Why is the world ignoring Myanmar’s Rohingya? Aung San Suu Kyi is now a victimizer of Rohingya. She is ingnoring the persecution of Rohingya’s at the hands of brutal Myanmar Army. She is deliberately supporting the Myanmar Army to do ethnic cleansing of Muslims. The Neros of Islamic world like King Faisal, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Mohd Najib Abdul Razak, Pervez Ashraf and Civilian Dictator Zardari are all silent.They have faced decades of discrimination but the Muslim minority’s plight has garnered little international attention.They have been persecuted and discriminated against for decades but few can even pronounce their name let alone know of their plight.
“There is a lot of latent prejudice, racism, whatever you want to call it, inside Burma
towards this community and it’s playing out right now. It’s not over by any means.
It’s a tinderbox and it could blow up at any time.”
– Brad Adams from Human Rights Watch
“It is true that we are not Burmese. We are an independent state – Arakan.
And Rohingya is one of the races of Arakan not Burma …. They [the Burmese] are the ones who intervened, they are the ones who are foreigners [in] this land, they are the ones who invaded.”
– Muhammad Noor, a Rohingya political activist
Buddhist attacks on the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, have picked up over the last few weeks following the rape and murder of a Buddhist woman in May. Human rights groups say the security forces are also involved in the targeted attacks, which started in June. Thousands of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh – but thousands more have been refused entry. For those who do make it across the border their troubles are far from over. An estimated 800,000 Rohingya live in Myanmar’s Rakhine state with another 200,000 in Bangladesh. They are not recognised by either country. Myanmar has long faced tensions with many of its ethnic minorities, and the new government has agreed to a ceasefire with many of the groups. But last week, Thein Sein, the president of Myanmar, told the UN that the solution was either to send millions of Rohingya to another country or to have the UN look after them.
“We will take responsibility for ethnic nationalities but it is not at all possible to recognise the illegal border-crossing Rohingya who are not of our ethnicity,” he said. He added that the conflict poses a threat to the democratic and economic reforms his government has launched, warning that: “Stability and peace, the democratisation process and the development of the country, which are in transition right now, could be severely affected and much would be lost.” Inside Story asks: Is the plight of the Rohingya being deliberately ignored? Why has the world turned a blind eye to them? Joining presenter Sami Zeidan to discuss this are guests: Justin Wintle, a historian and author of Perfect Hostage, a biography of Myanmar’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi; Brad Adams, the executive director of Human Rights Watch’s Asia division; Mohamed Noor, a Rohingya political activist; and Dina Madani of the Muslim Minorities and Communities Department at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
“When the communal violence backlash hit the Rohingya in Rakhine state, Aung San Suu Kyi came out with expressions of sympathy for them, but so far she has said nothing about granting them the right of citizenship, and somebody’s got to do that in Myanmar.”
SBY Reacts to Plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya — With a Letter
Rangga Prakoso, Ismira Lutfia & Anita Rachman | August 06, 2012
A Hizbut Tahrir Indonesia protestor in front ofthe Merdeka Palace urges intervention on behalf of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. (Antara Photo/Ardiansyah Indra Kumala)
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesian-islamic-hard-liners-vow-jihad-for-myanmars-rohingyas/530406
Funny how he cannot intervene over Christians, Shia or the KPK/Police – but can poke his nose in here
Yudhoyono’s first statement on the issue on Saturday, following weeks of mounting calls from human rights activists, legislators and students for Indonesia to take a role in finding a solution, received a mixed reaction from observers.
Some claim that Yudhoyono is trying to find a balance between asserting Indonesia’s leadership in the region and preserving the momentum of Myanmar’s democratic reforms. Others argue that the president should meet Thein Sein immediately rather than merely send letters.
Myanmar and Indonesia are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and Indonesia says it has been instrumental in pushing the Myanmar junta to embrace democracy.
In a measured statement during a news conference at his private residence in Cikeas, Bogor, Yudhoyono first said that there had been no indication of genocide of Rohingya. He then expressed Indonesia’s hope that Myanmar would stop the attacks against the Rohingya, a mostly Muslim ethnic minority in Myanmar.
“My letter to Myanmar President Thein Sein expresses Indonesia’s hope that the Myanmar government will solve the Rohingya problem in the best way,” he said.
The president asked Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa to continue Indonesia’s active diplomacy so that Myanmar would allow representatives from the United Nations, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and Asean to enter the conflict zone to find what really happened.
“My hope is that the OIC, UN, Asean, Indonesia and Myanmar can cooperate to find the best solution,” he said.
Predominantly Buddhist Myanmar does not recognize the Rohingya as citizens, saying they migrated from Bangladesh during British colonial rule. Bangladesh has also disavowed the group, saying it is Myanmar’s problem.
Amnesty International has reported that hundreds of Rohingyas have been killed, raped, beaten and arbitrarily arrested since Myanmar declared a state of emergency in northern Rakhine state, on the border with Bangladesh.
Yudhoyono said Indonesia could offer Myanmar expertise in solving conflicts between the Buddhist Rakhine and Muslim Rohingya because the country had ample experience in dealing with clashes between Muslims and Christians, such as in Ambon and Poso, Central Sulawesi.
“Just like when we dealt with communal conflict in Poso, Ambon and Aceh, we didn’t want foreign involvement in the cases. We also rejected allegations that we did not protect the minority. I think Myanmar can hear the criticism and act justly,” the president said.
Haris Azhar, a prominent human rights activist and coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), however, suggested that the president should meet directly with Thein Sein.
Ahmad Qisai, an expert from the Paramadina Graduate School of Diplomacy, said Indonesia’s involvement in resolving this situation could boost its image.
Makmur Keliat of the University of Indonesia said Yudhoyono’s statement was only aimed at appeasing the public and the domestic media.
