Rohingya influx into Bangladesh continues till today (06
May, 2018). According their statement, they are forcing for NVC, is the one of
the most dangerous source of Rohingya genocide.
Rohingya activist tweeted @mir_sidiquee: https://t.co/fTTCbnFZi6
"18 Rohingya families from northern Rakhine state of
Myanmar, arrived today on 06 May 2018, into the Rohingya Refugee camps of
Southern Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh.
They said forcing for NVC & restrictions of
movement are the reasons of fleeing from native land.
NVC is one of major sources of ongoing State run Genocide
in Rakhine State. They are under restriction since 2012. They can't go out of
the village to work for life survival.
Moreover, Myanmar’s Army Chief has recently renewed the
fear by opening his mouth about their plan to keep the returnees in concentration
camps which are designated, said for safety. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gr47Bzm
But Rohingyas are disagreed to return on government’s
plan, as they have lost their properties, their lands and yards which are owned
by their generations. They have their demands to return back into safe land
with dignity and rights.
Recent days have brought a new flurry of international
diplomatic activity intended to help ease the plight of the Rohingya.
The Rohingya are a deeply impoverished and marginalized
Muslim community that has suffered horrifying acts of repression and violence
in Myanmar. In recent months, several hundred thousand of them have taken
refuge in neighboring Bangladesh, where many others were already based.
Over the final days of April, senior UN diplomats
traveled to both Bangladesh and Myanmar to discuss how to ensure the safe
repatriation of Rohingya refugees to the latter. Though Bangladesh and Myanmar
signed a deal several months ago to repatriate 750,000 of them, none have yet
returned. For the officials trying to orchestrate this delicate operation, time
is of the essence because of the coming monsoon season, which could complicate
relocations.
In reality, monsoon or no monsoon, sending the Rohingya
back anytime soon would be a terrible idea. They certainly don’t have it easy
in Bangladesh, where most of them are toiling away in overcrowded refugee
camps. Still, they are much better off there than they would be in Myanmar. Simply
put, there is little reason to believe the Myanmar armed forces will rein in
their repressive behavior toward the Rohingya.
In Buddhist-majority Myanmar, anti-Muslim sentiment runs
deep, with sizable pockets of society harboring nasty views toward Islam. For
some casual observers, the notion of Buddhist extremism may seem far-fetched —
but it’s very real. For example, several key religious figures in the country
espouse sickeningly bigoted views toward Muslims. Take Ashin Wirathu, a
prominent monk who has been described as a “Buddhist Bin Laden.” He once said
he wants his fellow monks “to feel gross” about Muslims, “like they feel gross
about human excrement.”
Given this societal backdrop, it’s easy to understand why
Myanmar’s military has continued to crack down, harshly and relentlessly,
against the country’s most vulnerable community.
The Rohingya, like many marginalized groups, are
frequently scapegoated. The Myanmar military justifies its crackdown with the
need to combat a small Rohingya-led militant group, known as the Arakan
Rohingya Salvation Army, which in recent months has launched a series of
attacks on local military and police facilities in Rakhine State to avenge the
Myanmar security forces’ repressive acts. Most Rohingya have little to do with
this group. However, the military, undaunted and perhaps galvanized by
occasional media reports in Asia suggesting that Islamist terror groups are
trying to recruit from the Rohingya community, pushes on with its
scorched-earth tactics.
Additionally, even though she recently hosted senior UN
diplomats for talks about the Rohingya, there is little reason to believe that
Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Laureate who now serves in the powerful role of
State Counsellor, will do much to help the Rohingya. To this point, she has
largely refused to champion their cause. In some ways, her seemingly callous
position, which has tarnished her global image, isn’t surprising. Suu Kyi is a
democracy activist, not a crusader for the underclass. She made her name by
taking on authoritarianism, not by taking up the cause of those living on
society’s margins. Furthermore, she is unlikely to go out of her way to assist
a deeply disenfranchised constituency that in Myanmar generates more scorn than
sympathy. The sad and sobering reality is that Suu Kyi’s failure to embrace the
Rohingya is a prudent political move in Myanmar.
However, even if Suu Kyi, motivated by a desire to repair
her shattered global image, were to change her position and come to the
Rohingya’s side, she would likely have limited success in making their lives
less miserable. In Myanmar, the military, not civilians, have the final say on
policy matters. Ultimately, Suu Kyi’s hands are tied.
The fact that the Rohingya — long overlooked and ignored
by the international community — are garnering so much global attention and
sympathy is a good thing. To that end, the active involvement of the UN to help
improve their plight is a welcome development.
However, it’s important that the international community
gets its priorities straight when it comes to the Rohingya. Trying to
facilitate repatriations amounts to a fool’s errand, this isn’t the time to
send the Rohingya back to Myanmar. Instead, the focus should be on providing
more support to Rohingya refugees wherever they are now — whether in Bangladesh
or in the many other countries where this nomadic-by-necessity community has
sought refuge, from India to Indonesia and many places in between.
We live in an era of donor fatigue, with humanitarian
appeals often falling on deaf ears; and yet the world is clearly captivated and
moved by the perilous plight of the Rohingya. Now is the time to redouble
efforts to ensure that they receive the food, shelter and, above all, the
dignity that they deserve — wherever they may be.
Source: Arab News