to Myanmar to look into the massacres of Rohingya by the Buddhist
majority. That sort of inflammatory language is certain to result in the
OIC rejecting such a proposal, but it is a lose-lose situation for Nay
Pyi Taw. In addition to being a powerful political group, the OIC
comprises Asean partners Indonesia and Malaysia. Thailand is an OIC
observer.
Myanmar has only a couple of options of where to go next, neither of
them attractive. It can try to continue to stonewall and earn the sort
of criticism that was heaped on the country while it was run by army
juntas.
It can release information and open the Rakhine area to objective
observers, which will almost certainly result in even more criticism of
its treatment of the Rohingya, a religious minority whose members are
denied citizenship in their own country.
However, it would be a mistake for Myanmar and cause strong repercussions in Asean if the country takes the repressive road.
Why Bangladesh should withdraw membership from South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) should join with-the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, (commonly abbreviated ASEAN) .No trade benefit and Regional cooperation..Where Indian GDP is $1.16 Trillion where Bangladesh GDP is $79.55 Billion.India treat Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan as Province or State of India.There is no economical growth with maintaining partner with terrorist effected Pakistan and Afghanistan. Bangladesh paying price also war on internal Terror (GMB) keeping India as lobby. Lots of intelligence expenses and also innocent human life.Democratic government should think state benefit.Where Bangladesh will ship building investment from Singapore and electronic technological investment from Malaysia.G20 member Indonesia member will help on all side.Tourism policy with Thailand. Natural resource from, if Burma will stable and democratic. Within few years Burma will have to change by her regional community foreign policy.Bangladesh can enter trade with Laos, Cambodia and also same GDP Vietnam.Can enter Bangladesh product open market economy in this region. lots of natural resource.Tourism sector can develop one entry visa in this region. BBC Lonely planet Reporter Bangladesh will be one of the top 7 tourism country in whole world.The world dont know what is coming. Cox's Bazar Airport Can be Air Hub Of this region.People from different region enter to China we can use Air hub and tourism Hub Cox's Bazar like Dubai.Big Aviation will come here we can grow our local Aviation too. 2 or 3 night free stay in this country.Bangladeshi skill worker will work more in Singapore and Malaysia.This region will be free economy and free visa like European Union. Im dreaming one currency ASEAN Dollar. Which will be equivalent to Australian dollar. Australia New Zea-land already sign free trade with ASEAN. ASEAN plus 3 (Japan, South Korea and China) will sign free trade agreement. The Whole GDP of this region will go up to EU.ASEAN will take member of G11( USA, UK, France, Italy, Germany, Russia, Japan,Canada, China,EU and ASEAN) . people thinking BRIC,USA,UK will come. Brazil, Russia, India and China.
what i can see i just wrote.My sixth sense never gave me wrong. I always hope the best for good people and mankind...
