Struggle for autonomy : Rohingya people are fighting a life-or-death

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Rohingya Muslim Crisis has become a major concern by now, essentially for Bangladesh, India & Myanmar. Myanmar after its military crackdown on Rohingya Extremist Group who attacks at Myanmar several police posts and few military bases somewhere in mid-August this year, created an exodus of Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar. The Rohingya Crisis is about mass migration of over 3,70,000 Rohingya children, women and men have been forced to flee to Bangladesh escaping violence in Myanmar since August 2017. along with 40,000 having refuge in India taking shelter in the states of Assam, West Bengal and Jammu and Kashmir.

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Over the past month, a crackdown by Burma’s military has forced more than 400,000 Rohingya Muslims from Rakhine state to flee to neighboring Bangladesh .The military crackdown was prompted by an attack August 25th by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), a Muslim militant group with reported links to Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, on security outposts. The international community has condemned the violence unleashed by the Burmese military on Rohingya civilians. It has also voiced sharp criticism of Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel laureate and de-facto Burmese leader, for, in the view of her critics, not doing enough to protect the Rohingya, who have been stateless for more than three decades.

But where humanitarian groups and Western nations see the world’s most persecuted minority, the government of Burma (also known as Myanmar) and an overwhelming majority of its people see a foreign group with a separatist agenda, fueled by Islam, and funded from overseas. It’s this difference in perception that will make any resolution of the Rohingya issue extremely difficult. They are considered as the world’s “most persecuted community” by the United Nations. Human Rights Watch and United Nations has a list of charges against the Myanmar’s civilian and military authority: Human rights abuses, extra-judicial killings, rape and arson, allegation of ethnic cleansing, and more.On top of this, even in normal times, Rohingya community faces deep discrimination on everyday basis. They have restrictions on study, work, and travel. They can not have more than two children and have to ask permission of the government to marry. Not everyone is allowed to follow certain professions like medicine, law, and administration.

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Before discussing the Rohingya crisis we have to understand the following points :

• Who are Rohingyas
• Their origin
• What is the legal status of the Rohingya
• Why are Rohingya muslims fleeing Myanmar

1. Who are Rohingya?

Rohingya's Muslims have long been ostracised in Myanmar, where they are considered "illegal immigrants" and face severe restrictions.The Rohingyas are one of the 135 ethnic communities of Myanmar. They differ from Myanmar’s dominant Buddhist groups ethnically, linguistically, and culturally. Unlike others, they are not officially recognized by the Government. They are pre-predominately Sunni Muslims who mostly live in the western coastal state of Rakhine. Historians say that Rohingya is a Muslims lived in Myanmar, Burma since the 12th century.They are descendants of Muslim migrants from India and China as well as earlier Arab settlers. Their religion is a Sufi-infused Sunni Islam. The Rohingya trace their origins in the region to the fifteenth century, when thousands of Muslims came to the former Arakan Kingdom. Many others arrived during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when Rakhine was governed by colonial rule as part of British India. Since independence in 1948, successive governments in Burma, renamed Myanmar in 1989, have refuted the Rohingya’s historical claims and denied the group recognition as one of the country’s 135 ethnic groups. The Rohingya are largely considered illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, even though many trace their roots in Myanmar back centuries.

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2. What is the legal status of the Rohingya?

The government refuses to grant the Rohingya citizenship, and as a result the vast majority of the group’s members have no legal documentation, effectively making them stateless. The Myanmar government has effectively institutionalized discrimination against the ethnic group through restrictions on marriage, family planning, employment, education, religious choice, and freedom of movement. For example, Rohingya couples in the northern towns of Maungdaw and Buthidaung are only allowed to have two children . Rohingya must also seek permission to marry, which may require them to bribe authorities and provide photographs of the bride without a headscarf and the groom with a clean-shaven face, practices that conflict with Muslim customs. To move to a new home or travel outside their townships, Rohingya must gain government approval.Moreover, Rakhine State is Myanmar’s least developed state, with a poverty rate of 78 percent, compared to the 37.5 percent national average, according to World Bank estimates. Widespread poverty, poor infrastructure, and a lack of employment opportunities in Rakhine have exacerbated the cleavage between Buddhists and Muslim Rohingya. This tension is deepened by religious differences that have at times erupted into conflict.

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In 1948, Burma became an independent nation after being under the British colonial rule for more than 100 years. The first government introduced the Union Citizenship Act in the same year of independence to define which ethnic group can claim Burmese citizenship. For Rohingyas there was a special clause. Only those Rohingyas whose families had lived for at least two generations in Burma can apply for citizenship. Clearly, it was a way to avoid ranting citizenship to those Rohingya people who had come as laborers from India and Bangladesh during the British rule.The military coup of 1962 caused further deterioration of Rohingya community’s citizenship rights. The military regime took away the citizenship of all Rohingya people by giving them foreign identity cards. This led to limited job and educational opportunities for the already deprived Rohingya community.The biggest setback for Rohingyas, however, was still about to come. Twenty years after they took over the throne, miltary regime introduced the 1982 Citizenship Law that effectively left Rohingya community stateless. As per the act, the citizenship would be provided to only those people who had lived in Burma prior to 1948. The lack of documentation with Rohingya people meant that they wouldn’t be considered Burmese citizens.

In March 2014, the Myanmar government banned the word Rohingya and asked for registration of the minority as Bengalis in the country's first census in three decades. It meant that 1.3 million Rohingya in Arakan, also called Rakhine state, were not included in the census.On April 2015, the government formally rescinded the temporary ID or "white cards", the last form of official government identification for Rohingya, stripping them of voting rights linked to the cards.The Rohingya had hoped the election of Nobel Peace laureate and democracy champion Aung San Suu Kyi in November 2015 would see a turnaround in hostility towards them from the new government in Naypyidaw and Buddhist groups. But violence against them has dramatically worsened since then.

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3. Why are the Rohingya fleeing Myanmar?

At the heart of the Rohingya's problems lie Myanmar's citizenship laws which deny them full nationality and therefore rights. This mirrors the widespread official and public prejudice against them. We in the international community see the Rohingya as innocent people who just want to call themselves a name and who are uniquely abused for it. And, of course, it’s true they are largely innocent and uniquely abused. But to people in Myanmar, the name suggests something much more. Tensions between the Bengali-speaking Muslims and Buddhists in Rakhine state have existed for decades—some would say centuries—but the most significant inflection point came in 1982 when Burma’s junta passed a law that identified 135 ethnicities entitled to citizenship. The Rohingya were not among them, though they had enjoyed equal rights since Burma became independent from British rule in 1948. According to 1982 Burmese citizenship law, a Rohingya (or any ethnic minority) is eligible for citizenship only if he/she provides proof that his/her ancestors have lived in the country prior to 1823. Else they are classified as “associate foreigners” or “associate citizens”.Almost overnight, they were stripped of their citizenship. In the years since then, the Rohingya were persecuted, steadily lost their rights, and were the victims of violence.

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Violence broke out in 2012, when Rohingya men were accused of raping and killing a Buddhist woman. Buddhist nationalists responded by burning Rohingya homes, killing more than 280 people and displacing tens of thousands. International pressure resulted in the military government agreeing to grant the Rohingya a reduced form of citizenship if they registered themselves as Bengali—not Rohingya. Although many Muslims in Rakhine state were previously indifferent to how they were labeled, the years of oppression, combined with the type of citizenship they were being offered, made the offer unpalatable. All these led to a sense of hatred among Rohingyas towards Myanmar government and gave birth to the unpopular Arakan Rohigya Salvation army (ARSA) just an year back. This discrimination has created tension and in October 2016 at least nine police officers were killed and four injured in multiple assaults along Myanmar's border with Bangladesh. The attackers were identified only as "terrorists" but were believed to belong to an armed Muslim group. There was an immediate violent backlash and the army began a siege on Maungdaw. There were reports of mass killings, torture, rape - and of tens of thousands of Rohingya sought refuge in neighbouring Bangladesh.

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Clashes in Rakhine broke out again in August 2017 after a militant group known as the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) claimed responsibility for coordinated attacks on police and army posts in which more than one hundred people died. While the government declared ARSA a terrorist organization following the attacks, the ARSA leader said in an interview that the attacks were carried out to “defend our civilian population.” He said the militants’ longer term goal is the peaceful coexistence of Muslim Rohingya and Buddhist Rakhine. Fighting between the military and insurgents sent thousands of Rohingya to the country’s border with Bangladesh as government troops opened fire on civilians. Myanmar’s security forces have also allegedly planted land mines near border crossings used by Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh. More than 370,000 Rohingya have left Myanmar, approximately a third of the estimated Rohingya population in the country.

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4. Where are the Rohingya migrating?

Carving out a land, if we assume that is the case, seems to be a distant dream, as Rohingyas continue to abandon their Arakan land in search for other land where they can at least live, if not with state identity but at least without persecution.Since 2012, nearly 400,000 have fled Myanmar and more than 1 million since late 1970s. Bangladesh has seen the largest influx while Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand have become the latest hot-spot for Rohingya refugees where they arrive after a treacherous sea journey.Many Rohingya have sought refuge in nearby Bangladesh, which hosts tens of thousands of registered refugees. Hundreds of thousands of unregistered Rohingya refugees are also believed to live in the country, according to UN High Commissioner for Refugees estimates. Conditions in most of the country’s refugee camps are dire, driving many Rohingya there to risk a perilous voyage across the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia. In January 2017, Myanmar agreed to begin talks with Bangladesh on refugees, yet border posts in Bangladesh have at times forcibly returned Rohingya. Amid the refugee influx in September, Bangladesh announced that it would create special identity cards for Rohingya to help bring order to the surging migrant flow.

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As of June 2016, more than 90 percent of Malaysia’s 150,700 registered refugees were from Myanmar, including tens of thousands of Rohingya, according to the United Nations. Rohingya who have arrived safely in Malaysia have no legal status and are unable to work, leaving their families cut off from access to education and health care.Thailand is also a hub for regional human smuggling and serves as a common transit point for Rohingya. Migrants often arrive there by boat from Bangladesh or Myanmar before continuing on foot to Malaysia or by boat to Indonesia or Malaysia. The military-led Thai government has cracked down on smuggling rings after the discovery of mass graves in alleged camps where gangs held hostages. The Rohingya have also sought refuge in Indonesia, although the number of refugees from Myanmar there remains relatively modest. During the spring 2015 migration surge, Indonesia’s military chief expressed concerns that easing immigration restrictions would spark an influx of people. Amid international pressure, Indonesia admitted one thousand Rohingya and provided them with emergency assistance and protection.

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Now coming to 2017 Rohingya militants attacked Myanmar’s defence and police personnel attracting a stronger retaliation from the government. Officers were brutal in their conduct to hunt down these insurgents. They too were immoral by raping, killing, torturing all who were Rohingyas. The fear due to above horrendous acts has displaced more from these regions and crisis has only burgeoned since then.

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Now, India’s role:

1. Some 14 thousand Rohingyas who migrated here with legal documents are, for the moment accepted by the Government to take shelter.

2. Around 26 thousand illegal immigrants without any valid ids who have trespassed are now being forced to exit. The Government desires to quarantine these people as terrorists could also camouflage among these people hence posing a huge National threat.

3. Some 5-8 thousand of these Rohingyas have settled in Jammu and have been funded by Saudi Arabia based NGOs. The Kashmiri millitants also support the Rohingya Muslims.

4. Rohingyas are mostly poor and vulnerable and could indulge in criminal acts. Thus giving another reason for the government to deport them.

5. The Prime Minister of India has visited Myanmar and insisted the government their to take them back and keep them safe. Foods and other basic amenities are being air dropped to the Rohingyas by the government.

6. Some famous lawyers like Prashant Bhushan, Kapil Sibbal and other human right activist groups have lodged a petition to not let the Government deport the illegal immigrants, because of the terrible wrath they might have to face.

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What's India's stand ?

While Myanmar's act being condemned by the UN, India is still supporting Myanmar playing its diplomatic cards, to have advantage and Myanmar's support against China. The fate of these Rohingyas now reside on SC's decision.As they are considered to be terrorists, Indian government says that they are a threat to the peace of any country. In addition, steps are being taken to deport any illegal Rohingya immigrants into India. Now the thing is that most of the countries are unwilling to accept such a large influx of Rohingya muslims and India is no different. The Indian government is unwilling to accept the Rohingya Muslims into the country terming them as illegal immigrants. In a Affidavit filed by the central government in the supreme court, the central government said that giving refuge to the Rohingya Muslims in the country would be detrimental to the national security. The Indian government took a firm stance and made it clear that all the illegal immigrants will be deported back to Myanmar. Explaining its stance, the central government said that many of the Rohingya Muslims might be associated with various terrorist organisation linked to Pakistan. This is evident from the apprehension of the Al qaeda terrorist Saimun Rahman, who was here to recruit Rohingya Muslims for terrorist activities. Also, various Rohingya immigrants are indulged in illegal activities such as procuring fake/illegal voter id cards and PAN cards, smuggling etc. It is also apprehended that the influx of Rohingya Muslims can further destablise the North-Eastern region and various rohingya radicals may hamper the peace and tranquility of the Buddhists living in India. Allowing the influx of Rohingya Muslims will mean diverting the resources such as subsidised ration, cheap houses and employment from the citizens of India to the Rohingyas.Legally speaking India is not signatory to any international refugee treaty and is thus not bound to the non -refoulement treaties. Also the Foreigners Act, 1946 makes it the duty of the Indian government to deport any such illegal immigrants.

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Reason behind stand taken by India :

The reason behind this is that India needs the support of Myanmar government to keep in check the growing influence of China in that region. This is also in furtherance of India's act east policy. China has heavily invested in Myanmar and also is it's leading trade partner.

What now?

Recently, two Rohingya Muslim immigrants, in their plea to Supreme Court, have said the Centre’s decision to deport them to Myanmar violates international human rights conventions. Prashanth bhushan (ex AAP, FYI) will represent them.While the fate of Rohingyas who have immigrated to India will be decided by the supreme court, the fate of all others still looms in dark, which is pitch black at the moment.

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Conclusion:

Though India has been concerned at the events in Myanmar since 2012,New Delhi believes in " quiet diplomacy", but apprehensive about our involvement in the ethnic issue. Pushed by Bangladesh, India has asked Myanmar for restraint in its military operations against the Rohingya in the Rakhine state. There is nowhere yet to deport them. They belong to no country, and no country wants them. Rohingya crisis, like any other civilian crisis, is a heady mix of politics, religion, and disputed history. While it has multiple vantage points from which one can derive his or her own analysis, the wrath that the Rohingya community continues to face from its own government that has disowned them cannot and should not go missed. Humanity has been erased off. Though Rohingyas are responsible for their fate, but as a human who values humanity I condemn such atrocities at this juncture. Peaceful co-existence is essential and humanity has to be restored. May god help them all!

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