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by Kazi Mahmood KUALA LUMPUR (IslamOnline) - Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has one of the worst human rights abuse track records in the entire ASEAN region. The deterioration of the human rights has recently accelerated with the government suppressing all opposition political activity and engagement in ''inhuman treatment'' of opposition members and ethnic minorities.
One ethnic minority receiving the brunt of suffering are the Myanmar Muslims of the Rohingya tribes. Muslims, who originated from Bihar and Bangladesh, reached Myanmar through migration. Before the military dictatorship installed itself in Rangoon, Muslims were very prominent businessmen and occupied important posts in both the judiciary and the civil service sectors of the country. A United Nations (U.N.) report released this week revealed that Muslims, known for their sympathy for the National League for Democracy (NLD) of Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, have become targets of the Myanmar junta. Rajsoomer Lallah of Mauritius, the U.N. Commissioner on Human Rights on Myanmar, acted as an independent expert investigating the human rights situation in the country. Lallah states he continues to receive reports of government policies and directives aimed at eliminating opposition members and sympathizers of the NLD. He added that the regime in Rangoon is using intimidation, threats, coercion and political charges against the NLD. Reports obtained by IslamOnline on the situation in Myanmar indicate that the Muslim minority is living under constant pressure from the military. The return of tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees from Thailand, Malaysia and Bangladesh has not made refugee lives any better in Myanmar, an informer for IslamOnline said. Myanmar Muslims living in Malaysia have also accused the United Nation Commission for Human Rights (UNCHR) of using discriminating policies towards the Rohingya living abroad. Burma's U.N. mission had no immediate comment on Lallah's report. Myanmar refused to allow Lallah to visit the country to prepare the assessment, which covered events in the country through July 30. The opposition party and its leader, Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, have been at loggerheads with Burma's junta since 1988, the year the military crushed a pro-democracy uprising. The junta refuses to honor the results of elections held the 1990, which the National League for Democracy overwhelmingly won. During the uprising, hundreds of Rohyinga Muslims were brutally arrested, mutilated or murdered. Women were raped and tortured and children kidnapped and sent to labor camps. Their businesses and properties were seized while they were forced run for their lives, seeking haven in neighboring Malaysia, Thailand and Bangladesh. The current situation has not faired any better than what prevailed in the early 1990s. Lallah's report said arbitrary arrests and detention of opposition party members and sympathizers ''make up a general and consistent pattern of the suppression of fundamental rights''. He added that the extension of prison terms for those who have already served their sentence represented abuses that lead to suppression of political and democratic expression. Despite repeated calls to the government to improve the situation for minorities, the report said no improvement has been observed in reports Lallah received. Among minority groups, the Shan, Karen, Karenni and Rohingya, in particular, continue to be targeted. In addition, the Myanmar government pressures the health service to underreport HIV infections and AIDS-related illnesses, which are increasing, according to U.N. estimates. The UNHCR visited Myanmar this week for talks with the military government on the fate of tens of thousands of Burmese people sheltered in neighboring Thailand and Bangladesh. Sadako Ogata, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, arrived in Rangoon late Sunday, and met with Lieutenant General Khin Nyunt, the third-ranking general in the regime. The agenda of her talks was not disclosed, but she is expected to discuss the possible return of some 146,000 Burmese refugees from Thailand and Bangladesh. Rohyingas in Malaysia and Thailand have repeatedly informed Ogata and the UNCHR of their opposition to returning to Myanmar without guarantees for their safety. The UNCHR has been accused by Myanmar Muslim groups in Kuala Lumpur of forcing the repatriation of the refugees to Myanmar despite the fact that Malaysian authorities have not expressed any desire to be rid of them. In her talks with Burmese officials, Ogata was also expected to discuss the return of more than 20,000 refugees still sheltered in Bangladesh. The UNHCR has repatriated more than 230,000 refugees to northern Rakhine state from Bangladesh over the past five years. The majority of the repatriated refugees are of Rohyinga Muslim origin. |
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