A letter to UN Special Rapporteur Mr. Thomas Ojea Quintana

To :

His Excellency Mr. Thomas Ojea Quintana,

Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights in Myanmar.

Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), 

Palais Wilson,52 rue des Pâquis ,
CH-1201 Geneva, Switzerland.

Subject: (7) Rohingyas political prisoners from Maung Daw Township have been detained in several jails in Rakhine State. 

January 27, 2012

Dear Your Excellency,

After emergence of new democratic government in Myanmar, demand of all political prisoners to be released from all the jails by international dignitaries and internal political parties has been highly hassled to the new government of Myanmar.

Since then by the degree of the president of Myanmar, the four times general amnesty has been approved to free the several kinds of prisoners including political prisoners or prisoners of consciences by the state grant. Due to emancipating of long term imprisonment prisoners of conscience from the jails, people from mass and class organizations have been happy and thanking the grant amnesty of the new government of Myanmar. 

By the last grant amnesty issued date on 13.1.2012, our utmost important leader U Kyaw Min @ U Anuwarul Haque, his wife and two daughters were released from MyinKyan and Insein jails respectively, but a son, namely Aung Naing has been kept in Insein jail and U kyaw Min family is very serious to hopefully releasing his son from the jail very soon.

But unfortunately, the following (7) Rohingyas political prisoners, from MaungDaw towhship, who have been detained to serve for five years jail term under the section of “ forming association section (6) by the year 1988”. The prisoners’ details are as the following mentioned. 

SRN Prisoner’s Name Jailed Name Jail term Native Town Remark

• 01 U Than Tun @ Saw Leim Thantwe T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 
• 02 Mohamed Obide Kyaukpyu T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 
• 03 Mamed Saalay Kyaukpyu T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 
• 04 Shaung Shu Anwar Thantwe T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 
• 05 Mohamed Akbar Thantwe T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw Released date on 12.10.2011
• 06 Yacoob Thantwe T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 
• 07 U MeRamet Buthidaung T/s, Rakhine 5 years MaungDaw 

The above mentioned people were arrested by MaungDaw authorities concern, alleging that they were secretly discussing in a room on the date of 30-3-2008 in MaungDaw township, Rakhine state and were being kept until 25-11-2008 in police custody in that of the police station.

They were supposedly jailed by the court of MaungDaw under the act of “forming association section (6) by the year 1988” for five years imprisonment each and they have been serving in several jails which are scattered in Rakhinen state, and are far flung from their residence.

As far as the prisoners’ families are concerned to pay regular visit as like others, The respective Rohingyas prisoners’ families have not been able to pay visit to the jails while Rohingyas are concerned with travelling in accord the regional laws and orders, and since then they have been seriously trouble in the jails as assumed political prisoners. 

Rohingyas have been totally stopped in the region to move from one locality to another, from localities to district, from district to Myanmar proper in purpose of higher education, trade, district level medical treatment, and free customary marriages, and social visits between localities, and they are not even voluntarily recognized yet as the citizen of the nation though they are the sons of the soil. Thus from the time the year 1990 onward, the entire Rohingyas people have been overall social devastation up to now. These have been well-known timely to international area from time and again by the several organizations.

At this opportunity, we are very much keen to express our gratitude to the world community that: as Myanmar consecutive governments have been inhumanely and deliberately suppressing the Rohingyas people in the region and rest of the nation for last six decades, the United Nations Organizations, The USA, the UK, the west, neighboring, regional and all international dignitaries have been asking on Myanmar government not only to stop the brutal action, inhuman behaviors, extermination, social discrimination and so on against Rohingyas people but on the other hand the international governments and United Nations have been constantly providing the Rohingyas the necessary assistances in the regions for nearly two decades for the sake of Rohingyas’ wellbeing.

We are looking forward the local and international community’s assistance to help release the prisoners of conscience and the coordinated attempt as an urgent matter would be highly appreciated by our families.

Sincerely Yours,

Khin Zaw

Yangon, Myanmar