VIEW : Rohingya Muslims: children of a lesser god? — Mohammad Ahmad

The HRW report accused the Burmese government of engaging “in a campaign of ethnic cleansing against the Rohingya that continues today through the denial of aid and restrictions on movement”

Britain conquered Burma over a period of 62 years (1824-1886) and incorporated it into its Indian Empire, administering it as a province of India until 1937 when it became a separate, self-governing colony. Burma was granted independence in 1948.

Post-independence, Burma took measures to strengthen the economic interests of the Buddhist Burmese against those that it saw as foreigners. These measures were intelligently masked to portray generality but most specifically hurt the Rohingya who constituted the biggest section in the Muslim population of independent Burma. Among the several Acts passed by the Burmese government in 1948, the Land Alienation Act forbade the sale of land to non-Burmese nationals while denying citizenship to anyone who could not prove his ancestors settled in the country before 1823. As a result, Muslims in its Arakan province, whose ancestors were in Burma and contributed to its economic activity even a century ago, were denied their right to own land and, therefore, any benefit accruing out of such ownership.

Rohingya sad song by Noorul Amin on Rohingyas disasters and genocide in Arakan State

Rohingya Songs

UK MP wants Rohingya solution

UK Shadow Minister for International Development, Rushanara Ali, MP, has urged the British government to apply pressure on the Burmese authorities to address the humanitarian crisis in Burma and put human rights at the heart of their reforms process.

 

Burmese president Thein Sein will soon begin his official tour of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland and France, it was announced yesterday.

Ali expressed worries about the humanitarian crisis in Burma’s Rakhine State and the human rights abuses against the Rohingya, a Muslim community, and other minorities in Burma.

She acknowledged the progress the Burmese government had made towards political and economic reforms since President Thein Sein took office. But, she said, the international community should not ignore the considerable work the Burmese government still needs to do.

Rushanara Ali, MP, who recently visited Burma, said, “Since inter-communal violence first broke out last year, Rohingya Muslims have been forced into segregated settlements and their movements have been restricted, stripping them of their livelihoods and rendering them reliant on aid. Displaced people are living in constant fear of violence, abuse and harassment both from the security services and from fears of a further attack from sections of the Rakhine population.

 

 

“It’s better to poison us than send us back to Myanmar” – Rohingya woman in Thailand

PHANG NGA, Thailand (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Record numbers of stateless Rohingya Muslims are fleeing Myanmar following two bouts of sectarian violence last year that left scores dead and some 140,000 displaced, most of them Muslims.

Estimates on the number of people leaving on boats from the Bay of Bengal between June 2012 and May 2013 range from 27,000 to nearly 35,000 – the biggest exodus in years.

Some passengers were from Bangladesh but most were Rohingya, who have lived in Myanmar for generations but are denied citizenship.

Zawbader Hattu, 31, was one of them. Detained in a government-run shelter in southern Thailand with about 60 other women and children since February, she told Thomson Reuters Foundation why she left Myanmar. 

20 out of 28 original signatories didn’t attend 2nd ARU convention of Jeddah. Is this convention against or in favour of Burmese regime?

I am trying to analyse and understand myself the 2nd convention of ARU held in Jeddah by Dr. Wakar Uddin. I would also like to share it with general Rohingya public to let them know the truth. For easy comprehension I have broken down to five parts. It has gone a little longer though I tried my best to shorten it. Thanks in advance for your patience to read it.

Part I. Analysis

(1)  All the 4 out of 4 founding permanent members were absent. All the 5 out of 5 coordinators were absent. 8 out of 10 council members were absent. 7 out of remaining 13 general Congress members were absent. In total 20 persons out of 28 original signatories (25 organizations and 3 additional persons) of 1st convention have totally absent. (Please check the list below for your own judgment). Above all Mr. Harn, the man who was trying hard to bring all Rohingya parties to one platform since long time before the OIC is involved, the main organiser of the ARU, one of the two co-sponsors of ARU,  himself was absent too.