THE PLIGHT OF STATELESS ROHINGYAS LINGER ON

By now the phenomenal plight and survival of Rohingyas has been told countless times, but from significantly different perspectives of course.
We know that Rohingyas remain one of the most persecuted and vulnerable communities of the world.
We are told repeatedly that Rohingyas are terrorists or extremists; they cannot rightfully claim Burma as their own state, and the most dangerous of all -- Rohignya men are misogynist Muslims who are threats to the 'peace loving' ethnically heterogeneous but predominantly Buddhist communities of Burma.
*The UN Resolution 96(I) of 1946 states that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or war, is a crime under international law.

• Derived from Rohang, the ancient name of Arakan, the Muslims of Burma's west coast identify themselves as Rohingya. Many members of the community in recent decades preferred to be labelled as Arakan Muslims. The widely accepted term for the Rohingya, in all formal and most of the informal discussions in Burma, is 'Bengali Muslims'.
• The recent upsurge in violence against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar has highlighted the regime’s complete disregard for basic human rights. While the international conscience awakens slowly, the Muslim minority has already suffered a colossal spell of ethnic cleansing.
  
• Accounting for over one-third of the total population of Myanmar, 800,000 Rohingyas are neither recognised as citizens, nor a minority. They came to Burma in the seventh century. They have ever since settled in the western part of the country, the Rakhine State; an area that borders the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh.
• The latest spate of genocide has resulted in the killing of over 100 innocent people, including women and children. The main executors of these gruesome crimes were Hindu and Buddhist outfits, who otherwise portray themselves as pacifists.
  
• The Buddhist organisations that carried out these gory acts had the tacit blessing of the politico-military regime, as well as physical and logistic support of Hindu religious extremists.
  
• The horrific images and reports coming out of the conflict zone present a scenario of systemic genocide. The events were triggered by a Buddhist girl eloping with a Rohingya boy. In the wake of this innocent occurrence, the so-called peace-loving Buddhists have demonstrated that they could be as violent and gruesome as anyone else.

The Myanmar government is of the view that the Rohingyas came from India during the British Raj. Thus, the Burmese view them with hostility. They are denied fundamental rights and freedom.
The military regime consistently perpetrates human rights violations against these powerless and unprotected people. They are not issued identity cards, and do not have the right to basic amenities like education, health and freedom of movement. They also do not have property ownership rights.
They are denied government jobs, subjected to marriage restrictions, and liable to forced labour. They also face extortion and other coercive practices.

Source: Agencies