Rohingya Ethnic Cleansing - Updates & Discussions

[Banglar Bir]

Bangladesh turn up the heat on Myanmar over Rohingyas

• Tribune Desk
• Published at 01:53 PM May 17, 2017
• Last updated at 01:54 PM May 17, 2017

Rohingya refugee Mohammad Ayaz stands with his son Mohammad Osman, the two survivors of his family, at an unregistered refugee camp at Ukhiya in southern Cox's Bazar district on November 24, 2016. Dhaka has called on Myanmar to take "urgent measures" to protect its Rohingya minority after thousands crossed into Bangladesh in just a few days, some saying the military was burning villages and raping young girlsAPF
About a million Rohingya Muslims live in apartheid-like conditions in squalid camps in northwestern Rakhine state, where they are denied citizenship and basic rights
Myanmar is under increased global pressure to solve the Rohingya crisis as next-door neighbour Bangladesh has taken a tough stance on the issue highlighting the plight of the persecuted minority community in various global forums.

“Bangladesh has provided data and information to various organisations and countries including the UN, the EU, Organisation of Islamic Co-operation and the US, and encouraged them to talk about it,” a Foreign Ministry official told the Bangla Tribune.

“We also highlighted the issue in various bilateral meetings,” the official said, seeking anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media.

Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi faced a volley of questions about the initiatives she has taken to solve the problem during her recent Brussels visit. She also had to give explanations to foreign ministers of the ASEAN countries.

“Bangladesh has been trying to reach a peaceful solution to the problem since the 1980s but Myanmar was never cordial,” the senior Foreign Ministry official said. “This [reluctance] has forced us to take a tough stance. We are trying to highlight Myanmar’s real intentions.”

About a million Rohingya Muslims live in apartheid-like conditions in squalid camps in northwestern Rakhine state, where they are denied citizenship and basic rights. Many in the Buddhist-majority country regard them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Hundreds of thousands of undocumented Rohingyas are believed to be living in Bangladesh, outside the two designated refugee camps. As many as 75,000 Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh to escape persecution in Myanmar after its military launched a crackdown in October last year.

Asked if Bangladesh’s current approach would help solve the problem, the Foreign Ministry official said it was not possible to reach a solution overnight.

According to the official, Myanmar’s economy will feel the brunt if the situation persists, as negative discussions on rights conditions would drive away businesses, who expressed interest to invest after sanctions on Myanmar were lifted.

Where Bangladesh stands
Myanmar did not respond to Bangladesh’s call for talks over the Rohingya issue after Naypyidaw started the crackdown.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali spoke with foreign diplomats about the issue, and later Dhaka welcomed a UN delegation to visit Cox’s Bazar Rohingya refugee camps.

In December, Bangladesh organised a global meeting on migration and used the platform to discuss the issue with several countries.

After this initiative, Myanmar agreed to sit for talks in January where Bangladesh conveyed a strong message to Naypyidaw’s special envoy to solve the issue, another Foreign Ministry official said.

“Dhaka later discussed the matter in details with Indonesia’s foreign minister, the three members of Kofi Annan-led international commission, the members of Myanmar government’s Rakhine Commission, UN’s special rapporteur Yanghee Lee, Chinese foreign ministry’s special envoy and the ambassadors of various countries to Bangladesh,” the official added.

 

[Homo Sapiens]

http://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2017/05/17/bangladesh-turn-heat-myanmar-rohingyas/
Bangladesh turn up the heat on Myanmar over Rohingyas

• Tribune Desk
• Published at 01:53 PM May 17, 2017
• Last updated at 01:54 PM May 17, 2017

Rohingya refugee Mohammad Ayaz stands with his son Mohammad Osman, the two survivors of his family, at an unregistered refugee camp at Ukhiya in southern Cox's Bazar district on November 24, 2016. Dhaka has called on Myanmar to take "urgent measures" to protect its Rohingya minority after thousands crossed into Bangladesh in just a few days, some saying the military was burning villages and raping young girls APF

About a million Rohingya Muslims live in apartheid-like conditions in squalid camps in northwestern Rakhine state, where they are denied citizenship and basic rights

Myanmar is under increased global pressure to solve the Rohingya crisis as next-door neighbour Bangladesh has taken a tough stance on the issue highlighting the plight of the persecuted minority community in various global forums.

“Bangladesh has provided data and information to various organisations and countries including the UN, the EU, Organisation of Islamic Co-operation and the US, and encouraged them to talk about it,” a Foreign Ministry official told the Bangla Tribune.

“We also highlighted the issue in various bilateral meetings,” the official said, seeking anonymity as he is not authorised to speak to the media.

Myanmar’s pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi faced a volley of questions about the initiatives she has taken to solve the problem during her recent Brussels visit. She also had to give explanations to foreign ministers of the ASEAN countries.

“Bangladesh has been trying to reach a peaceful solution to the problem since the 1980s but Myanmar was never cordial,” the senior Foreign Ministry official said. “This [reluctance] has forced us to take a tough stance. We are trying to highlight Myanmar’s real intentions.”

About a million Rohingya Muslims live in apartheid-like conditions in squalid camps in northwestern Rakhine state, where they are denied citizenship and basic rights. Many in the Buddhist-majority country regard them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Hundreds of thousands of undocumented Rohingyas are believed to be living in Bangladesh, outside the two designated refugee camps. As many as 75,000 Rohingyas fled to Bangladesh to escape persecution in Myanmar after its military launched a crackdown in October last year.

Asked if Bangladesh’s current approach would help solve the problem, the Foreign Ministry official said it was not possible to reach a solution overnight.

According to the official, Myanmar’s economy will feel the brunt if the situation persists, as negative discussions on rights conditions would drive away businesses, who expressed interest to invest after sanctions on Myanmar were lifted.

Where Bangladesh stands
Myanmar did not respond to Bangladesh’s call for talks over the Rohingya issue after Naypyidaw started the crackdown.

Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali spoke with foreign diplomats about the issue, and later Dhaka welcomed a UN delegation to visit Cox’s Bazar Rohingya refugee camps.

In December, Bangladesh organised a global meeting on migration and used the platform to discuss the issue with several countries.

After this initiative, Myanmar agreed to sit for talks in January where Bangladesh conveyed a strong message to Naypyidaw’s special envoy to solve the issue, another Foreign Ministry official said.

“Dhaka later discussed the matter in details with Indonesia’s foreign minister, the three members of Kofi Annan-led international commission, the members of Myanmar government’s Rakhine Commission, UN’s special rapporteur Yanghee Lee, Chinese foreign ministry’s special envoy and the ambassadors of various countries to Bangladesh,” the official added.

 

[TopCat]

@Aung Zaya

 

[Homo Sapiens]

@Aung Zaya

That was a massive drill.More numerous and better equippied than Burmese army. @Aung Zaya what's happening bro?

 

[TopCat]

That's was a massive drill.More numerous and better equippied than Burmese army. @Aung Zaya what's happening bro?

Bangladesh should help these guys like what we had been doing till we lost to the british.

 

[TopCat]

Seems like @alaungphya guy is permanently banned. I liked to troll him once in a while.

 

[Aung Zaya]

That was a massive drill.More numerous and better equippied than Burmese army. @Aung Zaya what's happening bro?

Lol I don't see anything better than Union Army. And Myanmar army is comprised with many ethnic people in which Rakhine people is second largest in number after Burmese. talking more numerous and better equipped is funny. they have good uniform in show time but in reality they're poorest equipped among rebel groups.

Bangladesh should help these guys like what we had been doing till we lost to the british.

How..? Lol carrying weapons to the north though Myanmar..? They're based in Kachin State ,northern part of Myanmar. Not in Rakhine..

 

[EastBengalPro]

Qatar to help Bangladesh solve Rohingya issue

Qatar has expressed its interest to help Bangladesh resolve the Rohingya refugee problem with Myanmar.

Qatari Prime Minister Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani expressed the interest in a letter to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Qatari Foreign Minister's Special Envoy Dr Mutlaq bin Majed Al Qahtani handed over the letter to Sheikh Hasina at her official Ganabhaban residence on Thursday evening.

PM's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting.

In the letter, he said, the Qatari prime minister invited his Bangladesh counterpart to visit the Gulf state.

Accepting the invitation, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said that she would visit Qatar at a mutually convenient time.

During the meeting, the Qatari Foreign Minister's Special Envoy expressed concern over the Rohingya refugee crisis, saying, "We should work for a solution for lasting peace."

In response, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said that Bangladesh has very good relations with Myanmar. "We share information and there have been high official-level visits," she said.

The premier apprised the Qatari Foreign Minister's Special Envoy that Bangladesh has already urged Myanmar to take back its nationals.

Referring to the signing of the CHT Peace Treaty during her tenure in 1997, the prime minister said that the insurgents that time surrendered their arms before her without involvement of others.

Sheikh Hasina also extended greetings to Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Qatari Prime Minister Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani.

PM's Principal Secretary Dr Kamal Abdul Naser Chowdhury and PM's Military Secretary Major General Mia Mohammad Zainul Abedin were present.

http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2017/05/19/70888/Qatar-to-help-Bangladesh-solve-Rohingya-issue

 

[Banglar Bir]

Myanmar sees escalation of religious extremism
SAM Report, May 20, 2017

The spread of extreme Buddhist nationalism in Myanmar escalates by the day. Extreme nationalists are now preparing to protest against the country’s religious minister. Claiming that Myanmar’s government is failing to support Buddhism, they have begun a march to the country’s capital of Naypyidaw on Friday to voice their anger against the minister.

Organizers said about 30,000 people, including monks and nationalists from Mandalay, Rangoon, and Irrawaddy divisions, will join the protest on the Shwe Nantha field in OttaraThiri Township against the Union Minister for Religious Affairs and Culture, U Aung Ko.

Naypyidaw’s general administration office stated, however, that the organizers had requested a protest of up to 15,000, but the authorities have allowed only 300.

“Buddhism is the major religion of the country and the religious affairs ministry must protect, support and encourage the Sasana [Buddhist mission]. It was clearly stated in the Constitution,” said U EainDaw Bar Tha, one of the leaders of the Nationalist Buddhist Monks Organization in Mandalay.

“However, Thura U Aung Ko fails to do this and repeatedly upsets the Buddhists of the country. That’s why we’re going to express our dislike of the minister,” he added.

The monk cited Aung San Suu Kyi’s speech marking the one-year anniversary of the National League for Democracy (NLD) government in which she said the party would be “ready to step aside” if people are dissatisfied with the leadership.

“We believe the government will keep their promises after seeing our objection to Thura U Aung Ko,” said U EainDaw Bar Tha. “After the protest, we will wait and see the government’s reaction. It is too early to say what we will do next.”

U Aye Thaung, officer of Ottara district told that local authorities would take legal action against the organizers if the protest exceeded more than 300 people. “The local authorities will stop them in accordance with the Peaceful Assembly Act if they do not follow the permitted numbers,” said the officer.

The planned protest follows an arrest warrant for seven nationalists and Buddhist monks last week who were involved in a recent confrontation between Buddhists and Muslims in Rangoon’s MingalarTaungNyunt Township. They have been charged with incitement to commit violence.

Anti-Muslim vigilante groups led by Buddhist nationalists risk stirring communal tensions in Myanmar’s most populated and ethnically diverse city.

In recent months, extremist mobs have descended upon Yangon’s various townships in an attempt to clamp down on followers of Islam, and to hunt-down Rohingya Muslims who are widely considered illegal immigrants in the majority Buddhist nation. Alongside holding protests and stopping religious ceremonies, on April 28 hardline monks and their followers forced the temporary closure of two Muslims schools they believed were also serving as mosques.

On early Wednesday morning, a group reportedly of around 30 Buddhists led a failed search for Rohingya in a Yangon district with a large Muslim population—culminating in a melee between the nationalists, locals and authorities, with police firing shots to disperse the crowd.

In a media conference on Thursday in Yangon, a senior leader of the Patriotic Monks Union (PMU)—the group responsible for both incidents—vowed to “protect race and religion” in Myanmar on behalf of “reluctant” authorities. Reuters later reported that two radicals from the PMU had been arrested, and that police had warrants to make further arrests.

For the densely-populated city of over 5 million people—home to a notable Muslim community—recent events and the free presence of nationalists are a deeply troubling sign in a country plagued by visceral ethno-religious tension.

Decades of state-led nationalism aimed at shielding the predominantly Buddhist Bamar ethnic group—estimated at 68% of the population today—has gained impetus among Myanmar’s monkhood, an institution with gargantuan civilian sway.

Since 2011, organizations like the 969 Movement, championed by Buddhist cleric Ashin Wirathu—who has been dubbed by foreign media as the “Buddhist bin Laden”— have won strong following for their nativist vitriol using online platforms amid censorship-loosening reforms.

The hatred has largely targeted the nation’s roughly 4% Muslim population—particularly Rakhine state’s ethnic Rohingya, who the United Nations consider “one of the world’s most persecuted minorities.”

In 2012, deadly communal Muslim-Buddhist violence broke out in the northwestern state, displacing thousands of Rohingya. Compounding decades of repression, in October the military began a violent crackdown on the minority after the murder of border security guards allegedly by Rohingya militants.

The recent incidents in Yangon were linked to court appearances by PMU seniors in the city, who faced incitement charges earlier on each day, according to local magazine Frontier Myanmar—which also noted the role of extremist social media accounts in trying to mobilize and spread rumors to feed Wednesday’s showdown.

Given that spurious claims online helped to fuel previous violent communal episodes, the combination of mistrust, nationalist sentiment and confined urban spaces in Yangon is a powder keg for authorities who face little chance of maintaining the rule of law amid the speed of online organization and messaging.

Though the arrest warrants show some willingness on behalf of Aung San Suu Kyi’s government to quell ethnic tensions—something the Nobel laureate has been widely criticized for ignoring—the increasingly explosive environment also exposes the limits of the de facto leader’s reach.

Her National League for Democracy party—which won landslide elections in 2015—may risk sparking a backlash from nationalist sympathizers. “It’s very sensitive when you’re dealing with monks in this very highly Buddhist country,” the former US Ambassador to Myanmar Derek Mitchell told Voice of America’s Burmese Service, following Wednesday’s events.

Given the nationalist threats to enact their own form of urban mob justice, Brigadier General Mya Win, the commander of Yangon’s regional police security command, told Reuters that police were on high alert. “We are patrolling around Muslim areas and have taken security measures around places of worship.”

With about 10,000 monks expected to attend a major extremist group’s nationwide congress in Yangon in a fortnight, many are watching on nervously.

http://southasianmonitor.com/2017/0...ncreasing-endeavor-leads-religious-extremism/

 

[24 Hours]

@Aung Zaya Curious, do you know in comparison to other militant groups in Burma such as the Kachin rebels and Arakan rebels, how do the Rohingya fair?

 

[Banglar Bir]

Rohingya Solidarity Organisation Top # 13 Facts

 

[asad71]

Amon

@Aung Zaya Curious, do you know in comparison to other militant groups in Burma such as the Kachin rebels and Arakan rebels, how do the Rohingya fair?

1.Of the seven peripheral states, six have been fighting to evict Burman occupation. Historically and ethnically all are free people. The seventh, Mon in the isthmus of Tennesarim, have been flooded with Burman settlers altering demography.
2. The Burmans have always dreaded the Arakan Muslims. When BD provides them a logistical corridor, the Mujahids will be able to evict the invader.

 

[Banglar Bir]

Delhi’s help in Rohingya resolution could spell ill for Dhaka
Published: 00:05, May 25,2017

THE proposition which India’s high commissioner in Dhaka put forth that Delhi would be party to the resolution of the Rohingya crisis in the Rakhine state of Myanmar involving all sides of the matter, as New Age reported on Wednesday, seems to be umbrageous and, therefore, warrants serious thoughts. Dhaka’s agreeing to such a proposition as set out by India could prove to be suicidal for Bangladesh.

India is always reported, even by the Indian media, to have thought the Rohingya issue to be complex and more of a security threat to itself than a humanitarian crisis and to have cautiously reserved any pronouncement especially since the renewed persecution on and violence against the Rohingyas in the Rakhine state beginning in October 2016. India, which reportedly has about 40,000 Rohingyas living in its several states, has had the taste of the crisis only since 2012; and it came to be criticised and was held to be in contravention of international law, by rights organisations this April because of its reported plans to identify, arrest and deport the Rohingya refugees, which could only mean intensifying their crisis back in Myanmar.

India has seldom acted in the interest of Bangladesh and issues concerning death by the Indian border forces in frontiers with Bangladesh, Teesta water sharing, tariff and nontariff barriers on Bangladesh’s export to India, international river-linking project or approval of power trade from Nepal through India have remained pending.

With so many prickly issues not being attended to, India’s offer for help in the Rohingya crisis resolution may in all likelihood go against the interest of Bangladesh.

India is also reported to have helped Myanmar in maritime dispute resolution with Bangladesh before 2009, when the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea settled the issue. India may have done it purposely to its own benefits as it is reported to have thought Myanmar of playing a key role in connecting with southeast Asia and cutting off China from the Bay of Bengal.

As India’s rivalry with China grows on many fronts, upsetting the Myanmar regime, experts fear, could be a strategic mistake for India. India also has security interests that depend on the goodwill of the Myanmar regime. In 2015, after an attack by Naga people on a security convoy in Manipur, Indian security forces were reported to carry out a covert raid across the border with a tacit nod from Myanmar. Besides, India is reported in March to be saying to ‘dissociate’ itself from any UN attempts to send an international mission to investigate killing, rape and torture by security forces in the Rakhine state.

While in such a situation, any ‘help’ that India could offer might go against the interest of Bangladesh, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, which has dense ties with Myanmar, and the United Nations are in a better position to effectively make interventions in Rohingya crisis resolution. Bangladesh, thus, should strive to take other neighbours of Myanmar — Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia, the ASEAN members that are more or less affected by the Rohingya crisis — on board and take up the issue at regional and international forums to mount pressure on Myanmar to resolve the crisis.

- See more at: http://www.newagebd.net/article/162...ould-spell-ill-for-dhaka#sthash.vWS572h0.dpuf

 

[Banglar Bir]

https://www.facebook.com/

 

[Banglar Bir]

Myanmar and China strengthen their alliance
Larry Jagan, May 30, 2017

Aung San Suu Kyi (on left) with Chinese president Xi Jinping and his wife

In recent weeks, several signals have emerged that show Myanmar is opting to be part of Beijing’s orbit rather than strengthen relations with the West, particularly Washington. This is in part the result of Beijing’s intense diplomatic charm offensive. But more importantly it reflects Myanmar’s dependence on China to resolve its ethnic instability and violence.

The landmark visit of China’s warships and joint naval exercises earlier this month symbolizes this increasingly symbiotic relationship. These military maneuvers reflected the growing ‘political trust’ between the countries, according to Chinese diplomats.

This followed several important diplomatic exchanges. The most important, was the meeting between Myanmar’s civilian leader, the State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi and the Chinese leader Xi Jinping at Beijing’s ‘Belt and Road’ summit in mid-May — her second visit there in the past year.

Earlier, Myanmar’s titular president, Htin Kyaw, made a six-day state visit to China to strengthen their ties. This paved the way for an agreement with Beijing to create an economic cooperation zone as part of the ‘Belt and Road’ initiative — which is intended to connect Asian and European markets – at the end of Aung San Suu Kyi’s visit.

But the key to Myanmar’s strategic shift towards Beijing is the peace process. This has been one of the new democratic Myanmar government’s key priorities since it came to power more than a year ago. Originally Aung San Suu Kyi tried to build on the legacy of the previous president, Thein Sein – the national ceasefire agreement (NCA). This took several years of negotiation and eventually only eight groups signed the document, in October 2015.

Since then there has been a plethora of meetings and negotiations – primarily centered on getting the other ethnic rebel groups to sign the NCA and start the promised political dialogue that would lead to the creation of a federal state. This has failed and the peace process has stalled. The latest meeting of the 21st Panglong peace conference, which concluded last week, is a clear testament to that. Key ethnic groups boycotted the meeting, because of the government’s insistence that those groups that did not sign the NCA would not be able to participate fully – they could only attend as observers.

Sources close to the Myanmar leader say she has begun to realize the NCA is not the key to kick starting the peace process, but that a new approach is needed. For this she has turned to Beijing for their support, especially in convincing the Northern Alliance – many of whom are still fighting with the Myanmar army – to join the peace process. At Beijing’s behest they attended the recent Panglong meeting in Naypyidaw.

The State Counselor and the Alliance members have had bilateral talks in the aftermath of the conference. Led by the Wa – a major ethnic group closely allied to China – the northern alliance has proposed an alternative approach to the peace process, which may now be the basis of discussion. Behind the scenes, the Chinese are backing this group and their plan.

For Aung San Suu Kyi now China has become key to solving the peace conundrum. She believes she needs China for the successful conclusion of the peace process according to sources close the Lady – as she is commonly referred to. As a result she feels beholden to Beijing – and that has certainly given them the upper hand in the battle for influence.

From once being the darling of the West, policy makers in the US in particular, fear Aung San Suu Kyi’s recent pivot towards China. But apart from the assistance Myanmar needs to achieve national reconciliation, a close friendship with Beijing offers the State Counselor many other benefits: most importantly with the military.

The Myanmar commander-in-chief has long seen the Wa as crucial to the peace process. While the army has no intentions of engaging them militarily, they do want to contain them. The generals fear the Wa extending their influence along the northern border with China to Thailand. Last year the army chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing made a hastily arranged unannounced trip to China in an effort to illicit Beijing’s support to contain the Wa, who at the time seemed to be spreading their tentacles.

So any peace plans, which involve the Wa — with China’s backing — will be fully endorsed by Myanmar’s military leaders. But more importantly Aung San Suu Kyi’s preference for Beijing over Washington would also meet with their strong approval. Although the military want to be accepted by the US – and hanker after better relations, including access to military training and even hardware – they do not entirely trust Washington. Instead they believe Beijing is a more dependable ally.

China has always been prepared to come to Myanmar aid, the former military intelligence officer Colonel Hla Min told me nearly two decades ago, during the time of the former military regime. In 1988, when the US Seventh Fleet sailed into the Andaman Sea – and military leaders feared a US invasion was imminent – thousands of Chinese troops amassed on the northern border ready to cross over and come to Myanmar’s assistance, he explained.

While the military is more open to China, it should not disguise their long held suspicion. “We don’t trust the Chinese but we know we must work with them,” a former senior military officer told me recently.

On the other hand, although the Wa maybe prepared to work with the government now, they also harbor deep reservations about Aung San Suu Kyi – especially about her power. “We can never work with Aung San Suu Kyi if she becomes Myanmar’s leader,” the Wa leader Bao Yuxiang told me in the Wa capital Pangsan, fifteen years ago. The reason: “she doesn’t have an army.”

So for now at least Aung San Suu Kyi feels she has no alternative but to depend on China, and strengthen their bilateral relations, especially for the sake of the peace process. However in the longer term, Myanmar – under Aung San Suu Kyi – is likely pursue a more nuanced foreign policy. But for the moment China is a prime position to exert its influence on the Lady.

http://southasianmonitor.com/2017/05/30/myanmar-china-strengthen-alliance/