By RFA
While Myanmar prepares to begin repatriating
Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled to neighboring Bangladesh to escape violence
during military crackdowns in northern Rakhine state in 2016 and 2017,
government officials are continuing with a plan to close internally displaced
persons (IDP) camps at home. Win Myat Aye, Myanmar’s minister for social
welfare, relief, and resettlement, is overseeing the effort. He chairs a
government committee created in September 2017 to implement the recommendations
of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, a group led by former Unirted
Nations chief Kofi Annan. The commission called for reviews of the country’s
1982 Citizenship Law, which prevents the Rohingya from becoming citizens, the
closure of IDP camps, and an end to restrictions on the Rohingya minority to
prevent further violence in the region. Last April, the Rakhine state
government said it would shutter three camps housing Kaman Muslims, ethnic
Rakhine people, and Rohingya Muslims who have been living in them since 2012
when they were displaced by communal violence. In an interview with Khin Khin
Ei of RFA’s Myanmar Service, Win Myat Aye discusses plans to close additional
IDP camps.
RFA: Why have authorities
decided to close the Thatkepyin Muslim IDP camp?
Win Myat Aye:
These camps have been in existence since 2012. Since the NLD [National League
for Democracy] government took power [in April 2016], it has planned to close
these camps because people’s access to education and health care and their
participation in the economy have been blocked because they are residing in
these camps. The Kofi Annan Commission’s report also suggested closing the IDP
camps.
We have closed some camps, but our plans were halted
because of the attacks [by Muslim militants in northern Rakhine state] in
August 2017. We have begun this plan now. Thatkepyin is the big camp in
[Rakhine’s capital] Sittwe. I have talked with government and camp officials to
close this camp, and we have agreed to do it. We will continue the discussions
to hammer out the details. We went to Myebon [township] and talked with
officials to close a camp there as well. They are working with us to close it.
RFA: We have heard something
about this plan, but some people don’t like the idea of closing the camp. What
will you do about that?
Win Myat Aye: We
are doing it for the good of all, and it is what we should do. I am surprised
to learn that some people don’t like it and wonder who those people could be.
RFA: Where will you let them
resettle?
Win Myat Aye: We
have the Disaster Management Law [under which the president can declare a state
of emergency in an area for a period of time if peoples' lives and property as
well as the natural environment are dramatically affected and if rehabilitation
will be needed]. We have been choosing places where they will have job
opportunities.
RFA: What kind of jobs can be
created for them?
Win Myat Aye:
There are many development plans and projects in Rakhine state. Even after the
Aug. 25 attacks, we created the Union Enterprise for Humanitarian Assistance,
Resettlement and Development in Rakhine State (UEHRD), so there will be many
job opportunities available under it. We will create jobs in the fishing
industry and in industrial zones. Something important for them is to be able to
travel freely. According to law, they will be recognized as people who live in
Myanmar if they hold national verification cards.
RFA: Do you think there will be
problems with closing the IDP camps as long as the Buddhist ethnic Rakhine
people and the Muslims don’t completely trust each other?
Win Myat Aye: It
is very important to think about the time when we will have trust in each
other. When we work on solving a problem, we have to strike a balance between
stability and development. If we have stability, we will have development.
Also, if we have development, we will have more stability. For development to
be fruitful, we must work on what we are doing now. Working towards
development, especially in education, is very important. If people are not
educated, they can become extremists, and they can easily be persuaded by
others.