We, the undersigned organizations, write to urge your delegations to support calls by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, for the establishment by the UN Human Rights Council during its 34th session of a Commission of Inquiry or similar international mechanism to investigate, at a minimum, alleged and apparent serious human rights violations and abuses in Rakhine State, Myanmar.
Since 9 October 2016, Myanmar's security forces have carried out large-scale attacks against the Rohingya population in Rakhine States Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Rathedaung Townships as part of clearance operations in response to attacks on three police border posts by armed assailants. These clearance operations violate numerous provisions of international human rights law. Download the full letter
(Courtesy of csw.org.uk)
March 4, 2017
Dalai Lama adds voice to Pope's in calling for the persecution of Rohingya to end
The Dalai Lama has joined Pope Francis in calling for Myanmar Buddhists to end violence against Rohingya Muslims in what the United Nations says amounts to ethnic cleansing and possibly crimes against humanity.
The Tibetan Buddhist leader revealed he has privately communicated with Myanmar's de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi "to use her influence to bring about a peaceful resolution to this problem". (Courtesy of theage.com.au)
The Tibetan Buddhist leader revealed he has privately communicated with Myanmar's de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi "to use her influence to bring about a peaceful resolution to this problem". (Courtesy of theage.com.au)
March 3, 2017
Thousands of children’s lives at stake as ‘indirect victims’ of Burmese crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, UN warns
Fears are growing for the lives of several thousand children in northwest Burma suffering from severe malnutrition and lack of medical care but denied vital aid after a sweeping military crackdown against suspected Rohingya militants.
UN agencies were unable to maintain lifesaving services for more than 3,000 registered children, mostly from the minority Rohingya Muslim community, in two townships of northern Rakhine state after the military sealed off the area during operations in response to the killing of nine policemen in attacks on border posts on 9 October.
Following an international outcry, the military allowed the UN to resume limited aid operations in Buthidaung township in mid-December and last month in Maungdaw North. (Courtesy of independent.co.uk/news)
UN agencies were unable to maintain lifesaving services for more than 3,000 registered children, mostly from the minority Rohingya Muslim community, in two townships of northern Rakhine state after the military sealed off the area during operations in response to the killing of nine policemen in attacks on border posts on 9 October.
Following an international outcry, the military allowed the UN to resume limited aid operations in Buthidaung township in mid-December and last month in Maungdaw North. (Courtesy of independent.co.uk/news)
March 2, 2017
Burma Army Defends Arakan State Operations, Denies Reports of Abuses
The Tatmadaw, Burma’s military, defended its crackdown on the Rohingya Muslim minority in Arakan State as a lawful counterinsurgency operation at a rare news conference on Tuesday, adding that it was necessary to defend the country.
It was the first time the top generals directly addressed the mounting accusations of human rights abuses, which, according to UN experts, may amount to crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.
“I want to say that I am very sad because of these kind of reckless accusations and neglect of the good things that the government and the military have done for them,” said Gen Mya Tun Oo, chief of the general staff, referring to the reports in the media quoting Rohingya residents describing the alleged abuses such as burning of houses in the area. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
It was the first time the top generals directly addressed the mounting accusations of human rights abuses, which, according to UN experts, may amount to crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing.
“I want to say that I am very sad because of these kind of reckless accusations and neglect of the good things that the government and the military have done for them,” said Gen Mya Tun Oo, chief of the general staff, referring to the reports in the media quoting Rohingya residents describing the alleged abuses such as burning of houses in the area. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
Why is Pakistan entering an arms deal with the Burmese government?
Many among us take pride in Pakistan’s position as one of the prime bastions of Islamic ideals in the modern Muslim world. The Islamic Republic’s ongoing negotiations with Myanmar, therefore, are a matter of some concern for an average Muslim patriot.
In a global political climate where many Muslims already feel besieged by external colonial forces, a new name is fast emerging among our list of oppressed Muslim groups from Palestinians to Kashmiris. And that name is ‘Rohingya’. More commonly known to Pakistanis as simply “Burma ke Musalman”, the Rohingya people are a predominantly Muslim Indo-Aryan population from the Rakhine state in Myanmar.
This new entry to the vernacular and argumentation ammunition of a Muslim nationalist constitutes a story of human misery that is mortifying by any objective standard. A great bulk of the Rohingya people inherited their perceived criminality from their forefathers in the 60s, who rebelled against the Buddhist-dominant authorities and their discriminatory policies. The resulting resentment against the Muslim population led to the promulgation of the Burmese Nationality Law, which denies the Rohingya people citizenship and essentially renders them stateless – not unlike the Palestinians.
There has been some controversy in the past concerning the degree of the oppression by the state of Myanmar. Pakistani web spaces were flooded by fake images of devastation caused by the military forces. In a country where Pak Studies, among other Islamo-nationalist devices, has generated a fertile ground where stories of Muslim victimhood are taken at face value, the images were accepted largely uncontested. (Courtesy of pakistantoday.com.pk)
In a global political climate where many Muslims already feel besieged by external colonial forces, a new name is fast emerging among our list of oppressed Muslim groups from Palestinians to Kashmiris. And that name is ‘Rohingya’. More commonly known to Pakistanis as simply “Burma ke Musalman”, the Rohingya people are a predominantly Muslim Indo-Aryan population from the Rakhine state in Myanmar.
This new entry to the vernacular and argumentation ammunition of a Muslim nationalist constitutes a story of human misery that is mortifying by any objective standard. A great bulk of the Rohingya people inherited their perceived criminality from their forefathers in the 60s, who rebelled against the Buddhist-dominant authorities and their discriminatory policies. The resulting resentment against the Muslim population led to the promulgation of the Burmese Nationality Law, which denies the Rohingya people citizenship and essentially renders them stateless – not unlike the Palestinians.
There has been some controversy in the past concerning the degree of the oppression by the state of Myanmar. Pakistani web spaces were flooded by fake images of devastation caused by the military forces. In a country where Pak Studies, among other Islamo-nationalist devices, has generated a fertile ground where stories of Muslim victimhood are taken at face value, the images were accepted largely uncontested. (Courtesy of pakistantoday.com.pk)
Military Chief of Staff: Army Not Open to Talks With AA, MNDAA or TNLA
Chief of the General Staff of the Burmese military Gen Mya Tun Oo has described ethnic armed alliance the United Nationalities Federal Council’s (UNFC) demand for the army’s unilateral ceasefire “impractical,” and instead has called on the UNFC to sign Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA).
“My view is that this is not a question that they [the UNFC] should ask,” the general told the reporters after the military press conference in Naypyidaw on Tuesday, referring to UNFC’s demand.
The ethnic armed alliance’s members should sign the NCA, rather than asking the army to declare its own ceasefire, because their signing would result in an actual ceasefire, said the general. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
“My view is that this is not a question that they [the UNFC] should ask,” the general told the reporters after the military press conference in Naypyidaw on Tuesday, referring to UNFC’s demand.
The ethnic armed alliance’s members should sign the NCA, rather than asking the army to declare its own ceasefire, because their signing would result in an actual ceasefire, said the general. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
Burma Army Denies Involvement in U Ko Ni’s Assassination
The Burma Army was not involved in the assassination of National League for Democracy (NLD) legal adviser U Ko Ni despite the fact that ex-military officers are suspected of being behind the conspiracy, said chief of general staff Gen Mya Tun Oo.
The general dismissed the speculation as he answered questions from journalists at a military press conference in Naypyidaw on Tuesday regarding Mong Ko clashes and issues in Arakan State.
U Ko Ni was shot dead on Jan. 29 at the Rangoon International Airport. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
The general dismissed the speculation as he answered questions from journalists at a military press conference in Naypyidaw on Tuesday regarding Mong Ko clashes and issues in Arakan State.
U Ko Ni was shot dead on Jan. 29 at the Rangoon International Airport. (Courtesy of irrawaddy.com)
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