Burmese Junta Cracks Down on Tax Evasion Cases

By The Irrawaddy
May 30, 2007

Burmese authorities are increasing the pressure on dozens of Rangoon businesses in an effort to prevent tax evasion, following similar actions earlier against the business community by the Ministry of Home Affairs’ Bureau of Special Investigations.

Business sources in Rangoon told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that authorities have detained some leading businessmen, including Maung Weik, the founder of Maung Weik & Family Co, and are conducting investigations into the financial records of various businesses.

Maung Weik gained prominence a decade ago and his company has since become the country’s largest importer of steel and gilding glue. The exact number and location of the detained businessmen is not known.

Some of Rangoon’s biggest companies, such as Max Myanmar, AA Pharmacy, the Peace Myanmar Group and International Beverage Trading, are among the businesses reportedly being targeted for investigation.

Rangoon sources noted, however, that other major enterprises which are close to the junta or operated by the relatives and cronies of military leaders, such as the Htoo Trading Company, owned by Tay Za, who is close to Snr-Gen Than Shwe, and Aye Yar Shwe Wa, owned by Aung Thet Mann, son of Gen Thura Shwe Mann, have not been affected by the crackdown.

The Rangoon-based weekly Pyi Myanmar quoted an official in the Finance and Revenue Ministry who said of 20,000 private companies an estimated 60 percent are believed to have evaded paying proper taxes.

“Companies failing to do so will be dealt with a fine of 50 percent of the tax amount or (businessmen) will be jailed for a term of three to 10 years,” one official said.

Burma’s tax revenue was 400 billion kyats (US $325 million) in the 2005-06 fiscal year, “a significant increase over the previous years but much lower than targeted,” according to Pyi Myanmar.

Since early last year, Burma’s military government has aggressively enforced a new tax policy and an improved tax collection procedure to try to gain better control of the economy.

A Rangoon source said the government’s actions have prompted some businessmen to flee the country.

Rohingya Refugees from Burma Mistreated in Bangladesh

Thailand Also Forcing Asylum Seekers Back into Burma

(New York, March 27, 2007) ・Rohingya refugees from Burma living in Bangladesh face an increased risk of mistreatment and are being denied access to necessary humanitarian aid by the Bangladeshi authorities, endangering thousands of civilians and compelling many to seek refuge in nearby countries, Human Rights Watch said today.

The Bangladeshi government is ignoring its obligations to protect Rohingya refugees and permit international relief agencies to assist with the humanitarian needs of Rohingya refugees. Brad Adams, Asia director of Human Rights Watch

Contribute to Human Rights Watch Related Material Living in Limbo: Burmese Rohingyas in Malaysia Report, August 1, 2000 Rohingya Refugees in Bangladesh: The Search for a Lasting Solution Report, July 1, 1997 The Rohingya Muslims: Ending a Cycle of Exodus? Report, September 1, 1996 More on Burma Country Page More on Bangladesh Country Page More on Thailand Country Page Free Email Newsletter

典he Bangladeshi government is ignoring its obligations to protect Rohingya refugees and permit international relief agencies to assist with the humanitarian needs of Rohingya refugees,・said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. 典his shameful situation has dragged on for many years and is now causing secondary migration flows to countries as far away as Thailand and Malaysia.・ 
 
In early March Bangladeshi authorities destroyed a large part of a refugee settlement called 典al・which housed over 6,000 Rohingya refugees from Burma at Teknaf, south of Cox痴 Bazaar, close to the border with Burma. No alternative shelter was provided for the people being displaced.  
 
Refugees in this makeshift camp had been living in a small piece of land close to a main road with limited access to food, social services and international assistance since October 2004, when Bangladeshi authorities had evicted them from rented homes because they classified them as undocumented people from Burma instead of refugees. Bangladeshi authorities shifted part of the 典al・camp to extend the nearby highway. Large numbers of homes have been destroyed and there is a critical lack of basic services.  
 
Abuses by Bangladeshi law enforcement agencies are reported to be widespread in and around Rohingya refugee camps, including reports of sexual violence against women. In the two official refugee camps of Nayapara and Kutupalong, people are routinely punished for traveling outside the camp to find food or money and often must resort to selling meager rations to corrupt camp officials or outside merchants. Authorities refuse to permit permanent structures to be built in the camps as a way of encouraging refugees to return home. Children are denied access to education. The provision of health services and access to medicines is also limited by the authorities, as are work and livelihood opportunities inside the camp.  
 
Bangladeshi authorities are also limiting access of Rohingya refugees to international aid. Aid groups such as UNHCR and MSF are only permitted to retain low staff levels and limited programs, and are regularly frustrated by local Bangladeshi authorities from instituting projects that make the camps more established and provide regular services.  
 
典he Bangladeshi government should be helping needy refugees instead of making life difficult for them,・said Adams. 的t should work with international humanitarian agencies to create safe spaces and basic services for people fleeing persecution in Burma. This is just basic decency.・ 
 
Since October 2006, more than 2,000 Rohingyas from Bangladesh and Burma have arrived in nearly 40 fishing boats in southern Thailand, many reportedly trying to make their way to Malaysia. These Rohingya refugees and migrants have been shifted by the Thai authorities from Phang Nga and Ranong provinces in southern Thailand to Mae Sot in Tak province, and then forced into Burma, where they are subject to detention and ill-treatment. On March 10, 67 Rohingya men were forced back into Burma by the Thai military to an area controlled by the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA), a pro-Burmese government armed group. Most of the men have since returned to Thailand. On March 23, Thai authorities arrested another 56 Rohingya men around Mae Sot and deported them to the same DKBA area on March 24.  
 
Under the 1951 Refugees Convention, this constitutes 途efoulement,・as the men were forcibly returned to a territory from which they had 殿 well founded fear of persecution・and to which their return would constitute a threat to their lives and freedom.  
 
Some of the deported men have since returned to Thailand. Human Rights Watch has grave concerns for their safety as they are undocumented and without access to basic services from international relief agencies, and subject to arrest by local Thai security officers. Human Rights Watch called on the Thai government to allow UNHCR to access detainees and returned men to determine their status and whether they are eligible for refugee protection in Thailand.  
 
There are currently an estimated 10,000 Rohingya refugees registered with the UNHCR in Malaysia. Thousands more are living as unregistered migrant laborers. Many are abused and exploited by unsavory employers, officials in the Immigration Department, the police and other Malaysian authorities. Much of this migration is facilitated by organized criminal networks and trafficking groups, which further endangers people traveling to other countries.  
 
典he Rohingya have been caught between a hammer and anvil for over a decade in desperate circumstance, with Bangladesh making it difficult for them to seek refuge and Burma continuing to abuse the rights of the Muslim minority in Arakan State,・Adams said. 典hese abuses have forced thousands of Rohingya to flee to neighboring countries to seek refuge.・ 
 
There are an estimated 26,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh living in two desperate and squalid camps at Cox痴 Bazaar, called Kutupalong and Nayapara, but there are also an estimated 100,000 unregistered Rohingya living in Bangladesh near the border with Burma.  
 
Over 250,000 Rohingya Muslims from western Burma were forced into Bangladesh by the Burmese military in 1992 in a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing of Muslims in Arakan State. Since then thousands of people have been detained in crowded refugee camps in Bangladesh and tens of thousands have been repatriated to Burma to face further repression. There are widespread allegations of religious persecution, use of forced labor and denial of citizenship of many Rohingya forced to return to Burma since 1996.  
 
Many have fled again to Bangladesh to seek work or shelter, or flee from Burmese military oppression, and some are forced across the border by Burmese security forces. In the past few months, abuses against Rohingya in Arakan State has continued, including strict registration laws that continue to deny Rohingya citizenship, restrictions on movement, land confiscation and forced evictions to make way for Buddhist Burmese settlements, widespread forced labor in infrastructure projects and closure of some mosques, including nine in North Buthidaung Township of Western Arakan State in the last half of 2006.

Refugees and Displaced Persons

Refugees and Displaced Persons

Who
A refugee is someone with a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of his or her race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion, who is outside of his or her country of nationality and unable or unwilling to return. Refugees are forced from their countries by war, civil conflict, political strife or gross human rights abuses. There were an estimated 14.9 million refugees in the world in 2001 – people who had crossed an international border to seek safety – and at least 22 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) who had been uprooted within their own countries.

What
Enshrined in Article 14 of the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the right “to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.” This principle recognizes that victims of human rights abuse must be able to leave their country freely and to seek refuge elsewhere. Governments frequently see refugees as a threat or a burden, refusing to respect this core principle of human rights and refugee protection.

Where
The global refugee crisis affects every continent and almost every country. In 2001, 78 percent of all refugees came from 10 areas: Afghanistan, Angola, Burma, Burundi, Congo-Kinshasa, Eritrea, Iraq, the Palestinian territories, Somalia and Sudan. Palestinians are the world’s oldest and largest refugee population, and make up more than one fourth of all refugees. Asia hosts 45 percent of all refugees, followed by Africa (30 percent), Europe (19 percent) and North America (5 percent). When
Throughout history, people have fled their homes to escape persecution. In the aftermath of World War II, the international community included the right to asylum in the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights. In 1950, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) was created to protect and assist refugees, and, in 1951, the United Nations adopted the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a legally binding treaty that, by February 2002, had been ratified by 140 countries.

Why
In the past 50 years, states have largely regressed in their commitment to protect refugees, with the wealthy industrialized states of Europe, North America and Australia – which first established the international refugee protection system – adopting particularly hostile and restrictive policies. Governments have subjected refugees to arbitrary arrest, detention, denial of social and economic rights and closed borders. In the worst cases, the most fundamental principle of refugee protection, nonrefoulement, is violated, and refugees are forcibly returned to countries where they face persecution. Since September 11, many countries have pushed through emergency anti-terrorism legislation that curtails the rights of refugees.

How
Human Rights Watch believes the right to asylum is a matter of life and death and cannot be compromised. In our work to stop human rights abuses in countries around the world, we seek to address the root causes that force people to flee. We also advocate for greater protection for refugees and IDPs and for an end to the abuses they suffer when they reach supposed safety. Human Rights Watch calls on the United Nations and on governments everywhere to uphold their obligations to protect refugees and to respect their rights – regardless of where they are from or where they seek refuge.

Suu Kyi supporters rally in Burma

NLD activists called for leader Aung San Suu Kyi to be released

Pro-democracy activists rallied in the Burmese capital, Rangoon, to mark the 17th anniversary of Aung San Suu Kyi’s party’s victory in national polls.

Some 200 members of her National League for Democracy (NLD) gathered to shout slogans and call for Ms Suu Kyi’s release from house arrest.

The rally came on the day her latest detention period was due to expire.

But on Friday Burma’s military junta extended it by another year, drawing swift international condemnation.

Ms Suu Kyi, 61, has spent 11 of the last 18 years in detention.

In 1990 her NLD won national elections, but these were annulled by the army and she was never allowed to take power. Her latest period of house arrest began in May 2003.

‘Release prisoners’

In a statement, the NLD called on Burma’s military rulers to enter into dialogue and reopen their party offices.

“Release immediately and unconditionally all political prisoners of conscience including members of parliament who are imprisoned for their beliefs,” the statement said.

Around 50 plainclothes policemen watched the rally and took photographs of participants, witnesses told the French news agency AFP.

The activists planned to hold a ceremony to mark the election victory before going to a temple to pray for Ms Suu Kyi’s release, one man told the agency.

The US, EU and UN have all condemned the order to extend her detention.

But it was widely expected, as under Burmese law Ms Suu Kyi’s house arrest must be renewed every 12 months.

(Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6695981.stm)

Malaysia: Government Must Stop Abuse of Burmese Refugees and Asylum Seekers

Malaysia: Government Must Stop Abuse of Burmese Refugees and Asylum Seekers.

Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia are facing increasing threats to their security. Starting in March 2005, the Government of Malaysia launched a nationwide operation targeting undocumented migrants in the country.

This operation has led to serious human rights violations against Burmese in Malaysia, who the government classifies as illegal migrants rather than refugees or asylum seekers. Since early 2006 the situation in Malaysia has deteriorated with public statements made by the Home Affairs Minister and Immigration Department officials condoning the arrest of undocumented workers, including refugees, while immigration courts in detention centers mete out punish­ments that include caning. Burmese in Malaysia will continue to face abuses until the government recognizes the protection needs of the refugee population in its country.

There are approximately 40,000 persons of concern to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia. The majority of this group consists of ethnic minorities who fled Burma as a result of the violence and abuses carried out against them by the Bur­mese military junta. The most common abuses occurring in Burma and cited by the Burmese refugees interviewed by Refugees International on a recent mission to Malaysia were forced labor, arbitrary arrest, land confiscation, and the destruction of villages and homes.

Burmese in Malaysia face arrest, detention, and deporta­tion. Malaysia has not signed the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol and the Government of Malaysia does not distinguish between refugees, asylum seekers, and illegal migrants. In the past, legal protection has been offered to specific groups of asylum seekers who the Government of Malaysia chooses to recognize. The most recent case is that of the Rohingya, an ethnic minority from Burma’s Northern Rakhine State. In 2004 the Government of Malaysia agreed to issue IMM13 work permits for the Rohingya. At least several thousand refu­gees were registered but no permits have been issued and the Rohingya continue to be vulnerable to arrest and abuse.

It is imperative that the Government of Malaysia honor its earlier commitment and grant temporary work permits to the 12,000 Rohingya refugees. The biggest perpetrator of abuses against the Burmese in Malaysia is the People’s Volunteer Corps or RELA. RELA is comprised of around half a million civilian volunteers who are authorized by the Government of Malaysia to arrest undocumented migrants in order to help maintain public order. Unlike the police, who are working to improve their treatment of refugees and asylum seekers through coop­eration with international and local organizations, RELA uses extreme tactics, including paying volunteers for each undocumented migrant they arrest.

Burmese refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia cope with difficult living conditions. They have little access to basic services like health care. Without any documents, refugees and asylum seekers are not able to go to local hos­pitals because they will be arrested. Foreigners, including refugees and asylum seekers, pay double the hospital fees of local Malaysians. With a UNHCR registration letter, refugees are able to receive a 50 percent discount, but the medical cost is still prohibitive in most cases. Free clinics run by local NGOs periodically offer basic medical assis­tance to refugees without documents, but the clinics are minimally staffed and lack adequate funding to cover the cost of referrals for more serious cases.

The Malaysian authorities have long been harassing and intimidating Burmese refugees because many lack any type of documentation. Now even those refugees who are recognized by UNHCR and carry registration documents are being arrested by RELA and placed in detention cen­ters. The refugees may be picked up on the street or captured in raids at night. Sometimes RELA even appre­hends refugees on their way to church for prayer services. While the majority of Burmese who are arrested are men, women and children are also vulnerable. RI heard several reports of Burmese women going to register their newborn babies with local authorities and having both themselves and their children arrested and put into detention.

International agencies and local NGOs and community groups have difficulty accessing the detention centers where currently at least 700 refugees and asylum seekers are being held. After arrest the refugees are placed in detention where they are not allowed any visitors for four­teen days. The lack of access to the detention centers means that there is very little medical assistance or legal counsel available to the refugees. Several of the Burmese refugees who RI interviewed had been beaten or abused while in detention. The refugees are forced to stay in over­crowded rooms with hundreds of other detainees, some of whom are charged with criminal offences.

Given the dire detention conditions, after completing their sentence the refugees often agree to be deported by the immigration authorities to the Thai-Malay border, where they are picked up by smugglers and traffickers. The immigration officers who deport the refugees to the bor­der witness the trafficking that takes place and may benefit from the fees, around 1500 MYR or 500 USD, paid by the refugees to the traffickers. If they are unable to pay for their release, the refugees are sold into forced labor, most commonly on Thai fishing boats. One Burmese Rakhine refugee interviewed by RI had been deported three sepa­rate times and each time spent several months working on a fishing boat where he witnessed severe human rights abuses, such as other Burmese workers being shot or stabbed and thrown overboard.

The majority of the Burmese refugees in Malaysia are believed to be living in or around Kuala Lumpur. Some stay in urban areas where as many as 20 refugees share a one-room apartment, while others live in jungle sites situated near plantations. RI visited a group of Burmese Mon, including minors, at a jungle site near Penang. Police and RELA had been raiding it several times each month. On one recent raid, the police set fire to the refugees’ shelters. Despite such difficulties, many of the refugees are fearful of leaving their hiding places in the jungle because they lack any type of documents. They are dependent on their employers for food and are normally paid half of what local workers make. It is difficult for these refugees to access basic services like health care. For the most serious medical cases, the refugees must travel four hours south to Kuala Lumpur since mobile clinics and mobile registration do not reach far outside of the capital and many local hospitals do not recognize UNHCR documents.

UNHCR is the sole provider of protection to refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia, and along with a few local NGOs it is at the frontline of providing assistance to the Burmese. For the past several years, UNHCR’s resources have been limited and the agency continues to deal with processing a large backlog of cases. UNHCR is not able to register any new refugees except for the most vulnerable. Even pregnant women must wait until their seventh month for UNHCR to issue a registration letter that will enable them to give birth in a local hospital without being arrested. Some local NGOs and community groups provide assis­tance such as health care and education to the Burmese refugees, but funding shortages are a constant issue.

The Government of Malaysia, in particular the Immigration Department and the Ministry of Home Affairs, has publicly targeted UNHCR, claiming that the agency is creating a pull factor for refugees. Despite this criticism, UNHCR is play­ing an important role in taking the burden from the govern­ment by registering, interviewing, documenting, assisting, and referring refugees for resettlement. In 2007, several thousand of the approximately 20,000 Burmese Chin in Malaysia, who are primarily Christian, will be resettled to the United States. Other resettlement countries are also engaged, albeit in smaller numbers. In addition to the Chin, it is estimated that there are more than 20,000 unregistered ethnic Burmese in Malaysia who are in need of protection and for whom third country resettle­ment may be the only solution. However, fewer numbers of these ethnic Burmese are accepted for resettlement. There is growing resentment among the other ethnic Burmese groups, who fled Burma because of ongoing persecution and often face the same protection problems in Malaysia as the Chin, but who feel that their situation is not being rec­ognized by resettlement countries.

Refugees International and the President of Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organisation Malaysia, Mr Zafar Ahmead recommends that:

THE GOVERNMENTOFMALAYSIA:

Recognize the rights of the Burmese refugee population in the country and protect them from arrest, detention, and deportation. Disband RELA and train local authorities and police to respect UNHCR documents. Improve outside access to detention centers for medical assistance and legal representa­tion, separate those with asylum claims from the general population, and cease handing out caning sentences to asylum seekers and refugees.

Allow the International Committee of the Red Cross to visit prisons and monitor conditions, especially for those with asylum claims. Fulfill its commitment to provide work permits to the Rohingya refugees; any such process should be facilitated through UNHCR in order to ensure that there is accurate recognition of stateless individuals

Uphold its international commitments as a member of the UN Human Rights Council, and a signatory to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. Urge fellow ASEAN member Burma to stop persecuting and violating the rights of the Bur­mese people

 

THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONOFMALAYSIA (SUHAKAM):

Undertake regular fact-finding trips to the detention centers and prisons to ensure that human rights abuses are not committed and that detention conditions meet international standards.

 

UNHCR:

Continue its work in protecting Burmese refugees and asylum seekers and expand its programs and registration services to refugees in outlying areas.

DONORS:

Increase funding and support to UNHCR and local NGOs, particularly for mobile registra­tion and mobile clinics to reach populations outside of the capital.

Support local NGOs in building their advocacy and networking skills and educating the public about the difference between asylum seekers and migrants.

THE UNITED STATES AND OTHER COUNTRIES:

Increase resettlement of vulnerable ethnic Burmese groups in Malaysia in addition to the Chin.

We, the Rohingya refugees in Malaysia are demanding the international community and third countries to recognize the 1951 Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol.

RELEASE ALL PRISONERS

We call on the UN Security Council and the international community and ASEAN members to call on the Burmese Military rulers to “release immediately and unconditionally Aung San Suu Kyi and all political members of parliament who are imprisoned.”

Ms Suu Kyi, 61, has spent 11 of the last 18 years in detention.

Press statement: Serious Concern of Refugees Protection in Malaysia

Serious Concern of Refugees Protection in Malaysia

We request the UNHCR and the Malaysian government and other countries to clarify its role, offer assistance and practical permanent solutions for the stateless Rohingya refugees:

 

1. Yesterday, UNHCR recognized Mohd Rafiq s/o Nur Islam (04/Roh/01880), his wife Fatemah, a three years old son and about 13 days old new born baby were arrested and detained in Damansara Immigration lock-up in the 5^th floor and sent to Semenyih Detention Camp when they went to the National Registration Office to apply for the child’s birth certificate.

2. In 09 May 2007, Ms.Nur Bashar d/o Mohamed and her daughter Ms.Hasna who grown-up and needed mothly anaemia treatment, were arrested by Rela forces from Kuantan State then lifted to Tanah Maerah Detention camp.

3. On Feb and March, UNHCR recognized others 4 families about 25 persons including women, children were arrested by Rela forces from Kuantan State and detained in Tanah Maerah detention camp.

4. Again yesterday about 10;00 pm , UNHCR recognized 50 refugees were arrested by Rela forces from Selayang Taman Wilayah.

5. UNHCR recognized two juveniles under 15 years old were handed over to Police Station, Taman Dagan, Ampang Jaya by a police supporter for the false accusation for theft refrigerator, motor vehicle and at last gum seekers after no evidence brought to police station and they had been beaten several times on their shin-bone. In fact such as 6 children can’t lift the refrigerator and they have no experience to drive motor vehicle and they had been gotten allergy on the skin.

6. Again last night, UNHCR recognized Mohd Yunus s/o Islam (/Roh/00586 ), Hussein s/o Hashim ( /Roh/01356 ) and the other ones were arrested by Rela forces from Port Dickson-Seremban then sent directly to Lenggeng detention camp.

 

ON the following matter, we would humbly request and seriously appreciate the immediate release of the present and previously arrested women, nursing mothers, the ill and children as Malaysia has ratified the Convention on the Rights of a Child (CRC), Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) as well as being a member of United Nations. We demand refugee protection based on humanitarian ground likes other European Developed Countries.

ON the uncertain and frustrated Strategy of new embarkment and on the exception of the right to life and dignity, hereby we are put forth the following for attention;

1. To draw and ratify immediately our rights obligation of stateless refugee for permanent solution under 1951 and 1967 UN Convention.

2. To stop accusation charged, detention, deportation and criticizing.

3. To draw remedial affair on the related police investigation to be consider impartiality and humanly without discrimination.

4. To stop the forced work on UNHCR refugees at Ajil, Terengganu and Semenyih detention camp.

 

 

Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia would like to draw the attention of UNHCR and The Third Countries as well as The UN Security Council and International Communities to pay serious attention on the refugees situation in Malaysia as Rohingyas and our children are suffering for a very long time in Malaysia.

 

The Malaysian government gave us some hope when they registered about 5000 Rohingya Refugees for IMM 13. However, the government stopped the registration and there is no updates until now. We are frustrated as there are no further development from the Malaysian government.

 

We are further frustrated as The UNHCR and International Communities are fully aware of our situation in Malaysia but there are no serious action taken. We are hoping for permanent solution to our serious situation. We have the right to live like other people. We are hoping that the Third Countries will give us place in their countries for resettlement. We are frustrated as very few of us get resettlement in the Third Countries. We are hoping that the UNHCR and The Third countries will not look at our religion before making decision whether to take us in or not.

 

Many Rohingyas Refugees who are registered with UNHCR and registered for IMM 13 were arrested, sentenced and deported back to the Thai border as well as Burma. Many of the refugees who are deported have left their wife and children behind in Malaysia. It has separated fathers and children and have broken up many families. Many of them become victims of trafficking as they were sold to fishermen and become bonded labor in Thailand.

 

We also cannot see what is the future of our children. Currently we have about 3000 Stateless Rohingya refugee children who do not go to school. We, officially wrote to the Education Ministry of Malaysia to allowed our children to enter school but was rejected by the Education Ministry. We are frustrated as the Malaysian government is a signatory the Convention on the Rights of the Child.

 

On the development in our country, the Myanmar military government’s recently crackdown on human rights demonstrators is a “flagrant” abuse of law. The Myanmar military government has recently arrested about 17 people involved in human rights demonstrations.

 

We urge ASEAN members, International community and The UN Security Council members and The UN Secretary General Mr. Ban Ki-Moon and world leaders to push the Myanmar military government to immediately release Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from house arrest. Daw Aung San Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for more than 11 of the last 18 years.

 

The world leaders reminded the defiant Myanmar military government of the resolution passed by the UN General Assembly that expressed “grave concern” at “the extension of the house arrest of the General Secretary and in 17 march 2005, the elected MP for National Democratic Party for human rights, of the NLD, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and U Tin Oo and In 17 march 2005, elected MP for National Democratic Party for human rights, Rohingya U Kyaw Min @ Samsul Anuar and his wife, two daughters and elder son were arrested separately with other 1300 political participators in 1990 election. U Kyaw Min @ Mr. Samsul Anuar was subjected 47 years jail and his family were 17 years jail after he refused to submit to Myanmar Junta to release all political prisoners immediately.

 

We urge the UNHCR, The Third Countries, ASEAN members, The UN Security Council member, The UN Secretary General, World Leaders and International Community to take necessary actions to provide permanent solution for both our situation as Refugees and democracy in Myanmar without any delay. Give us a chance to live in dignity.

 

 

 

 

 

Thankfully,

 

 

 

Mr. Zafar Ahmead

President

Address:

Penthouse, Wisma MLS, No. 31, Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman,

50100 Kuala Lumpur,

Tel; (603) 26913691, Fax; (603) 26913681,

Mobil Number: (6016) 6827287

E-mail: rights4rohingya@yahoo.co.uk

Introduction to MERHROM

Our Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM) founded in 1998 and approved by the “World Human Rights Watch”, New York. main task is for the Rights of Equilaity, Freedom, Religion, Culture & Education, Criminal law, Constitution Remedies, and other Rights regarding persecution and expulsion from our homeland by the Myanmar Military Junta Government.

We accept recognized principles of International Law and suggestions by Malaysian authorities, UNHCR, NGOs and International Human Rights Organizations.

MERHROM undrtakes social welfare works, impartial sanctions, legal proceedings, with special attention to International Law and particularly for resolution for Rohingya Rights.

Thankfully,

Zafar Ahmead bin Haji Mohd Abdul Ghani

President of MERHROM