EDITORIAL: Another wave of despair - More Rohingya refugees

[webfact]

Another wave of despair

By The Nation

 

More Rohingya refugees like those who stopped in Thailand on Sunday can be expected until their worries are set to rest

 

The arrival in Thailand before dawn on Sunday of 56 refugees in boats, believed to be Muslim Rohingya, suggests that the authorities here and elsewhere in Southeast Asia have gravely underestimated the situation in Myanmar’s Rakhine state.

 

Thailand has seen desperate Rohingya refugees arrive before, helping and abusing them in turn, and yet no member-country of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations has devised an appropriate solution to their plight as stateless people denied the rights of citizenship. In Thailand they are typically treated as simple illegal entries, arrested, detained and deported.

 

This despite decision-makers across the region knowing full well the extent of the problem in Myanmar and doing nothing about it on an adequate scale.

 

Communal conflicts stemming from racial and religious prejudice have resulted in at least a million people being forced from their homes in western Rakhine state over the past decade. In the latest exodus, beginning last August, 700,000 Rohingya fled into neighbouring Bangladesh.

 

The violence continues in Rakhine and life in the refugee camps in Bangladesh is brutal, so now some of those same people are trying to get to more accommodating places, such as Malaysia and Indonesia. They risk journeys in crowded boats in the hope of finding jobs and sanctuary from violence in a country where their fellow Muslims predominate.

 

Security officials and other observers in Thailand had insisted that the Rohingya would no longer be able to attempt that sea crossing. They said their movements were too strictly controlled now in both Bangladesh and Rakhine.

 

They said a major crackdown over the past year had weakened the trafficking syndicates that falsely promised them safe passage. Whatever part of those claims was true, the traffickers have obviously found an alternative methodology, and the Rohingya are clearly still prepared to risk death to make a fresh start.

 

The overcrowded refugee camps and unsettled situation in Rakhine – and the failure of Myanmar and Bangladesh to establish a clear, reassuring framework for repatriation – are powerful factors driving the Rohingya to desperate measures.

 

United Nations representatives and other foreign observers who have been allowed to visit Rakhine understand why the Rohingya are so fearful of returning home if the Myanmar government makes the offer.

 

Their communities, their houses, have been razed and bulldozed and their croplands confiscated. Another 120,000 people remaining in Rakhine and meagrely sheltered as “internally displaced persons” with nowhere to go.

 

Citing interviews with refugees in the Bangladesh camps, Doctors Without Borders estimates that a military crackdown in Rakhine last year killed 6,700 Rohingya during the first month alone. 

 

It’s time for Thailand, an immediate neighbour, and Asean, of which Myanmar is a member, to urgently devise a plan to help resolve the crisis. The humanitarian assistance they provide in both Myanmar and Bangladesh is no longer enough, as well as being inadequate to the scale and complexity of the disaster.

 

An Asean summit is scheduled for late this month. Singapore, chairing the bloc this year, should try to initiate a plan. The word “intervene” is taboo for the group – it has a firm policy against intervening in member-countries’ internal affairs – but it could agree to, say, “participate” in helping Myanmar prevent a further dangerous exodus of these benighted people.

 

The Malaysia-bound boat containing 56 Rohingya that restocked in Krabi on Sunday will not be the last unless their problems are tackled properly. Tight controls in the camps and tougher action on traffickers can only go so far. This is a crisis whose root causes – bigotry, discrimination, unfair treatment, denied rights – must be addressed comprehensively.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/opinion/30342324

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-04-03

[YouYouYou]

"Intervene" a taboo word for ASEAN, just about sums up why the problem will continue. In a bloc surely the other member states can exert genuine pressure against another to change its ways. Sadly ASEAN is not effective on so many levels and this humanitarian crisis just goes to show how poor collectively it is.

Come on the other 9 member states, grow a pair eh.

Edited April 3, 2018 by YouYouYou

[Wilsonandson]

And with no Andy Hall in Thailand, these guys have no one to voice their plight.

Human rights must top of the agenda when the next government come to power in Thailand. As for Burma more pressure from China to stop the persecution of ethnic groups is needed. Maybe Thailand could persuade China to do this.

[grumbleweed]

And we still criticize Islam for being violent and uncompromising. Yet this is the ugly side of Buddhism, with its so called live and let live philosophy. 

 

Once again the ugly truth of religion shines through

 

Christianity can also get off its high horse. How often do Christian nations invade other Christian nations? Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria, nothing more than thinly veiled holy wars

 

Thank God I'm an atheist 

[Lungstib]

With just about all of ASEAN (and much of the world) teaching xenophobia, nationalism and religious exclusion there is nowhere for runaways to land. The Rohingya could sail half the worlds oceans and not find anyone to take them.

[FreddieRoyle]

2 minutes ago, Lungstib said:

With just about all of ASEAN (and much of the world) teaching xenophobia, nationalism and religious exclusion there is nowhere for runaways to land. The Rohingya could sail half the worlds oceans and not find anyone to take them.

Nobody is questioning whether the overall sentiment in ASEAN is anti-Rohingya. It is. What must be dealt with is the hows and whys this situation arose in the first place. In my humble opinion the Rohingya should start by having a serious look at their historical conduct. Have they been good neighbors to the local Buddhist communities? Did they behave peacefully and respectfully, or did they organize mass attacks against police stations and local communities? As always, once you look deeply into any perpetual victims situation, the real blame often lies with the victim's conduct. 

  I take exception to your accusation of ASEAN peoples being taught xenophobia. It is admirable that youths in Asia are taught to be proud of themselves and their countries/culture/heritage. Dismantling this national pride has led to the breakdown of peaceful society in many western nations - the Asians are right on this one.

[henry15]

This problem should be arranged by Muslimcountries  as Malaysia and Indonesia. Thailand and The Phillipies habe already enough problems with their muslim minorities. The should not repeat the European stupidities.

[coulson]

19 minutes ago, grumbleweed said:

Thank God I'm an atheist 

Thank who?

[Cadbury]

Being the humanitarians they are Thailand used to let in Myanmar Rohingya refugees. In fact they let them in with the help of army generals ( brutal Lt Gen Manus Kongpan was one) and government officials and they put them in makeshift prisons and then starved them and held them hostage for ransom all the while threatening their lives.

That is until they got found out and then they killed them and buried them in mass graves.

In a later enquiry chief investigator Maj Gen Paween Pongsirin said that “from the beginning "he was under pressure not to pursue the perpetrators too enthusiastically". That sounds about right for Thailand! The military protecting their own.

At least now they just push them back out to sea. They should consider themselves lucky.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/19/thailand-convicts-dozens-of-traffickers-after-mass-graves-discovery

....and if you don't believe The Guardian try Reuters. The Reuters video is a "must watch" and still very relevant to today's circumstances if these boats are controlled by traffickers.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-thailand-rohingya-special-report/special-report-thailand-secretly-supplies-myanmar-refugees-to-trafficking-rings-idUSBRE9B400320131205

Edited April 3, 2018 by Cadbury

[CharlesSwann]

No surprises this is happening. The population of Burma has doubled in the last 30 years. Competition between groups for land and natural resources has increased. Technology has enabled the country to take stock of itself. We can expect more expulsions of fringe populations around the world in future as resource insecurity mounts.

 

As to ASEAN, perhaps none of its members consider the Rohingya to be Southeast Asian people.

On the plus side, the influx of cheap labour to Malaysia must be boosting their economy and the existing Rohingya diaspora are no doubt enjoying a better quality of life than they had in Burma.

[bogozy]

3 hours ago, FreddieRoyle said:

Nobody is questioning whether the overall sentiment in ASEAN is anti-Rohingya. It is. What must be dealt with is the hows and whys this situation arose in the first place. In my humble opinion the Rohingya should start by having a serious look at their historical conduct. Have they been good neighbors to the local Buddhist communities? Did they behave peacefully and respectfully, or did they organize mass attacks against police stations and local communities? As always, once you look deeply into any perpetual victims situation, the real blame often lies with the victim's conduct. 

  I take exception to your accusation of ASEAN peoples being taught xenophobia. It is admirable that youths in Asia are taught to be proud of themselves and their countries/culture/heritage. Dismantling this national pride has led to the breakdown of peaceful society in many western nations - the Asians are right on this one.

Buddhist are very patient, until the cord is spanned over the limit. Muslims are beliveing , all places, where are  living in big mass, they need to regaining the full controll over the local people. This is the source of Rohingya crisis. Muslims are living sporadically at the other parts of Myanmar, no problem with them.

[GeKoSc]

4 hours ago, grumbleweed said:

And we still criticize Islam for being violent and uncompromising. Yet this is the ugly side of Buddhism, with its so called live and let live philosophy. 

 

Once again the ugly truth of religion shines through

 

Christianity can also get off its high horse. How often do Christian nations invade other Christian nations? Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria, nothing more than thinly veiled holy wars

 

Thank God I'm an atheist 

You should address accusations to those parties responsable for the situation of the Rohingya: the Koran and militants of the Islam ...they are responsible for the defending reaction of Myanmars citizens. This is happening everywhere the islam is in motion to extend their political system against the will of the state...the Thai did exactly what has to be done, they give the migrants food and send them to a place where the islam is the statereligion. 

[Lungstib]

9 hours ago, FreddieRoyle said:

I take exception to your accusation of ASEAN peoples being taught xenophobia. It is admirable that youths in Asia are taught to be proud of themselves and their countries/culture/heritage. Dismantling this national pride has led to the breakdown of peaceful society in many western nations - the Asians are right on this one.

It isn't the being proud of your own heritage that causes problems, its the hatred, dislike or denigration of your neighbors that does the harm. The Western nations that most suffer from the 'breakdown of peaceful society' are Britain, France, Germany, Holland and the USA who for financial gain through commerce invaded much or Asia, Africa, South and Central America, traded slaves, stole produce and forced their religions on the locals. So much for peace.

[dabhand]

The BBC are quoting an Amnesty International report of a massacre of civilians by Rohingya militants that occurred at the same time as the previously reported attacks on police posts back in August 2017. This happening prior to the mass exodus. Of course, the militants deny it was them.....................

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-44206372

[DM07]

On 4/3/2018 at 7:40 AM, henry15 said:

This problem should be arranged by Muslimcountries  as Malaysia and Indonesia. Thailand and The Phillipies habe already enough problems with their muslim minorities. The should not repeat the European stupidities.

 

On 4/3/2018 at 7:39 AM, FreddieRoyle said:

Nobody is questioning whether the overall sentiment in ASEAN is anti-Rohingya. It is. What must be dealt with is the hows and whys this situation arose in the first place. In my humble opinion the Rohingya should start by having a serious look at their historical conduct. Have they been good neighbors to the local Buddhist communities? Did they behave peacefully and respectfully, or did they organize mass attacks against police stations and local communities? As always, once you look deeply into any perpetual victims situation, the real blame often lies with the victim's conduct. 

  I take exception to your accusation of ASEAN peoples being taught xenophobia. It is admirable that youths in Asia are taught to be proud of themselves and their countries/culture/heritage. Dismantling this national pride has led to the breakdown of peaceful society in many western nations - the Asians are right on this one.

These people need help NOW!

Not in a historical context, looking at what their forefathers did, not in the context of who has a "Muslim- problem"...this is a a humanitarian crisis and the world has been looking on (kind of interested) for far too long!

This is not a religious problem, it is a HUMAN problem!