August 23, 2018•Update: August 24, 2018
NEW YORK
Security still remains a "major concern" for the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar's Rakhine state, where the minority group has been facing violence from the government security forces, according to a Rohingya group head.
Wakar Uddin, the director general of US-based Arakan Rohingya Union (ARU) group, told Anadolu Agency that Myanmar border guard police and township police have been arresting Rohingya boys and men in northern Rakhine with false charges.
"Warrants for a number of new arrests have also been issued. This is causing panic in Rohingya community, and many planning to leave their villages, most likely heading to Bangladesh for safety," said Uddin.
He said Myanmar local authorities in various towns have been teasing Rohingya Muslims to fill out application forms for "National Verification Card with name identity 'Bengali'".
“The imposition of the ‘Bengali’ identity on Rohingya legitimizes the false claim by the extremists in Myanmar Government that Rohingya are illegal Bengali immigrants from Asia,” Uddin explained.
Also, without these identity cards, which Uddin calls third class citizenship, the Rohingya are not allowed to work for their livelihoods such as fishing or other works.
“All the restrictions on Rohingya in Arakan [Rakhine] is still in place. These include restrictions on travel, worship, education, access to , and several other basic rights of the Rohingya,” Uddin continued.
Deadlock in process
Last year, the governments of Bangladesh and Myanmar said they had agreed over the repatriation of the Rohingya, promising to start the process within three months; however, no concrete steps have been taken on the issue since then.
“The process became stagnant as there has been no adequate preparation on the ground in Arakan for resettlement and rehabilitation of the returnees in their home villages,” Uddin said.
To break the deadlock on the process, a “strong ” by Myanmar government is a must, he said. “Because the ample extremist elements in the system in Myanmar that are attempting to place obstacles in the repatriation process.”
Uddin also said the security issue is another obstacle in the repatriation process since it was not explained or addressed by the Myanmar government.
“Serious concerns have been expressed by the potential returnees who are anxious to return to their homeland in Arakan,” he said.
Uddin called for international pressure on Myanmar and said: “Expedited repatriation should be a top priority amongst all the efforts to solve the problem.
“However, repatriation from one camp in Bangladesh to another camp across the border will not make any sense, but it will make things even worse,” he concluded.
Saturday, Aug. 25, marks a year since more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly children and women, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community, according to Amnesty International.
More than 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state forces since then, according to the Ontario International Development Agency (OIDA).
The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.
The UN documented mass gang rapes, killings -- including of infants and young children -- brutal beatings, and disappearances committed by Myanmar state forces. In its report, UN investigators said such violations may have constituted crimes against humanity.
Reporting by Dildar Baykan; Writing by Cansu Dikme
