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At least 12 Rohingya, mainly children, drown in latest boat disaster - police

By Damir Sagolj and Tom Allard

 

Rohingya refugee children wait for lunch at a refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh October 8, 2017. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain

 

COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - At least 12 Rohingya Muslim refugees, mainly children, drowned when their boats capsized on the way to Bangladesh, police said on Monday, the latest victims of violence in Myanmar that has forced more than half a million people from their homes.

 

The boat sank near Shah Porir Dwip, on the southern tip of Bangladesh, late on Sunday, Bangladesh authorities said.

It was not known how many people were on board but the boats operated by fishermen often cram in dozens of desperate Rohingya fleeing a Myanmar security operation that the United Nations has denounced as ethnic cleansing.

 

Bangladeshi police officer Mohammed Mainuddin told Reuters that 12 bodies - 10 children, one woman and a man - had been recovered.

 

A Reuters photographer earlier saw the bodies of four children, two women and a man washed up on a beach.

 

Authorities said earlier at least eight people had been rescued.

 

Some 519,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar since Aug. 25, when attacks by Rohingya militants on police and military posts in Rakhine State sparked a ferocious response from Myanmar's security forces.

 

Myanmar rejects accusations of ethnic cleansing and has labelled the militants from the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, who launched the initial attacks, as terrorists.

 

The insurgents declared a one-month ceasefire from Sept. 10, which is due to end at midnight on Monday.

 

The ability of the group, which only surfaced in October last year, to mount any sort of challenge to the Myanmar army is not known but it does not appear to have been able to put up resistance to the military offensive unleashed in August.

 

It would be very difficult for the insurgents to operate in areas where the military has flooded in and driven out Rohingya civilians, in the north of Rakhine Sate, near the border with Bangladesh.

 

The insurgents said in a statement on Saturday they were ready to respond to any peace move by the Myanmar government, but also noted that the ceasefire was about to end.

 

More than six weeks after the violence erupted, Rohingya continue to arrive in Bangladesh, which was already home to 400,000 members of the Myanmar Muslim minority before the latest crisis.

 

Mostly Buddhist Myanmar does not recognise the Rohingya as citizens, even though many have lived in Rakhine for generations.

 

Sunday's accident was the latest involving refugees. On Sept. 28, a boat carrying about 80 refugees overturned with only 17 survivors.

 

In early September, 46 bodies were recovered after a boat sank in the narrow stretch of water that separates Myanmar and Bangladesh. Among the dead were 19 children, 18 women and nine men.

 

(Writing by Robert Birsel; Editing by Paul Tait)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-10-09

[scorecard]

Where is the United Nations?

 

They should be highly visible in finding a real solution.

 

Another example of how the UN is failing to fulfill it's purpose.

 

Surely the overriding purpose of the UN is to build and maintain a civil world for all human beings. That means, in part, that all human beings have official recognition and proof that they exist as human beings and are aligned to a recognized group. And all groups should automatically be recognised. 

 

The UN has failed big time in this matter and in many other ways, IMHO the world should demand they get back to their main purposes. 

Edited October 9, 2017 by scorecard

[craigt3365]

As a tax payer, and thus one who funds the UN, I'm not sure I'm all for the UN doing the bailout.  How about going after the Myanmar government to stop the violence and repression of these people.  Make them pay for this.  We shouldn't have to.

[oldgent]

judging by the children in the picture they look in good health

compared to children in African countries. No doubt someone

will start up a new charity mostly as a business for to line their own 

pockets.

[mrfill]

3 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

As a tax payer, and thus one who funds the UN, I'm not sure I'm all for the UN doing the bailout.  How about going after the Myanmar government to stop the violence and repression of these people.  Make them pay for this.  We shouldn't have to.

The people who are 'paying for this' are the Rohingyas and they are paying with their lives. Sending a stern note doesn't usually work, it didn't in Germany, Yougoslavia, Lebanon, Rwanda etc etc

[Scott]

Inflammatory troll post and replies removed.  

[Kiwiken]

Rohingya (Bengali) Insurgents attack 12 Police Stations plus kill Rakine. They are pushing for an independent Rohingya state but they have only been there in numbers since 1922 thanks to the British. They have never got on with the Buddhist Rakine and indeed in 1942 having been armed by the British to fight the Japanese slaughtered 20,000 Rakine Villager. They are not Burmese nor do the wish to be part of Burma (Myanmar) . So maybe they are now where they are supposed to be. I feel for the children and the innocent lives being lost but the problem is bigger than people think. 

As I have said before would this be such a big issue if these were Christians or Buddhist or Hindu being expelled.

Seems Outrage is very slanted these days

[craigt3365]

1 hour ago, Kiwiken said:

Rohingya (Bengali) Insurgents attack 12 Police Stations plus kill Rakine. They are pushing for an independent Rohingya state but they have only been there in numbers since 1922 thanks to the British. They have never got on with the Buddhist Rakine and indeed in 1942 having been armed by the British to fight the Japanese slaughtered 20,000 Rakine Villager. They are not Burmese nor do the wish to be part of Burma (Myanmar) . So maybe they are now where they are supposed to be. I feel for the children and the innocent lives being lost but the problem is bigger than people think. 

As I have said before would this be such a big issue if these were Christians or Buddhist or Hindu being expelled.

Seems Outrage is very slanted these days

Well put.  There have been, and are, constant civil wars between various ethnic tribes.  The Rohingya are just one of many. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myanmar#Civil_wars
 

Quote

 

In October 2012, the ongoing conflicts in Myanmar included the Kachin conflict,^[82] between the Pro-Christian Kachin Independence Army and the government;^[83] a civil war between the Rohingya Muslims, and the government and non-government groups in Rakhine State;^[84] and a conflict between the Shan,^[85]Lahu, and Karen^[86][87] minority groups, and the government in the eastern half of the country.

 

Armed conflict between ethnic Chinese rebels and the Myanmar Armed Forces have resulted in the Kokang offensive in February 2015. The conflict had forced 40,000 to 50,000 civilians to flee their homes and seek shelter on the Chinese side of the border.

 

It's a messed up country due to the dictators in the military.

 

[simple1]

4 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

Well put.  There have been, and are, constant civil wars between various ethnic tribes.  The Rohingya are just one of many. 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Myanmar#Civil_wars
 

It's a messed up country due to the dictators in the military.

 

Thanks for the info. First time I've read about this conflict. Interesting very few Western media outlets have covered the story, though fairly extensive reporting from Time, good on them...

 

http://time.com/4694841/myanmar-kokang-conflict-refugees-displaced/

 

 

[Morch]

On 10/9/2017 at 12:49 PM, scorecard said:

Where is the United Nations?

 

They should be highly visible in finding a real solution.

 

Another example of how the UN is failing to fulfill it's purpose.

 

Surely the overriding purpose of the UN is to build and maintain a civil world for all human beings. That means, in part, that all human beings have official recognition and proof that they exist as human beings and are aligned to a recognized group. And all groups should automatically be recognised. 

 

The UN has failed big time in this matter and in many other ways, IMHO the world should demand they get back to their main purposes. 

 

23 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

As a tax payer, and thus one who funds the UN, I'm not sure I'm all for the UN doing the bailout.  How about going after the Myanmar government to stop the violence and repression of these people.  Make them pay for this.  We shouldn't have to.

 

The UN is not a world government, and cannot do more than agreed to and supported by member countries. There were comments made earlier on, by various UN officials regarding relevant organizations' resource being stretched - especially due to the Syrian civil war. The UN does not have a standing army, nor authority to compel countries to act one way or another.

 

While I'm all too familiar with UN agencies inaction, over spending and bureaucracy - complaints should ultimately be directed at sponsors and members.