Background:
The Rohingya people, are an ethnic Muslim minority of the northern Rakhine State in the country of Myanmar. The Rakhine State has a population of roughly 3 million people, 1 million being Rohingya. The Rohingya originated in the region during the fifteenth century, when thousands of Muslims migrated to the former Arakan Kingdom. More Rohingya arrived later during the nineteenth century and early twentieth centuries, when the Rakhine State ruled as part of British India. Although there is significant evidence of the history of where the Rohingya originated, many deny the facts for the recognition of the Rohingya as one of the countries 135 ethnic groups. The Rohingya are greatly recognized as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, even when evident facts of origins trace back to Myanmar. They have been discriminated against for years by the Myanmar’s dominant Buddhist groups as they differ ethnically, linguistically, and religiously. The discrimination has escalated to unlawful killings, rape, torture, destruction of villages, etc. The government refuses to grant the Rohingya citizenship, which leave the Rohingya with no legal documentation. This has shifted slightly recently, as the Rohingya have been able to obtain an identification card, popularly known as white cards, which grants temporary citizenship. These white cards grant limited rights to the holder, but there is no evidence that this is recognized as proof of citizenship.
The Myanmar government effectively enforced and institutionalized discrimination against the Rohingya through multiple restrictions; marriage, family planning, employment, education, religious choice, freedom of movement, etc. This restricts and strips the Rohingya people of their rights as they must seek for government approval for a wide range of things. Additionally, the Rakhine State is Myanmar’s most poor and least developed state with a poverty rate of 78 percent. This is significantly less than the national average of 37.5 percent.
The situation of the Rohingya deteriorated significantly after attacks on border police outposts in northern Rakhine State in October by suspected Rohingya militants. Nine police officers were killed. Security forces responded with a major security operation, conducting “clearance operations” and sealing the area, effectively barring humanitarian organizations, media and independent human rights monitors from entering. Security forces were responsible for unlawful killings, random firing on civilians, rape and arbitrary arrests. Tens of thousands of people were displaced after their homes were destroyed, and at least 27,000 fled to Bangladesh. The response collectively punished the entire Rohingya community in northern Rakhine State and the conduct of the security forces may have amounted to crimes against humanity. The government issued blanket denials that security forces had carried out human rights violations. An investigation commission established by the government in December lacked credibility as it Was headed by a former army general and its members included the Chief of Police.
Elsewhere in Rakhine State, the situation remained serious, with Rohingya and other Muslim people facing severe restrictions to their freedom of movement. They were confined to their villages or displacement camps and segregated from other communities. Access to their livelihoods, to health care including life-saving treatment, food security and education were greatly restricted.
Investigative Analysis:
Recent reports on Myanmar’s economic climate indicates that most people in rural areas of the nation, especially in the Northern Rakhine State are far worse off today than a decade ago. Decline in agricultural production is aggravated by severe degradation of the natural resource base. River catchment areas are deprived of forest cover, leading to more frequent and severe flooding. Fish stocks and water supplies are diminishing. These trends are pervasive and reaching a critical level. Assistance is urgently needed to provide the rural poor. Sustained international attention is needed to reverse the current rapid decline of economy and environment. This is a case of ethnic cleansing and against the Rohingya and is widely recognized as a humanitarian crisis. Horrific reports of survivors include stories of rape, arson of their homes and villages, torture and other mass atrocities. The waves of violence are carried out mainly by the Burmese Army, who terrorize and kill under control of the Myanmar’s military. Most Rohingya people remained deprived of a nationality. Government efforts to restart a citizenship verification process stalled, with many Rohingya rejecting it because it was based on the discriminatory 1982 Citizenship Law. The law identified specific ethnicities—the “indigenous races of Burma”—were allowed to gain citizenship. The list of the indigenous races of Burma did not include the Rohingya. An alternative to dodge this discriminatory law is the Union Citizen Act. This Act allows people who have two generations that have lived in Myanmar to be able to apply for identity cards. Initially, Myanmar’s government started to provide Rohingya with these cards, however this did not last for long. After the military coup in 1962, the government granted less documentation to people as they refuse to fully recognize new generations of the Rohingya population. The low and declining share of revenues to GDP (7% in 1996/97), coupled with heavy military spending and state enterprise deficits, mean that recurrent civilian spending is extremely low, only 4% of GDP. So this means that civil servants’ salaries are far too low to live on without some sort of outside supplementation. Even with the low civilian spending, government deficits have fed an inflation which is measured at 2-3% a month, and believed by many to be higher. The damage done by this inflation is worsened by the fixed interest rates of around 1.3% a month for deposits and 1.7%% for loans, which ensures a low supply of savings relative to GDP and an excess demand for loans.
At least 500,000 Rohingya civilians have fled their homes in the Rakhine State in seek of refuge to Bangladesh since late august. No matter where you look in this state, the Rohingya have been deprived of all rights and freedom of movement, sanitation, medical care, education, access to basic necessities such as food and water, work opportunities and education. The government established two committees in an attempt to resolve the situation: the Central Committee on Implementation of Peace, Stability and Development of Rakhine State in May, chaired by Aung San Suu Kyi; and in August, the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, chaired by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan.
Recommendations and Limitations:
Recognizing the Rohingya people as citizens, as a start, would resolve one issue many Rohingya people would benefit greatly from. This would allow them to become an immigrant in other countries when fleeing Myanmar. This is one of the main issues that the Rohingya people have been facing since the crisis began because it restricts them from seeking asylum in other countries because they are a citizen of nowhere. Creating an international citizenship would benefit the Rohingya people but would be near impossible and unfair to everyone else who contain citizenship to one to two countries. Resolving the citizenship issue would benefit the Rohingya people but the government of Myanmar would disagree greatly with. This allows the people they are trying to contain, a way to flee and become citizens of elsewhere. This would be the main limitation.