Burma’s Muslims Are Long-standing Victims of Military Regime

Washington -- Although largely unaffected by Burma’s 2007 pro-democracy protests and the subsequent crackdown by the military government, the country’s Rohingya Muslim population, an isolated group in Northern Rakhine State (NRS), remains oppressed by Burma’s rulers and depends on international donors for survival.

The estimated 728,000 community members live as virtual prisoners as a result of the military junta’s oppression of religious and ethnic minorities.  The government’s long-standing campaign to “Burmanize” the population even has included the coerced conversion of Rohingya Muslims to Buddhism.

Despite having a presence in the area extending back to the seventh century, the Rohingyas are not considered by the junta to be Burmese citizens and they suffer legal, economic and social discrimination.  They face severe restrictions when attempting to travel, engage in economic activity, register the births, deaths and marriages in the community, and obtain an education. 
Marc Rapoport, the chief representative of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Burma, told America.gov January 30 that the Rohingyas “continue to suffer from restrictive and discriminatory practices” at the hands of the military regime.
The Rohingyas did not participate in the September 2007 protests.  However, NRS, which is routinely a restricted area, has seen “increased vigilance and control,” since those protests.  Rapoport added that nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and humanitarian agencies are finding that their operational environment in the area is becoming more restrictive. He pointed to recent requests by the junta to “postpone” U.N.-organized diplomatic visits and Burmese government delays or denials of visa requests.
“For the time being, NGOs and U.N. agencies operate normally in NRS. Should this not be the case in future, the Rohingyas could very well become the collateral victims of the September [2007] events and crackdown,” Rapoport said.
Since the 1970s, the government has made it very difficult for the Muslims to practice their faith, restricting and sometimes banning the publication and distribution of the Quran, and effectively limiting participation in the hajj through restrictive passport and visa issuance procedures.  The government also has targeted Muslim places of worship, ordering mosques to be closed down or even destroyed.
IDENTIFICATION CARD PROGRAM
In an attempt to integrate the Rohingya population into Burma, the United States is funding a UNHCR program to issue identification cards that will ease registration of births and marriages, school enrollment, and access to basic health care and nutritional assistance.  U.S. and U.N. officials hope the cards also will strengthen the Rohingyas’ claims to Burmese citizenship. Rapoport described the identification card program as “a first but positive step” in that direction.
“Also, in a country where documents and permission papers are so important, having an ID card is vital,” he said.
For example, due to travel restrictions, young Muslim students in NRS who were accepted to universities and medical schools outside their state have been unable to attend because they could not travel outside of their state to enroll.
So far, a total of 35,485 ID cards have been issued since the program began in July 2007.  “Per se, this is a breakthrough,” Rapoport said, though he acknowledged that many more people remain without any form of identification.
ROHINGYA REFUGEES
As a result of the regime’s abuses, a large number of Rohingyas have become international refugees.  Many make up part of the approximately 1 million illegal Burmese migrants in Thailand.
The Rohingyas’ most popular destination has been neighboring Bangladesh, but between 1991 and 1992, the government in Bangladesh forcibly repatriated 250,000 refugees, citing overpopulation and land scarcity in the country.  UNHCR also has documented 12,000 Rohingya refugees in Malaysia, but has conceded there might be twice that number actually there.
In addition, an estimated 500,000 internally displaced Rohingyas have been forced from their lands by the Burmese government, leaving many, especially women and children, vulnerable to human trafficking.
Along with funding the identification card program, the United States is assisting Rohingya Muslims living in NRS and in refugee camps in Bangladesh and Malaysia through contributions to UNHCR, the World Food Programme and other supportive NGOs.
UNHCR’s overview of its assistance activities in NRS states that along with improving the legal status, integration and treatment of the Rohingyas, it also is trying to empower women and girls within their families and the community, as they are among the most vulnerable and rarely are able to participate in their outside communities.