News Report: UN Chief Urges 'Swift Action' to Alleviate Suffering of Myanmar Muslims

Margaret Besheer

UNITED NATIONS — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called Thursday for "swift action" to halt the deteriorating situation in Myanmar's northern Rakhine State, where a half million mostly Rohingya Muslims have fled to neighboring Bangladesh in the past month.

"The situation has spiraled into the world’s fastest developing refugee emergency; a humanitarian and human rights nightmare," Guterres told an open meeting of the U.N. Security Council.

The council has privately discussed the situation three times in the past month, but Thursday’s session was the first time since 2009 that it has publicly discussed Myanmar.

Guterres called for an end to the military’s operations; unhindered aid access; and the safe and voluntary return of refugees to their areas of origin.

"There seems to be a deeply disturbing pattern to the violence and ensuing large movements of an ethnic group from their homes," Guterres said.

Guterres and his human rights commissioner have both expressed concerns that what is happening in Rakhine State is ethnic cleansing.

The secretary-general said the core problem is the prolonged statelessness of the Rohingya and its associated discrimination. "The Muslims of Rakhine State should be granted nationality," Guterres said.

The Rohingya are one of many ethnic minorities in the Buddhist-majority nation. They are considered to be economic migrants from Bangladesh and have been denied citizenship, even though most can show that their families have been in the country for generations.

News Story: China sends relief materials for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- A second Chinese cargo plane carrying relief supplies for Rohingya refugees arrived in Bangladesh's southeastern Chittagong region on Thursday, after the first one arrived on Wednesday.

The relief materials included about 2,000 tents and 3,000 blankets.

An official from the Chinese Embassy in Bangladesh handed over the relief materials to the Bangladeshi side Thursday.

Read the full story at Xinhua

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PacificSentinel: That's right China/Xinhua, just ignore the complete overreaction by Myanmar's army in the situation.

News Story: China calls for patience with situation in Myanmar's Rakhine

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy to the United Nations on Thursday called for patience with the situation in Myanmar's Rakhine State.

"The question of Rakhine State is rooted in a nexus of complex historical, ethnic and religious factors. Many of the differences and antagonisms have been building up over a long time. There is no quick fix," Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told the Security Council.

China condemns the recent violent attacks in Rakhine State and supports Myanmar's effort to keep its domestic situation stable, he said. "We sincerely hope that order will prevail again as soon as possible so that no more harm will come to the innocent civilians, and so that social stability, unity among ethnic groups and economic development in Myanmar will be sustained."

He asked the international community to view the difficulties and challenges confronting the Myanmar government "through objective optics," exercise patience, and provide support and help.

"A viable solution will be one that goes in tandem with the reconciliation process in Myanmar," said Wu.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: 14 dead, unknown number missing after Rohingya boat capsizes off Bangladesh

DHAKA, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- At least 14 bodies were recovered after a boat with dozens of Rohingyas fleeing Myanmar capsized in the Bay of Bengal close to Bangladesh's southeastern Cox's Bazar district bordering Myanmar, a senior police official said Thursday.

The accident also left an unknown number of people missing, the police official said.

Afrozul Hoque Tutul, additional police superintendent of Cox's Bazar district, told Xinhua at about 6:30 p.m. local time that "14 bodies have so far been recovered."

He could not tell immediately when the boat capsized but assumed that it may have capsized sometime Thursday evening.

Law enforcers rushed to recover the bodies which were floating in the Bay of Bengal near Inani sea beach area of Cox's Bazar district, some 292 km southeast of capital Dhaka, he said.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: India Braces Itself for Influx of Refugees, Seals Its Borders With Myanmar

India fears that Rohingyas fleeing Rakhine province in Myanmar may enter its territory through the countries' mutual border, which lacks a protective fence. In response, a team led by the head of the Department of Internal Security of the Ministry of Home Affairs was sent to the region by Home Minister Rajnath Singh last week.

New Delhi (Sputnik) — The Indian government is reviewing the impact of a bilateral agreement with Myanmar, which allows visa-free movement among citizens of the two countries within 16 km of the Indo-Myanmar border, in the wake of the Rohingya refugee crisis.

Sources have told Sputnik that security officials and senior officials from India’s Ministry of Home Affairs visited the border areas of four north-eastern states.

"India apprehends that Rohingya fleeing Rakhine may seek to infiltrate into our side through the unfenced border. That is why a team, led by special secretary (internal security), visited the border on the instruction of Union home minister Rajnath Singh last week," a senior Intelligence Bureau official told The Telegraph.

News Report: UNHCR - Risk of Terrorism 'Very, Very High' if Rohingya Crisis Persists

Lisa Schlein

GENEVA — The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, warned Wednesday of a high risk of terrorism in Myanmar and the region if the Rohingya crisis remains unresolved.

Grandi recently visited Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh, which is home to some 800,000 Rohingya refugees. Among those, 450,000 refugees recently fled violence and persecution in Myanmar, while more than 300,000 others arrived in neighboring Bangladesh before the current crisis.

Most of the refugees are women and children, and many are deeply traumatized. Grandi says he spoke to women who had been raped and children who had seen their families and friends killed.

"The combination of limited health facilities, poor sanitary and hygienic conditions, and overcrowded sites, you can well imagine, is a recipe for disaster in terms of possible epidemics," Grandi said, stressing how little the refugees had and how vulnerable they were to multiple risks.

News Report: UN: Rohingya Refugee Crisis Could Turn Into Disaster Without More Help

Lisa Schlein

GENEVA — The United Nations is warning the Rohingya humanitarian crisis unfolding in Bangladesh could turn into a humanitarian disaster without more money to scale up emergency operations. The U.N. reports an estimated 436,000 refugees fleeing violence in neighboring Myanmar have gone to Bangladesh over the past month. Some aid agencies are putting the number at 480,000.

While the rate of new arrivals has declined, the U.N. says it has received reports of more people trying to cross the border from Myanmar. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says the scale of the emergency is far greater than previously anticipated.

Officials say they are revising their initial response plan, which calls for anywhere from $77 million to $200 million to meet urgent needs over the next six months. U.N. refugee spokesman Adrian Edwards says the massive influx of people seeking safety is outpacing the ability of aid agencies to respond.

News Story: DFA - Cayetano's statement issued after consultations with Malaysia

By Patricia Lourdes Viray

MANILA, Philippines — The statement recently issued by Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano on the crisis in the Rakhine state in Myanmar was made after consultations with Malaysia, the Department of Foreign Affairs said Monday.

Other ASEAN foreign ministers, however, were aware that Malaysia would dissociate itself from the statement on the humanitarian situation in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

"ASEAN is deeply concerned about the humanitarian situation in the northern Rakhine State and since Malaysia has different views on some issues, out of respect for its position, we decided that instead of a Foreign Ministers Statement, we would issue a Chairman's Statement that would reflect the general statements of the other foreign ministers," the DFA said in a statement.

Malaysia has dissociated itself with the ASEAN chairman statement which omitted the Rohingyas as one of the affected communities in the so-called "clearance operations" efforts by Myanmar authorities.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Anifah Aman said Cayetano's statement was not based on consensus and that there was a "misrepresentation of the reality of the situation."

The DFA insisted that Cayetano's statement reflected the sentiments of the ASEAN foreign ministers who attended meetings about the issue on the sides of the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Read the full story at PhilStar

Related Story:

• Malaysia calls Cayetano's statement on Rohingya crisis a 'misrepresentation of reality'

News Report: Why Myanmar’s Government Won’t Negotiate With Rohingya Insurgents

Joe Freeman

YANGON — When the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army offered a month-long cease-fire on September 10 with the stated purpose of facilitating aid through the conflict zone in Rakhine State, Myanmar’s response was swift.

“We have no policy to negotiate with terrorists,” Zaw Htay, spokesman for de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, said on Twitter the same day.

Myanmar branded the group, known in shorthand as ARSA, a terrorist organization after it carried out deadly attacks on police and army posts on August 25, prompting a military crackdown that has caused more than 400,000 Rohingya Muslims to flee to Bangladesh and resulted in widespread claims of atrocities and ethnic cleansing.

But as observers — and even ARSA members — have pointed out, Myanmar continues to negotiate with several ethnic armed groups fighting for more autonomy in its border regions. Some of them have also been called terrorist outfits, though not by the central government.

So why the apparent double standard?

News Story: 28 remains of Hindu villagers uncovered in Myanmar northern state

YANGON, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Some 28 dead bodies of Hindu villagers have been found buried in Maungtaw, Myanmar's northern Rakhine state, as authorities dug up earth to confirm the information by a villager in Sittway, Myanmar News Agency reported Monday.

According to the information, the victims were left by attacks on the village on Aug. 25 by about 300 members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) extremist terrorists.

Investigation is underway and more search will be continued, the report added.

Meanwhile, seven more improvised explosive devices, suspected of being planted by the ARSA, were also uncovered by Myanmar security forces in Chein Khar Li village, Yathedaung township Saturday as the security forces were patrolling the area.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Story: Malaysia calls Cayetano's statement on Rohingya crisis a 'misrepresentation of reality'

By Gaea Katreena Cabico

MANILA, Philippines (Update 2, 10:51 a.m.) — Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano over the weekend released a statement as the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on the crisis in Rakhine state without referring to violence against Rohingya Muslims.

Malaysia, a predominantly Muslim nation and a member of ASEAN, disassociated itself from the ASEAN chairperson's position and described it as a "misrepresentation of the reality of the situation."

Malaysia's Foreign Affairs Minister Anifah Aman, in a strongly worded disavowal, said Cayetano's statement "was not based on consensus."

"The statement (of Cayetano) also omits the Rohingyas as one of the affected communities," Aman said in a statement on Sunday.

Before the chair's statement, ASEAN has kept mum on the crisis involving Bangladesh and member-state Myanmar. Even rarer still is Malaysia's public opposition in the Southeast Asian bloc known for its "flexible engagement," "non-interference" and consensus.

Read the full story at PhilStar

News Report: UNHCR - Bangladesh Needs 'Massive International Assistance' for Rohingya

The head of the U.N. refugee agency says Bangladesh needs "massive international assistance" to feed and shelter the Rohingya who have fled Myanmar.

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi said Sunday in the Bangladeshi town of Cox's Bazar the needs of more than 430,000 people who have fled violence in Myanmar are enormous and Bangladesh is facing "immense" challenges.

"I spoke to many of the refugees that have just arrived and I must say that on the one hand I was struck by the incredible magnitude of their needs. They need everything, as I said, they need food, they need clean water, they need shelter, they need proper health care, and perhaps the most urgent need is to find them a proper accommodation," he said.

Grandi said an "incredible outpouring of local generosity" needs to be "beefed up by massive international assistance, financial and material".

The latest round of violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state erupted August 25 when a Rohingya insurgent group launched deadly attacks on security posts. Myanmar responded with military "clearance operations" to root out the rebels.

"First and foremost violence has to stop because it is that violence that has caused the flight of the people. Violence has to stop. Access by humanitarian organizations like mine in northern Rakhine have to be fully restored. You know that UNHCR, the World Food Program are maintaining a presence there but our movement is still restricted. This, once the security is reestablished, has to be restored so that we can also help those that have not come over and address their needs."

Grandi said the refugee flow has slowed, but it is impossible to tell whether more would come.

This story first appeared on Voice of America & is reposted here with permission.

News Report: Border Guards Stop Rohingyas From Entering India

Suhail Anjum

NEW DELHI — India has stepped up security along its largely porous eastern border with Bangladesh and is using pepper spray and stun grenades to block Rohingya Muslims, who are fleeing violence in their homeland of Myanmar, Indian officials said Saturday.

Border forces, citing security risks, have been authorized to prevent attempts to enter the country.

"We don't want to cause any serious injury or arrest them, but we won't tolerate Rohingya on Indian soil," said a senior official with India's Border Security Force (BSF) in New Delhi.

R.P.S. Jaswal, a deputy inspector general of the BSF, patrolling a large part of the border in the eastern state of West Bengal, said his troops were told to use both what he called "chili spray" and stun grenades to keep Rohingya out of India.

About 40,000 Rohingya refugees who passed through Bangladesh from Myanmar are already inside India. On Thursday, India Home Minister Rajnath Singh called for their deportation as illegal migrants, saying they had not applied for refugee status.

India's National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a notice to the government about the plan to deport Rohingyas. The NHRC says it is assisting Rohingyas on humanitarian grounds because they were being persecuted in Myanmar.

This story first appeared on Voice of America & is reposted here with permission.

News Story: More explosive devices uncovered in Myanmar northern state

YANGON, Sept. 24 (Xinhua) -- Seven more improvised explosive devices have been uncovered by Myanmar security forces in a village in Yathedaung township of Rakhine state, but were deactivated with no injury, Myanmar News Agency reported Sunday.

The explosive devices, found in Chein Khar Li village Saturday as the security forces were patrolling the area, were suspected of being planted by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) extremist terrorists.

The security forces also found six houses in two villages in Maungtaw and eight other Hindu houses in Kyein Chaung destroyed by fire, and the fire is suspected of starting from a Muslim house and then spread to nearby Hindu houses, the report said.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: UN Agencies Ramp Up Aid for Rohingya Refugees

Lisa Schlein

GENEVA — The United Nations estimates some 429,000 Rohingya refugees have fled violence in Myanmar for Bangladesh since August 25. As the number edges toward half-a-million, U.N. agencies are increasing life-saving assistance to desperate people living in squalid settlements.

The number of daily arrivals has fallen to about 1,000 from a high of 20,000 a day. Nevertheless, that steep decline in refugee numbers has done little to ease overcrowding in the makeshift Rohingya sites near two official camps in southeastern Bangladesh.

Authorities have allocated an 800-hectare area to new arrivals. The U.N. refugee agency says it is speeding up the distribution of plastic sheeting so as many people as possible can have some protection from monsoon rain and wind.

UNHCR spokesman Andre Mahecic says health is a major concern given the inclement weather, overpopulated camps and lack of essential relief.

News Story: Myanmar gov't to seek UN assistance in resettlement of displaced ethnic people

YANGON, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar's government will ask the United Nations Human Settlement Programme to help in resettlement of displaced ethnic people, State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi told a meeting with the Implementation Committee of recommendations on Rakhine state on Friday.

The state counselor also urged the Implementation Committee to speed up the search of 93 Hindu people from Tamanthar village who were attacked by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army extremist terrorists.

She called for repatriation through diplomatic channel with Bangladesh of six Hindu women and three children who were said to be living in displaced persons' camps at the border area.

Read the full story at Xinhua

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Story Quote: "She called for repatriation through diplomatic channel with Bangladesh of six Hindu women and three children who were said to be living in displaced persons' camps at the border area."

PacificSentinel: Note that they only want the Hindus back, no mention of the Rohingya refugees.

News Report: 'Political Pressure' and Humanitarian Aid - Iran Sets Sight on Rohingya Crisis

Iran has sent its first aid shipment for Rohingya refugees and wants to increase its humanitarian assistance in the ongoing crisis in Myanmar. At the same time, the Iranian government is also considering a political strategy to stop what UN Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein denounced as a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing."

A 50-ton aid supply shipment has already reached Bangladesh for Rohingya Muslims in the border area, Seyyed Hadi Afghahi, an Iranian diplomat familiar with the situation, told Sputnik Persian. 

Tehran is also in talks with the Myanmar authorities on an additional humanitarian delivery for Rohingya people in Myanmar proper and on the transportation of wounded Rohingya for treatment to Iranian hospitals. 

Commenting on Tehran’s humanitarian efforts, Afghahi noted that Iran was one of the first member-states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to come to help amid the ongoing crisis in Myanmar affecting the Rohingya Muslim minority. 

News Story: India sees Rohingya Muslims as illegal immigrants not refugees

NEW DELHI, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- India said Thursday that Rohingya Muslims living in the country are not refugees but illegal immigrants from Myanmar, indicating that it could deport them.

"Rohingyas are not refugees, nor have they taken asylum. They are illegal immigrants. There is a proper procedure to attain refugee status. None of these immigrants have followed this procedure," Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh said in the national capital.

Stating that objections to deport the Rohingya Muslims from India are baseless since Myanmar has expressed its willingness to take them back, the minister hinted that New Delhi is free to send them back to their home country.

"India won't be violating any international law by deporting Rohingyas from India as it isn't a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention," he said.

Read the full story at Xinhua

News Report: Rohingya Crisis May Reduce China's Geopolitical Weight and Unleash Islamism

Beijing is interested in restoring stability in Myanmar, which is currently being engulfed by the Rohingya crisis, experts told Sputnik. China's concerns about the potential upsurge in Islamic extremism in the country have geopolitical grounds as Myanmar serves as an alternative energy route for Beijing.

China is seriously concerned about the possibility of Daesh's penetration into Myanmar and the Chinese province of Yunnan amid the ongoing Rohingya crisis in Rakhine State, a Chinese expert in international affairs told Sputnik China speaking on condition of anonymity.

According to the expert, radical Rohingya and Uighur Muslims may jump at the opportunity to establish contacts with Islamist forces in Southeast Asia. Over recent years, China has been constantly dealing serious blows to extremist Islamist groups inside the country, the source added.

"The crisis in Rakhine continues to escalate," the expert said. "It can lead to the merging of local extremists with terrorist forces in the Middle East. All these pose a huge challenge to Southeast Asia and China, therefore we must take preventive measures."

News Report: Six Points in Myanmar Leader's Rohingya Speech That Need Fact-Checking

Aung San Suu Kyi

On Tuesday, Myanmar's state counselor and de facto leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, broke silence on the ongoing Rohingya crisis in a televised address. But the speech required reasonable fact-checking and was even described as a "a mix of untruths and victim blaming" by Amnesty International.

Suu Kyi called on the international community to assist the country's authorities in resolving the ongoing Rohingya Muslim minority crisis. She added that the government intends to carefully examine the situation and listen to all incoming arguments and counterarguments. Nevertheless, there were some dubious claims by the country’s leader that need to be scrutinized. 

1. Suu Kyi stressed that the Myanmar government needs time to find out the real causes of the ongoing crisis. 

This claim directly contradicts the Final Report of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, chaired by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. The document was submitted to national authorities on August 23 and puts forward recommendations to end the crisis in Rakhine. In particular, the report details the reasons behind the ongoing Rohingya crisis, including the lack of citizenship for Rohingya Muslims and military and police actions in the region. 

"Unless concerted action – led by the government and aided by all sectors of the government and society – is taken soon, we risk the return of another cycle of violence and radicalization, which will further deepen the chronic poverty that afflicts Rakhine State," Annan said in a statement.