URGENT APPEAL TO THE ASEAN AND WORLD LEADERS TO SAVE ROHINGYAS.

PRESS STATEMENT

 

10^th April 2009

 

Dear Chief Editor,

 

URGENT APPEAL TO THE ASEAN AND WORLD LEADERS TO SAVE ROHINGYAS.

 

Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM) is deeply concerned over the increase of the human rights abuses against Rohingyas in Arakan State of Burma in recent months. The situation of Rohingyas in Arakan State became worst after the International media highlighted Rohingya Boat People plight since December 2008.

 

The military regime continued to subject Rohingya and Muslims in Arakan State to harassment, arbitrary arrest, extortion, and religious persecution. In the current development, a Rohingya girl, identified as Hamida (16) was killed and hacked into three pieces by monks in Sittwe (Akyab), the capital of Arakan State on March 28, 2009. According to a local businessman, she was abducted from the street by the monks of Phayarr Gyi Ywar Gyima Taung monastery while she was returning home after completing work at the Rakhine teacher’s house. The businessman did not reveal what he had seen in front of the monastery, for fear of reprisal from the monks and the Rakhine community. The Rohingya villagers did not dare to file a case in the police station against the monks for fear of retaliation from the Rakhine community. However, no one has been arrested by police. The victim who stays with her sister was very poor and did not have any relatives, who could  take up the case. Villagers were very surprised to see the body as the Buddhist monks never killed any human beings.

 

In the same month, it was reported that at least 10 houses belonging to Rohingyas were set fire and burnt into ashes by Rakhine mobs around Sindi Prang village of Buthidaung Township at night time. No action was taken against any culprits by the military regime. Further to this, the military regime has deployed hundreds of thousands of military forces into Arakan State which lead to excessive human rights abuses against Rohingyas.

 

On the other incidents, Na Sa Ka in Buthidaung Township, Arakan State, detained four mosque committee members in Phone Nyo Hlake village for extending the veranda of a mosque by nine inches. They were released a week later after paying a 3 million kyat bribe.

 

On 20^th March 2009, Na Sa Ka in Maungdaw Township, Arakan State, arrested a 45-year-old local Rohingya for possessing a mobile phone charger. He was later released after paying a 500,000 kyat bribe.

 

MERHROM is deeply concerned over the way ASEAN countries have been handling the Rohingyas issue. There were suggestions from some ASEAN countries including Malaysia and Thailand to send Rohingyas back to Burma. This would only make our situation worst as we know exactly how we will be treated by the military regime once we are forcefully deported. This is a matter of life and death. The ASEAN countries cannot take peoples’ life for granted what more when the ASEAN have its own charter now that gives priority to its peoples.

 

We applaud the statement by the Singapore government that they will assist Rohingya refugees by providing humanitarian assistance so that they can depart for a third country. The Singapore Prime Minister, Lee Hsien Loong has made it clear that the problem should be addressed at the source and that ASEAN members should not export their problems to one another.

 

We appeal to the Malaysian government under the New Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak and the ASEAN Leaders to carefully handle Rohingya issue and make sure that the Rohingyas in exile will not be sent back forcefully to the place where they would face persecution and prosecution. Although most ASEAN countries did not sign Refugee Convention 1951 and its 1967 Protocol, the ASEAN countries are binding   to the Non-Refoulement principle.   

 

According to the former Malaysian Foreign Minister, Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim, the ASEAN Secretariat is studying whether to return Rohingyas Refugees back to Burma or encourage the third countries to accept them. This is worrying as the first option, returning Rohingyas to Burma seems to be the main agenda of the ASEAN Leaders. This cannot happen as there will be repercussion on Rohingyas. The military regime had announced clearly that Rohingyas are not the citizen of Burma. They further stated that the Rohingyas are darked skin and as ugly as ogres. This is disgrace to the human being as we are the creation of Almighty GOD. The military regime stated that they will only accept Rohingyas if they admit that they are Bengali and their status are still non citizen. This cannot happen as the Rohingyas are not Bengali. Rohingyas has its own language and culture which is different from Bengali.

 

Further to this, Rohingyas had existed in Arakan State since 7^th century before Burma ruler took over. We cannot change the fact.

 

According to Datuk Seri Dr. Rais Yatim, a total of 144 Rohingyas in Malaysia were sent to other countries between 2003-2008. This show the lack of commitment and political will of UNHCR and third countries / Resettlement countries though UNHCR and the World Leaders are fully aware the plight of Rohingyas in Burma and why we became refugees. The main reason remains Rohingyas are Muslim.

 

Although the military regime agreed to cooperate with the Asean Secretariat for data and information collection as the first step to resolving the Rohingya refugee problem, we are afraid of what kind of information will be provided by them.  We recommend that the ASEAN Leaders to visit Arakan State and to get the accurate information on situation of Rohingyas from the Rohingyas themselves. We also recommend that the ASEAN Secretariat to consult the regional and international human rights organizations who have done many research on Rohingyas in order to get accurate and non-bias information.

The visit by the United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees, Antonio Guterres to the Arakan State on March 7, 2009 revealed the real situation of Rohinyas though he did not say much to the media about his visit. On the basis of his observations and the discussions held, the High Commissioner came to the conclusion that UNHCR’s current level of activities in northern Rakhine State does not correspond to the actual needs and a decision was taken to upgrade the program with immediate effect.

We welcome the move by the ASEAN Leaders to discuss the Rohingyas issue at the Bali Process scheduled for 14-15 April. However we would like to emphasize that the Rohingyas issue is not just relating to Human Trafficking but there is more to it. The discussion must be broader, especially focusing on the recognition of Rohingyas as citizen as well as addressing the ways to stop gross human rights abuses against Rohingyas. The ASEAN Leaders must recognize that Rohingyas are very in need of the International protection as refugees.

We also call on the UNHCR and the Resettlement countries not to discriminate Rohingyas in the Resettlement program as we are also recognized refugees who need the same protection. At the same time we call the ASEAN and World Leaders for more comprehensive and effective intervention in Burma.

Thank you.

 Yours sincerely,

Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani

President Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM)

Tel: 016-6827287

Address: Penthouse, Wisma MLS, No. 31 Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman, 50100 Kuala Lumpur.

Blog: hhtp://www.merhrom.wordpress.com

 

ROHINGYA AND MUSLIMS IN ARAKAN STATE: SLOW-BURNING GENOCIDE

Almost 14 years have passed since the UN General Assembly recognized the suffering the Rohingya experienced at the hands of Burma’s military regime. Yet, Rohingya and Muslims from Burma continue to be subjected to a widespread and systematic campaign of persecution and discrimination at home and the denial of basic protection and fundamental rights in neighboring countries.

Often overlooked in global media coverage, the plight of more than 1 million Rohingya and Muslims from Burma should be more closely watched by the international community, to prevent what increasingly appears to be another genocide in the making.

ROHINGYA AND MUSLIMS IN ARAKAN STATE:
SLOW-BURNING GENOCIDE

The experiences of more than 1 million Rohingya and Muslims from Burma are often overlooked in global media coverage, whether in Burma or in exile in Bangladesh, Malaysia and elsewhere.
Rohingya are denied citizenship at home and protection in countries of asylum: many have been forced to leave and denied resettlement, others forcibly deported to situations of danger.
Rohingya in exile present a humanitarian and political headache for neighbors – as many as 250,000 in Bangladesh and 25,000 in Malaysia.
Those remaining in Burma face human rights abuses on a scale that is disparate when compared with those experienced by the rest of the population.
In 1992 the UN General Assembly recognized the disproportionate suffering the community had experienced under the military regime in Resolution 47/144.
Since 1992, the “torture and arbitrary execution, continued detention of a large number of persons for political reasons, the existence of important restrictions on the exercise of fundamental freedoms and the imposition of oppressive measures” that so concerned the UN have continued, forcing new movements of people, and waves of refugees that place a burden on the limited resources of Bangladesh and other neighbors.
The campaign of displacement, denial of culture and identity, restrictions on the right to marry and form a family, killings, rape, torture and denial of food are a slow-burning genocide – “deliberately inflict[ing] on the group [Rohingya and Arakan Muslims] conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part”.1

Denial of citizenship

“In actual fact, although there are (135) national races living in Myanmar today, the so-called Rohingya people is not one of them. Historically, there has never been a ‘Rohingya’ race in Myanmar. The very name Rohingya is a creation of a group of insurgents in the Rakhine State. Since the First Anglo-Myanmar War in 1824, people of Muslim Faith from the adjacent country illegally entered Myanmar Ngain-Ngan, particularly Rakhine State. Being illegal immigrants they do not hold immigration papers like other nationals of the country.”

- Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Union of Myanmar 2

The origins of the Rohingya’s place in Burma is in dispute – some say that Rohingya have always lived in Northern Arakan State and converted to Islam in the 12th century; others say that Rohingya began migrating to Burma during the British Colonial era. The reality is probably a mix of the two – Muslim traders who settled on the coast over the centuries who, along with larger influx of Muslims from the Chittagong area of Bangladesh in later centuries, developing a unique language, cultural practices and a sense of common identity.3 Under the junta’s 1982 citizenship law, more than one million Rohingya have been denied citizenship by the SPDC in Burma, with the authorities classifying them as “Bengali Muslims”, effectively leaving them stateless.4 Some argue that the law, replacing the 1948 Act, was written with the specific intention of removing any Rohingya claim on citizenship that the previous law allowed.5

Many Rohingya and Arakan Muslims have fled the oppression of the regime, in particular seeking refuge in Bangladesh and Malaysia. However, Rohingya and Arakan Muslim refugees from Burma have been denied refugee status in both countries (neither are signatories to the Refugee Convention). They have been classified as “illegal” economic migrants, and denial of their rights has continued.

Throughout the 1990s the Bangladesh authorities repatriated 236,000 of the 250,000 that fled to Bangladesh between November 1991 to June 1992 back to Burma throughout the 1990s, and by 2002 there were only 20,000 remaining in camps.6 The UNHCR scheduled a program for absolute withdrawal from management of Rohingya and Arakan Muslim asylum seekers in Bangladesh – subsequent repatriations have been accompanied by accusations of coercion and violence aimed at Bangladesh authorities and the UNHCR, and occurred whilst Rohingya and Arakan Muslims continue to flee persecution in Burma back to Bangladesh.7

However, many of those repatriated to Burma have returned to Bangladesh. New arrivals and returnees now number 200,000 living outside of camps, not permitted to access camps or to receive the protection of the UNHCR.8 Rohingya and Arakan Muslims, including children, are jailed in Bangladesh for violations of migration and employment law, and often remain in jail beyond the length of their sentences – some as long as 12 years – waiting the authorities negotiation of prisoner exchanges with the SPDC.9

Rohingya and Arakan Muslims in Malaysia also experience difficult circumstances and living conditions. While a repatriation program does not exist, many genuine refugees, including some with UNHCR papers, have been deported (usually to Thailand) for migration law violations. The UNHCR office was closed to new registration in 2005, with the UNHCR promising to process the backlog of registration and deliver outcomes to those that have been waiting in limbo for the longest time. Over 12,000 Rohingya have now been issued temporary protection since then, which finally gives protection from arrest and deportation.10

Many Rohingya and Arakan Muslims in Malaysia complain that Chin in similar circumstances have been offered resettlement, and that the Resident Permits (which give access to employment, education and limited healthcare) promised in October 2004 have only been received by Acehnese from Indonesia. In the meantime, for those with no papers at all, raids by immigration authorities have led to injuries and even death. Communities still live in fear; reports of harassment, extortion and detention by authorities continue. Many arrive with huge debts to people smugglers and relatives that they are unable to pay.11

The border between Thailand and Malaysia is extremely porous, with many Rohingya and Arakan Muslims traveling between the two countries at huge costs and risks; on the basis of rumors of changes in policy and new opportunities for resettlement. Recent reports conclude that this movement of people is facilitated and controlled by a Thai-Malay network of immigration, police and people smugglers who extort and beat the asylum seekers. Those that are able to pay are smuggled back to Malaysia. Those that cannot often are trapped in horrific conditions in Thai brothels, rubber plantations, factories and fishing boats.12

77 Rohingya were stranded on an island in Indonesia in April 2006.13 The group had been attempting to reach Malaysia by boat. Indonesian authorities had originally intended to send the group back into international waters, but became nervous of a diplomatic backlash from Malaysia.14

Restricted movement

“The sweeping restrictions on the movement of Rohingyas are disproportionate and discriminatory; they are imposed on all Rohingyas because they are Rohingyas, and not on members of other ethnic nationalities in Rakhine State. They are broad and indiscriminate in their application”

- Amnesty International15

Not holding citizenship restricts the freedom of movement, even more so in Burma where identity cards function as an “internal passport” for travel from one village to another, to work, to conduct business and trade, and more. At first, Rohingya who were repatriated from Bangladesh were issued with “Returnee Identity Cards”, which have been replaced with white “Temporary Registration Cards”. Neither entitles holders to the entitlements of other citizens.16

Restriction on freedom of movement has effectively confined people to their villages. They are required to apply, state their reasons, and pay for a travel pass to visit as far as neighboring villages.17 To travel further requires more money and more lengthy application processes.18

Rohingya are required to keep the essential “family list”. If a family member is not present during random population check by local SPDC authorities, they can be deleted from the list or fined. 19

Extortion and arbitrary taxation

While extortion and arbitrary taxation is rife in Burma, the experience for Rohingya and Muslims is particularly difficult.

Taxes and bribes such as paddy taxes,20 sales and trade licenses, fees for the observance of cultural and religious festivals and ceremonies, fees for the participation in sporting activities, extortion for corporate and military infrastructure, are particularly prevalent and more diligently extracted in Arakan State, in particular in border area’s controlled by the NaSaKa border authorities.21 Those not able or willing to pay bribes face arrest and imprisonment.22 Arbitrary arrest is often employed to extract bribes from Rohingya and Muslims.

Additional extortions unique to the experience of Rohingya and Muslims relate to fees for travel and forming a family.23

Access to employment

Requirements to pay and apply for travel permits seriously limits ability to trade or seek employment outside a person’s village.24 Not holding citizenship excludes Rohingya from public service positions. Arbitrary extortion, taxes, and seizures of land and property stifle entrepreneurship and overwhelm small businesses. Forced labor takes people away from their regular employment, destroying business, and ruining crops when harvests are impacted.

Forced labor

When the ILO reported in March 2003 that forced labor in large infrastructure projects had decreased in Burma, they noted that it continued with no change in Northern Arakan State.25 Most work involves the maintenance, security, building and supply of military camps and infrastructure projects linked to state-enterprise projects and their international partners. Because it is possible to pay a bribe to authorities for exemption, those most affected are those most at need of earning a regular income.

Confiscation of land and property

Land is confiscated by NaSaKa and much of formerly arable land has reverted to jungle. There are also settlement programs moving non-Rohingya onto lands confiscated from Rohingya into “model villages” for retired SPDC officers and their families (built with the forced labor of Rohingya).26 Forced laborers and their communities are often required to supply projects with materials. 27 The growing presence of NaSaKa since its formation in 1992 has increased the level of confiscations – whether for military camps or for unique projects such as the leasing back to the original owners. In 2002 they began to implement land use policies – by expelling families living “residentially” on areas previously allocated as agricultural. 28

Food Security

Burma’s historical importance as a producer of rice is well known. While this importance has faded, the country still manages to produce a net surplus of rice.29 Despite this, those living in Northern Arakan state are hungry, with 60% experiencing malnutrition because the regime confiscates, forcibly sells or prevents from being traded, rice and other essential commodities.30

Villagers are obliged to provide food to supply to military troops with food supplies.31 Additionally, forced labor takes villagers away from taking care of their crops, and harvest periods are compromised.

Withholding humanitarian aid

Controls on the delivery of humanitarian aid allow the regime to dictate to agencies where their assistance is provided. The World Food Program has complained of restrictions to delivery of food aid had left Rohingya communities starving and prevented more than 90% of food and rice aid from being delivered through of permit requirements, checkpoints, local taxes and other restrictions.32

Limitations on access to education

The official literacy rate in Burma is given by the SPDC at nearly 90%.33 While this is unlikely to be accurate, the fact that literacy rates in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh has been measured at 12% indicates that Rohingya experience particular barriers to accessing basic education.34

Most Rohingya children do not speak the Burmese language in which public education is taught.35 Most village tracts have one primary school (initial 4 years), but in remote areas monsoonal rains prevent children from attending even this basic level. Rohingya, not holding citizenship, cannot be employed as teachers. There are considerable gaps in the number and quality of teachers available. Additionally, extreme poverty means that many children need to work to support their families. 36

Further schooling is more difficult to access outside of bigger towns. Rohingya are simply excluded from studying at university. Sittwe has the only university in the state, and a travel ban has been enforced on all Rohingya since February 2001. Distance education at university level is theoretically possible but students face many challenges in obtaining permission to pass their exams.37

Persecution of political and community leaders

Leaders in exile are deeply divided on the solutions to the current situation. Rohingya and other non-Rakhine organizations are excluded from membership of the umbrella organization the Arakan National Council.38

The actions and policy of the SPDC in Arakan State have successfully divided two oppressed communities against each other. Tensions between ethnic Rakhine and Rohingya run high.39 Religious riots occur sporadically between Buddhist and Muslim, Rohingya and Rakhine groups, with reports often blaming authorities for stirring up community unrest.40

One of the issues dividing communities in Burma is the Rohingya claim to status as a distinct ethnic group – ethnic in Burma implying a claim to indigenous status, as opposed to having distinct cultural, racial or language characteristics. Other Muslims in Burma, probably around 6 million in number, also experience discrimination and persecution, especially those living in Arakan State. Some Rohingya avoid identifying themselves as such, aware of the political and personal ramifications of the label.

Rohingya were permitted to vote and stand as candidates in the 1990 elections. The Rohingya supported party, the National Democratic Party for Human Rights (NDPHR), won four seats. The Rohingya candidate in Sittwe was arrested and put in jail during the elections. The party was deregistered in March 1992.41

Dr Kyaw Min, MP Buthidaung Constituency Arakan State, NDPHR

60 year old Dr Kyaw Min was arrested at his home by special agents on the night of 17 March 2005 and detained at Insein jail.42 He was sentenced on 19 July to 47 years in prison under Political Act – 5J.43

His wife, two adult daughters and youngest son were arrested on 5 May and handed sentences of 17 years and fined 50,000 kyat each and detained separately.44 The oldest son and other relatives went into hiding following warrants being issued.45 Kyaw Min’s sister in law was arrested in November of 2005 and sentenced to six months in prison for ‘overstepping the boundary”.46

Lawyers and friends were not permitted to visit in the initial period of interrogations.47 By October 2005, Kyaw Min and his wife were reported to have become seriously ill from a poor diet not complying with their religious obligations, and tensions from worrying about their children.48

Authorities have issued orders banning the sale of his properties and appeals against the courts findings have so far been unsuccessful.49 According to family sources, the long sentences were imposed following Kyaw Min’s refusal to quit the Committee Representing People’s Parliament (CRPP).50

Torture

Successive military campaigns since the 1970s have included widespread reports of killings of civilians, rape and torture.51 Arbitrary arrest is used to extract bribes, particularly through arresting and accusing Rohingya in border areas.52

Religious and cultural freedoms

Muslims, including Rohingya, living in Northern Arakan State are forced to pay “fees” to conduct Eid-ul-Adha and Eid-ul-Fitr. Traditions such as praying in open prayer grounds are restricted. Friday sermons are restricted. Times of pilgrimage coincide with further tightening of restrictions and the extraction of maximum bribes.53

SPDC military campaigns have included the destruction of mosques and madrassa.54

The right to marry and have a family

All households require a family list and any changes – births, deaths, marriages, address, even cattle acquisition and sales – must be reported and a fee paid. A birth or death can vary in its cost for between 1,000 to 8,000 kyat, must be declared within a week, and also vary in the local authority’s arbitrary requirements – sometimes substituting a scarce item such as fuel to be paid in the place of the usual fee, or for the report of a birth to be delivered in person by the recovering mother.55

Rohingya living in Northern Arakan State are required to ask for permission to marry. Women are required to be at least 18 and the men 24.56 Since 2003, the demanding of large amounts in bribes – between 50,000 and 300,000 kyat – for permission to marry has become universal. Marriages can be delayed for up to three years, and require several visits to NaSaKa camps. There is a huge backlog of couples waiting permission, and sometimes young couples travel to Bangladesh to try to get married at great risk of not being able to return to Burma.57

The regulations were further tightened in December 2005 requiring: 3 guardian signatories; the bridegroom and guardians to be cleanly shaven; a certificate of clean health; a recommendation letter from a religious organization and from the village chairman; the couple to commit to having no more than three children, one wife, and not to get divorced; the submission of the family list; and a declaration of the dowry. The fee was fixed at 3000 kyat but reports continue of the fee varying from place to place. 58

Rohingya Refugees from Burma Mistreated in Bangladesh

Rohingya Refugees from Burma Mistreated in Bangladesh
Thailand Also Forcing Asylum Seekers Back into Burma

Noticias.info/ (Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia, 21 Nov, 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, Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia, President Mr.Zafar Ahmad 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. “
Mr. Zafar Ahmad, Asia President of Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia.

“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,” said Mr. Zafar Ahmad , Asia President of Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia. “This 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 “Tal” which housed over 6,000 Rohingya refugees from Burma at Teknaf, south of Cox’s 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 “Tal” 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.

“The Bangladeshi government should be helping needy refugees instead of making life difficult for them,” said Mr.Zafar Ahmad “It 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 “refoulement,” as the men were forcibly returned to a territory from which they had “a 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. Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia 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.Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia said President Mr.Zafar Ahmad 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.

From 4th 5th August 2007, more than 550 undocumented migrants were arrested by the Immigration Department and Rela during the operation in Selayang, Gombak , Taman Mudah, Ampang and Subang. Out of that number, about 357 of them were refugees from Myanmar Rohingyas who have registered with the UNHCR, Malaysia.

During the operation, Mr.Habibur Rahman, the General Secretary of Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia(MERHROM)and Mr. Harun, the Information Secretary of MERHROM were also arrested. Mr. Habibur Rahman managed to inform Mr. Zafar Ahmad, President of MERHROM that he was punched at his face and was hit thigh by 2 Rela officers.

Mr. Zafar Ahmad together with his wife and the Vice President Mr. Abdul Aziz rushed to the Rela Office in Batu 10, Cheras to check on this matter. They informed the officer that they wanted to speak to the head of Rela office. They were told to wait for Tuan Haji Musa, the head of Cheras Rela as he just left the office.

The waited until 9.00 am before chased out by the higher position of Rele officer. The officer shouted at them and chased them out of Rela premise. One of his officers held Mr. Zafar Ahmad ’s neck up and chase him out. Mr. Zafar Ahmad ’s wife Ms.Maslina who stood beside him told the officer to remove his hand from Mr. Zafar Ahmad ’s neck. In anger he told Mr. Zafar Ahmad “you think when you marry a Malaysian, you acn say anything you want?” They left the Rela office after the incident as the did not want to worsen the situation.

This clearly shows that refugees do not have the rights to expression and could not their rights. This incident also shows how arrogant Rela officers are.

They were frustrated as Malaysia is a member of UNHCR but various human rights violations took place especially to the refugees and the migrant workers. The Malaysian government has also signed UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the stste has the responsibility to protect both children and women within its territory regardless their status.

Mr. Zafar Ahmad urged the Malaysian government to immediately stop thr crackdown on Refugees and givr them a chance to live. Every moment they live in fear. They have gone through enough pain and suffering in their lives and have nobody to turn to.

There are currently an estimated 13,000 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.

“The 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,” Mr.Zafar Ahmad said. “These 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’s 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.

No bloody hands on an ASEAN Charter

By Zafar Ahmad, President of (MERHROM)

No bloody hands on an ASEAN Charter

Monday, 05 November 2007

(Singapore, 5 November 2007) Over 200 participants from civil society organizations and trade unions from across Southeast Asia and beyond have called upon the leaders of ASEAN to postpone the signing of the ASEAN Charter due to the Burmese junta’s recent violent crackdown on peaceful protests.

At the conclusion of the third ASEAN + Civil Society Conference (ACSC III) held in Singapore from 2-4 November, all participants agreed that the current political crisis in Burma must first be resolved in accordance with basic human rights standards before ASEAN’s leaders can sign a Charter for a “caring, sharing community”.

Participants urged ASEAN countries, particularly Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia, to do more than issue strong statements and to take concrete action, including the imposition of an arms embargo and the stemming of the flow of resources to the military junta. There was also a call on the Indonesian government, as current Chair of the UN Security Council, to advocate the imposition of sanctions and other targeted measures, and for ASEAN to place more pressure on China and India to take concrete measures to bring the Burmese military generals to engage in a democratic process of reform.

Apart from the focus on events in Burma, participants also agreed that ASEAN’s approach to drafting a “people’s charter” had been far from people centred, with no release of a draft version of the Charter for civil society to consider and provide feedback on prior to its signing at the upcoming ASEAN Summit in Singapore (18-22 November). Any engagement that had taken place with civil society had been little more than a public relations exercise. Therefore, participants demanded that ASEAN go through a process of “meaningful public consultation and discussion” before signing a Charter on behalf of the people of Southeast Asia and, furthermore, that a referendum on the Charter be held in each member state.

In response to dissatisfaction over the entire Charter drafting process, the decision was taken to launch the drafting of an alternative ASEAN People’s Charter by national and regional civil society groups “that will embody the shared values and collective aspirations of the peoples of the region”, and which will be completed prior to the 2008 ASEAN Summit in Thailand.

Background information:
ACSC III was organized in Singapore by the following civil society organizations:

Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Areas (AsiaDHRRA), Focus on the Global South, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), Human Rights Working Group – Indonesia, Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), South East Asian Committee for Advocacy (SEACA), Think Center – Singapore, and Third World Network (TWN).

There was also an ACSC III Singapore Local Organizing Committee.

The local host was Union Network International-APRO.

ACSC III General Statement (.pdf)
ACSC III Burma Statement (.pdf)

For further information, please contact:

- Sinapan Samydorai, President of Think Centre – Singapore and member of the Local Organizing Committee for ACSC III, at samysd@pacific.net.sgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ;
- Corinna Lopa, Regional Coordinator for SEACA, at clopa@seaca.netThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ;
- Anselmo Lee, Executive Director of FORUM-ASIA, at anselmo@forum-asia.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Mr. Zafar Ahmad
President of Myanmar Ethnic Rohingyas Human Rights Organization Malaysia (MERHROM)
H/P: 6016-6827287
E-mail: rights4rohingya@yahoo.co.uk

ANM/MMN Open Letter] THAILAND: CALL FOR AN OPEN INDEPENDENT INQUIRY INTO ALLEGATIONS OF ABUSE AND KILLING OF ROHINGYA BY THAI AUTHORITIES

 

 

 

 

[ANM/MMN Open Letter] THAILAND: CALL FOR AN OPEN INDEPENDENT INQUIRY INTO ALLEGATIONS OF ABUSE AND KILLING OF ROHINGYA BY THAI AUTHORITIES

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 20 , 2009 ANM -011-2009 An Open Letter to the  Prime Minister  of Thailand Mr. Abhisit Vejjajiva Prime Minister of Thailand Government house Thanon Nakornprathom Dusit Bangkok 13000 Tel /FAX +6622803000 To the Honorable Prime Minister, Mr. Abhisit  Vejjajiva, THAILAND: CALL FOR AN OPEN INDEPENDENT INQUIRY INTO ALLEGATIONS OF ABUSE AND KILLING OF ROHINGYA BY THAI AUTHORITIES The Action Network for Migrants (Thailand) and the Mekong Migration Network, representing migrants and refugees in Thailand and the Mekong, are deeply concerned that the treatment of migrants and refugees in Thailand is inconsistent and thus does not adhere to prevailing international human rights standards. Without a coherent policy, the treatment of refugees and migrants has been left to the discretionary judgment of government officials to deal with situations as they arise.   We are particularly concerned  about the recent reports that in late December 2008, allegedly 427 Rohingya were forcefully sent back to International water by Thai authorities, whereby only 102 survived when they were  rescued by Indian Coast Guards. The others are feared dead. ‘Local human rights groups who have interviewed survivors, say Rohingya refugees from Burma, were held on the remote Koh Sai Daeng off southern Thailand in December, forced back on boats with their hands bound and set adrift with little food and water…’ Bangkok Post, 18/1/2009 – Alleged abuse of refugees probed, Thai Military Accused of Role in Deaths of Hundreds of Burmese Boat People In the same Bangkok Post report, it was also revealed that there was another incident just before the New Year, when the Thai authorities towed 600 Burmese migrants out to sea in four boats. Allegedly, one of these boats is still missing and more than 200 Burmese refugees on board are now feared dead. ANM and MMN is pleased that the Thai government has indicated that they will be investigating the matter, but it is felt that since the alleged perpetrators are the Thai Navy and/or the Thai Immigration Authority, we believe that this investigation should not be done by a government Ministry, but rather a multi-sectoral commission that should conduct its inquiry in an open and transparent manner. It is our position that the National Human Rights Commission of Thailand should also conduct their own independent inquiry. ANM and MMN also call upon the Thai government to immediately adopt the position that it will not in the future set any persons, including refugees and asylum seekers, adrift in sea. The Thai government should allow these people to land, and should adhere to the highest standards of rights and justice including its commitment as contained in the 1999 Bangkok Declaration on Irregular Migration, where persons will be ‘…granted humanitarian treatment, including appropriate health and other services…” There should be no unfair treatment.   The Thai Government must Protect the security, safety and well-being of the Rohingya who are currently seeking safety and refuge on Thai soil. They should be provided with all the basic facilities and support needed for survival in accordance with international humanitarian standards and principles.   ANM and MMN also call upon the Thai government to immediately set up a joint government and non-government committee to produce a coherent national policy for welfare and protection  to avoid  future incidents and  oversee/ monitor the treatment of asylum-seekers and migrants in Thailand   In order to guarantee the future systematic protection of all refugees and migrants, we strongly urge the Thai Government to immediately ratify the International Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees and the International Convention on the Protection of Rights of Migrants and their families (1990).   Finally, the Action Network for Migrants (Thailand) and the Mekong Migration Network implores   Thai Government to call on all governments of ASEAN to condemn and call for a complete cessation to all human rights abuses carried out by the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) that remains the root cause forcing people to flee to the other countries of ASEAN.   Yours sincerely Committee of The Action Network for Migrants (Thailand) Steering committee of Mekong Migration network Cc: 1.  The National Human Rights Commission of Thailand   2. Ministry of Foreign Affair   3.  Ministry of Defense

 

Contact Persons:

Mr. Htoo Chit +66 8 1797 7745

Ms. Pronom Somwong +60192371300 (Malaysia)

Action Network for Migrants (Thailand)

 

Ms. Reiko Harima +852 93692244 (Hong Kong)

Ms. Laddawan  Tamafu +66 8 1595 1364 (Thailand)

Mekong Migration network

 

Standing with the brave in Burma

Standing with the brave in Burma

Josef Roy Benedict Sep 28, 07 2:02pm Adjust font size:

As we Malaysians view pictures of the violent crackdown of pro-democracy demonstrations occuring in Burma, we are once again reminded about the brutality of the military junta which has denied democracy to its people and continues to detain at least 1,200 political prisoners for engaging in peaceful political activities and non-violent exercise of the right to freedom of expression and association. The last time Burma saw anything on this scale was during the popular uprising of August 1988 when demonstrations began among students and then gradually spread to monks and the public. These culminated in a national uprising on Aug 8, 1988, when hundreds of thousands of people marched to demand a change of government. The government sent troops to brutally suppress the protests. No official investigation has ever taken place, but the best estimates suggest that approximately 3,000 people were killed as the demonstrations were crushed in September 1988. As many as 10,000 people were killed nationwide between March and September of that year. We cannot allow the events of 1988 to occur again. We must demand that the Malaysian government speak up in support of democracy and condemn the military crackdown. It must call on other Asean members to put aside its principle of non-interference and urge the Burmese military government to address the peaceful political protests by Buddhist monks and civilians throughout Burma without violence. Asean must remember the harsh military action will only send hundreds of thousands of Burmese refugees fleeing to neighbouring countries including Thailand and Malaysia as it has done in the past. We must also call on China who has funded and armed the regime to play a crucial role in ending this crisis. China cannot wish to hosts next year’s Olympic Games as the defender of such a despicable regime and we must urge the country to use its influence with the regime to exercise restraint and move towards dialogue. Other countries who have economic and military ties with Burma such as India and Russia must be shown that there will increasing economic problems and political instability as long as the regime defies the will of the people. They should back the democracy movement if it wants a stable, peaceful and prosperous Burma I welcome the fact that the UN Security Council has called on the military junta to show restraint and is planning to send UN special envoy Ibrahim Gambari to the region. However, more action needs to be taken by the UN. A resolution should be passed immediately, condemning the violations, setting out specific benchmarks with specific deadlines. The benchmarks must include the immediate release of Aung San Suu Kyi, the release of political prisoners and the start of meaningful dialogue between the regime, the National League of Democracy and the ethnic nationalities. We have been provided a critical opportunity to bring about freedom and democracy in Burma after decades of military rule. This struggle is being led by the monks and the people of Burma. We owe it to such brave people to stand with them in their hour of need and to use every possible tool available to open up the window for change.

Time for Asean to kick Burma out

Time for Asean to kick Burma out

Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail Oct 2, 07 5:04pm Adjust font size:

Parti Keadilan Rakyat (PKR) notes with grave concern that the violence in Burma continues unabated despite international condemnation. As neighbours, Malaysians can empathise with the despair of the Burmese people, and no one should bear seeing the sufferings of millions continue. This year, I had visited the Burmese refugee camps at the Thai-Burma border together with other Asean parliamentarians and personally witnessed the desperate conditions there. In this day and age, no one should have to live in such places, not especially in a prosperous region such as Asean. Every Burmese refugees and democratic activists whom I had met had appealed to our compassion and solidarity. They have placed enormous hope on us, their neighbour. to support their struggle to restore peace and democracy, to use our liberty to speak for them. We must not fail them today. PKR unites with the international community in urging the immediate cessation of violence. We also call on the United Nations to redouble its efforts to restore democracy and secure the release of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. We welcome Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi’s condemnation of the Burmese junta in New York last week. We are satisfied that the Malaysian government has long last acknowledged PKR’s basic assertion that Asean’s policy of constructive engagement had failed to bring peace and freedom in Burma. We call upon the Malaysian Foreign Ministry to immediately support the United Nations in stepping up the pressure on the Burmese junta to stop the brutal violence and to immediate facilitate dialogue between the military junta and democrats, including Suu Kyi, under its auspices. Should there be no improvement on the part of the Burmese junta to end the vicious suppression of the Burmese people, we believe that Burma should not only be barred from attending the Asean summit in Singapore this November, but that the Malaysian government should lead the rest of the region by tabling a resolution to expel Burma from Asean immediately, and in addition to apply trade sanctions on the recalcitrant junta. Only such direct steps will prove our resolute firmness in indicating to the Burmese military junta, that state violence against people who long only for freedom, democracy and peace, is absolutely unacceptable in Southeast Asia. The writer is PKR president and deputy chair of Malaysian Parliamentary Caucus on Democracy in Myanmar.

UN urges restraint on Burma junta

UN urges restraint on Burma junta

A monk flees as security forces fire warning shots and tear gas Enlarge Image The UN Security Council has urged Burma’s ruling junta to show restraint amid a worsening political crisis.After an emergency session, it also called on Burma’s generals to allow a special UN envoy into the country. The US and European Union wanted the council to consider imposing sanctions – but that was rejected by China. Burmese authorities confirmed one death on Wednesday as police clashed with protesters in Rangoon. There were reports of at least two other deaths. US President George W Bush has already announced a tightening of US economic sanctions against Burma. Key locations of Rangoon democracy protests Enlarge Map But China’s UN ambassador, Wang Guangya, said that sanctions against Burma’s military rulers would not be “helpful”. China and Russia have argued that the situation in Burma is a purely internal matter. Both vetoed a UN resolution critical of Burma’s rulers last January. Experts say the hope remains that China – a permanent member of the council and a key importer of Burmese energy resources – may use its powerful influence behind the scenes to persuade the regime to show restraint. The G8, the world’s eight most industrialised countries, warned Burma’s ruling generals that they would be held accountable for their actions but stopped short of calling for sanctions. Analysts fear a repeat of the violence in 1988, when troops opened fire on unarmed protesters, killing thousands. Clumsy show of force The confrontation in Burma has become a battle of wills between the country’s two most powerful institutions, the military and the monkhood, and the outcome is still unclear, the BBC’s South East Asia correspondent, Jonathan Head, says. A clampdown on the media by Burma’s military government – which has banned gatherings of five people or more in addition to imposing a curfew – has made following the exact course of the protests difficult. The junta are using dirty tactics – they don’t fire guns but beat people with rifle butts BBC News website reader Accounts from Burma Text: Burma confirms death In quotes: Global reaction It is known that on Wednesday thousands of monks and opposition activists moved away from Shwedagon pagoda, heading for Sule pagoda in the city centre. Others headed for the home of detained opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Reports suggested they were prevented from reaching it but other demonstrators did gather at Sule to jeer soldiers. Troops responded by firing tear gas and live rounds over the protesters’ heads – for the first time since protests began nine days ago. Monks marching to the home of Aung San Suu Kyi reportedly urged civilians not to join them and not to resort to violence. But elsewhere witnesses said civilians were shielding the marching monks by forming a human chain around them. The Burmese state radio station, Radio Myanmar, reported that one person had been killed and three others injured – the first official confirmation that the violence had caused casualties. Earlier, a hospital source in Rangoon told the BBC that the monks were beaten with rifle butts, and that taxi drivers had transported the injured to nearby medical facilities. How will the junta respond? Burma’s saffron army In pictures: Mood darkens There were unconfirmed reports of at least three deaths on Wednesday, including a civilian, and two monks who were killed near the Shwedagon pagoda. State radio spoke only of one death. Our correspondent says that for all their brutality, the security forces were clumsy. They failed to prevent demonstrators from making their way through the city and their attacks on the monks only inflamed public anger – none of which was reflected on state television. Large demonstrations also took place in the cities of Mandalay and Sitwei, but the security forces there reportedly did little to prevent them. The protests were triggered by the government’s decision to double the price of fuel last month, hitting people hard in the impoverished nation.

Gruesome Murders on Streets of Burma

By Zafar Ahmad

President of (MERHROM) 

Soldiers in downtown Rangoon are shooting directly into crowds killing many peacefull protestors. (photo, Ko Htike)

 

 

 

27 September: Soldiers this morning raided Buddhist Monasteries, beating up Monks, arresting them, searching the Monasteries, and leaving everything broken and upside down.

Eye-witnesses said they heard Monks creaming in pain and shouting for help and bleeding Monks forcibly taken away by soldiers. When devotees try to help the Monks, soldiers threatened them that they would be shot dead on the spot.

Blood stains in Monasteries.

Monasteries left upside down.

(photos, Niknayman)

27 September: Despite regime’s brutal crack down, thousands of people today marched on central Rangoon, near Sule Pagoda. Soldiers fired into the crowd, and when the crowd recede, soldiers tried to arrest as many protestors as they can chase after and catch. Then fire-engines came and wash away bloodstains on the road.

protestors in central Rangoon before being shot at by soldiers

riot plice patrolling streets

truck loads of soldiers

Some reports say that Monks from a Kyimyindaing Monastery are marching in the streets carrying the dead body of a fellow Monk.

There demonstrations and brutal crack downs going on in other cities, like Mandalay, Tavoy, etc.

Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand

Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand
The Bulletin

Volume 550
Monday, September 24, 2007

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September

Wed, September 26 – Building Cambodia: Inside the Golden Age of New Khmer Architecture  (8:00 pm)
In a region where skylines are dominated by cookie-cutter modern buildings, the urban landscape of Cambodia offers a welcome change. Not only does it retain some of its French colonial buildings, it also offers a glimpse into a golden era of Khmer architecture in the early years of independence. It’s a style that reflects a bold vision of national development, long before the horrors of war devoured the nation’s optimism.  Click here for details

Thurs, September 27 – Launch of the “Collateral Damage: The Impact of Anti-Trafficking Measures on Human Rights Around the World” presented by The Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (GAATW) (10:00 am)
Increasingly practitioners and human rights organisations have expressed concern about the impact of anti-trafficking strategies, noting that many initiatives have proven counter-productive for the very people they were intended to benefit. Against this background, GAATW commissioned the research and writing of a report appraising the human rights repercussions of government policies and anti-trafficking initiatives on the people living, working and migrating within and across national borders.  Click here for details

Thurs, September 27 – Contemporary World Cinema: Common Wealth courtesy of the Spanish Embassy, with wine and tapas  (8:00 pm)
Middle-aged real estate agent Julia Garcia is showing an apartment in Madrid.  It’s a little run-down outside but inside, it’s fabulous.  So much so that Julia decides that as long as she’s got the keys, she might as well invite her husband over for a few days, hoping the change of place will re-ignite her marriage.  When the ceiling starts to crack and rain down cockroaches, though, Julia pokes around and finds, to her surprise and dismay, the rotting corpse of the previous tenant.  The stiff is removed but, still poking around, she and her husband find a fortune in cash stashed under the floorboards.  They decide to keep it but getting it out of the building will be tough, as the other inhabitants have taken a sudden interest in everything Julia does.  They, it turns out, also know about the money and have a deal to split it up among themselves if anybody finds it.  Director Álex de la Iglesia extracts a clever and engaging black comic fantasy that serves up both real laughs and thrills.  The screening will be preceded at 7:00 pm by Spanish wine and a selection of authentic tapas, courtesy of the Embassy of Spain’s Commercial Section (www.winesfromspain.com) and Tapas Café Spanish Bar & Restaurant  Click here for details

Fri, September 28 and every Friday - Jazz Night (8:00 pm)
FCCT is the place to be every Friday night for great music and conversation.  What’s happening in Thailand and the world?  Stop by the FCCT Clubhouse Restaurant and Bar on Friday nights to find out and hear some great jazz too.

October

Wed, October 3 – Panel Discussion on a New Book on Burma- Accessing Burma’s Ceasefire Accords  (8:00 pm)
The Burmese military government and numerous ethnic minority armed groups have entered a series of ceasefires since 1989, a year after crushing country-wide democracy movement in 1988.  This book written by two Burmese researchers, Zaw Oo (a Ph.D. candidate at American University) and Win Min (a lecturer at Payap University, Chiang Mai) discusses why the parties entered into ceasefire accords, what the nature of the accords is, what the consequences have been (in the context of peace-building, nation-building and democratization) and what the future scenarios are.  Click here for details

Thurs, October 4 – Contemporary World Cinema: Gönül Yarasi (Lovelorn) directed by Yavuz Turgul, courtesy of the Embassy of Turkey  (8:00 pm)
Idealist Nazim (Sener Sen) returns home to his family in Istanbul after a 15-year gap away teaching in a remote Turkish village in eastern Turkey. Becoming a taxi driver he meets a single mother who works in a sleazy club and becomes embroiled in her plight – a troublesome ex-husband who won’t leave her alone – and starts to fall in love with her.  (Details coming soon.)

Fri, October 5 and every Friday - Jazz Night (8:00 pm)
FCCT is the place to be every Friday night for great music and conversation.  What’s happening in Thailand and the world?  Stop by the FCCT Clubhouse Restaurant and Bar on Friday nights to find out and hear some great jazz too.

Tues, October 9 – Documentary: Prayer of Peace: Relief & Resistance in Burma’s War Zones  (8:00 pm)
On the front line of conflict deep inside Burma this documentary follows ethnic relief workers as they aid internally displaced people suffering under the Burma Army.  Focusing on a female medic and a pastor/human rights cameraman, the film reveals a people that have maintained their dignity and hope for peace despite the odds. This documentary was filmed over three months on the frontline in Karen State on relief missions with the Free Burma Rangers.  Click here for details

Wed, October 17 – Child Injury: An Avoidable Tragedy  (8:00 pm)
Thousands of children across Asia are being wiped out every year by a largely unrecognized pandemic. It’s not on the priority list for governments; the deaths are largely occurring off the official record; and the people resign themselves to the loss believing it’s the work of evil spirits, retribution for past wrongs. Child deaths through injury, primarily drowning and road traffic accidents, are taking more lives each year than HIV, malaria, dengue fever and tuberculosis. So why aren’t prevention programs like survival swimming commonplace in Asia? And why are these deaths going largely unrecorded? Co-founder of The Alliance for Safe Children (TASC) and former American Ambassador to Vietnam, Douglas “Pete” Peterson and Prof Chitr Sitthi-amorn, Immediate Past Dean of the College of Public Health, Chulalongkorn University, discuss what their research has revealed and their vision for reducing the number of children who are needlessly dying each year.  Click here for details

Tues, October 23 – Chulalongkorn Memorial Day, a public holiday. Clubhouse is closed.

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FCCT Art/Photo Gallery

For the month of  September:  Nowhere People: Unwanted and Stateless in Asia (Monday – Friday, 10:00 am – 11:00 pm)
Nowhere People is an on-going project from photographer Greg Constantine that exposes the “human face” of statelessness and documents some of the most desperate stateless groups in Asia: the Bihari in Bangladesh, the Rohingya from Burma, stateless children in Malaysian Borneo and the lower caste Dailts or ‘untouchables’ in the Terai of southern Nepal. It explores how statelessness and the denial of citizenship perpetuates extreme poverty, forced migration, landlessness, illiteracy and women’s rights, as well as a number of human rights abuses. Moreover, Nowhere People calls attention to an issue that is shared by all stateless groups:  they are all victims of a radical form of exclusion that has left them voiceless, invisible and paralyzed by poverty, discrimination and an absence of power and choice. 
Click here for details

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The King of Thailand in World Focus

This outstanding updated edition of the book (2007) is now available from the FCCT office at these prices:
FCCT member price – 1,200 baht each (for the first 3 books and 1.450 baht for additonal books)
Non-member price – 1,450 baht
Bulk sales (20 or more) 1,250 baht for members and non-members alike
Also available at all branches of Asiabooks, B2S, Bookazine and Kinokuniya bookstores for 1,450 baht.

The world’s longest-reigning monarch seen through the eyes of foreign journalists and photographers. A unique royal history spanning nearly eight decades of turmoil and triumph.
King Bhumibol Adulyadej, Rama IX: Great Strength of the Land, ninth king in the Chakri Dynasty, Father of the Nation, peacemaker, Thailand’s longest reigning monarch, the world’s longest reigning living monarch. Jazz composer, saxophonist, artist, inventor, patent holder, sailor, philanthropist, animal lover, expert in agriculture and irrigation.
 
Born in Boston and educated in Europe, this is an account of a teenager who ascended the throne in the shadow of tragedy to be confronted by turbulence at home and revolution in neighboring Indochina. For nearly half a century, King Bhumibol has remained inside Thailand, dedicating himself to the country’s poor, and wielding moral authority according to his personal philosophy: Give more, take less.

This book documents a remarkable life through foreign newspaper, magazine and wire service reports as compiled by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand (FCCT). The original version of The King of Thailand in World Focus was undertaken in 1987 to coincide with King Bhumibol’s 60th birthday. It has long been out of print, but remains one of the most insightful and readable works on Thailand’s widely revered monarch.

In June 2006, nationwide celebrations marked the 60th anniversary of King Bhumibol’s accession to the throne, and 5 December 2007 is his 80th birthday. At a much more modest level, the FCCT passed the 50-year mark in 2006. One of the activities undertaken to mark these anniversaries was updating the 1987 royal book.

This new edition of The King of Thailand in World Focus has been expanded, and completely redesigned and reformatted. It includes foreign coverage of the intervening years during which King Bhumibol became the world’s longest reigning living monarch. The period has not been plain sailing by any means. The dramatic royal intervention in May 1992 to end political chaos and bloodshed is still dramatically etched on the world’s collective imagination. The tense political standoff of 2006, when Thai politicians once again grappled with the fine print of constitutional democracy, ended in September with a bloodless military putsch.

Sixty per cent of the proceeds from the sale of this book will go to His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s charities, the remainder to the FCCT’s educational funds.

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Building Cambodia:
Inside the Golden Age of
New Khmer Architecture

Wednesday, September 26 at 8:00 pm
  Cover charge for non-members:  300 Baht

 

In a region where skylines are dominated by cookie-cutter modern buildings, the urban landscape of Cambodia offers a welcome change. Not only does it retain some of its French colonial buildings, it also offers a glimpse into a golden era of Khmer architecture in the early years of independence. It’s a style that reflects a bold vision of national development, long before the horrors of war devoured the nation’s optimism. In the 1950s, King Norodom Sihanouk began to oversee a public construction boom that ranged from ambitious infrastructure projects to new towns. This development spurt, which included rural and urban projects, ended with his overthrow in 1970 by US-backed forces.

Of the thousands of buildings that mushroomed across the country, many stand out for their high standard and unique style – a remarkable blend of new building techniques and traditional Khmer design that marked a decisive break from French colonial architecture. The rise and fall of this stylized public work over 17 years has no parallel in modern architectural history.  ‘Building Cambodia: New Khmer Architecture’, a book that was named last year among the top-10 new titles in Asia by TIME Asia, tells the story of this remarkable work. Based on six years of research in Cambodia, France and Australia, the authors recount this extraordinary period of national development.  They also identify dozens of architects, engineers and town planners from the fifties and sixties who left a distinctly Cambodian architectural heritage. 

Today, as Cambodia rebuilds after the traumas of war and genocide, these buildings are again in the spotlight. Unfortunately, their unique modern heritage is less appreciated than their value as real estate in prime locations. The country’s weak rule-of-law is allowing private speculators to obtain public assets almost without scrutiny. Having survived a communist war, can the New Khmer Architecture survive the capitalist peace?

Helen Grant Ross and Darryl Collins, the authors of  “Building Cambodia”, have agreed to address the club and share their thoughts on this remarkable body of architecture work and its current standing. 

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Panel Discussion on a New Book on Burma
Accessing Burma’s Ceasefire Accords

Wednesday, October 3 at 8:00 pm
Cover charge for non-members:  300 Baht

The Burmese military government and numerous ethnic minority armed groups have entered a series of ceasefires since 1989, a year after crushing country-wide democracy movement in 1988.

This book written by two Burmese researchers, Zaw Oo (a Ph.D. candidate at American University) and Win Min (a lecturer at Payap University, Chiang Mai) discusses why the parties entered into ceasefire accords, what the nature of the accords is, what the consequences have been (in the context of peace-building, nation-building and democratization) and what the future scenarios are.  Ceasefires ethnic groups were allowed to attend the constitution-drafting process which just finished last month.  The authors will talk about the reasons, nature and impacts of ceasefires, as well as whether the convention’s results will lead to peace in the ethnic states in Burma or not.  They will also talk about the possible outcomes of the recent demonstrations which are the most significant since 1988.  These demonstrations have been led by monks and have taken place in many cities and towns, and they may lead to increased pressure for political change.

Publisher:
East-West Center Washington
1819 L Street, NW, Suite 200
Washington, D.C.20036
Tel: (202) 293 3995, Fax: (202) 293 1402
E-mail: publications@eastwestcenterwashington.org
Website: www.eastwestcenterwashington.org
On line at: www.eastwestcenterwashington.org/publications

Distributor:
Institute of Southeast Asian Studies (ISEAS)
30 Heng Mui Keng Terrace
Pasir Panjang Road
Singapore 119614
Tel: (65) 6870 2447, Fax: (65) 6775 6259
Email: publish@iseas.edu.sg
Website: http://bookshop.iseas.edu.sg

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Documentary Screening
Prayer of Peace:
Relief & Resistance in Burma’s War Zone

Tuesday, October 9 at 8:00 pm
  Cover charge for non-members:  300 Baht

On the front line of conflict deep inside Burma this documentary follows ethnic relief workers as they aid internally displaced people suffering under the Burma Army.  Focusing on a female medic and a pastor/human rights cameraman, the film reveals a people that have maintained their dignity and hope for peace despite the odds. This documentary was filmed over three months on the frontline in Karen State on relief missions with the Free Burma Rangers.

The Free Burma Rangers are a multi-ethnic humanitarian service movement. Free Burma Rrangers relief teams travel into Burma’s war zones to provide emergency medical care, shelter, food, clothing and human rights documentation. The teams also operate a communication and information network inside Burma that provides real time information from areas under attack. Together with other groups, the teams work to serve people in need.

“Since I was a child I have never known peace. We’ve always had to run from the Burma soldiers. When my family was sick there was no medicine. We would look for help but there was none. Because of this my parents died in the jungle. So I decided to be a nurse.” – Karen relief worker

Matt Blauer is a filmmaker focusing on human rights in SE Asia. His work has screened in remote villages, at film festivals, before U.S. Congress, the UN, and on news and television worldwide.

The filmmaker, a Free Burma Rangers relief team member and a Thai human rights advocate will be available to answer questions relating to the film and it’s subject. With focus on answering questions about the situation of internally displaced people and the Burma Army’s efforts of suppressing resistance.

Panel:

  -  Matt Blauer – Independent filmmaker
  -  Saw Doh Say -  Free Burma Ranger relief team member
  -  Dr. Decha Tangseefa – Thammasat University

Please note that Silkworm Books which is distributing the DVD in Thailand will also attend the screening and DVDs will tentatively be available.

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Child Injury:
An Avoidable Tragedy

Wednesday, October 17 at 8:00 pm
  Cover charge for non-members:  300 Baht

Thousands of children across Asia are being wiped out every year by a largely unrecognized pandemic. It’s not on the priority list for governments; the deaths are largely occurring off the official record; and the people resign themselves to the loss believing it’s the work of evil spirits, retribution for past wrongs. Child deaths through injury, primarily drowning and road traffic accidents, are taking more lives each year than HIV, malaria, dengue fever and tuberculosis.

So why aren’t prevention programs like survival swimming commonplace in Asia? And why are these deaths going largely unrecorded? Co-founder of The Alliance for Safe Children (TASC) and former American Ambassador to Vietnam, Douglas “Pete” Peterson and Prof Chitr Sitthi-amorn, Immediate Past Dean of the College of Public Health, Chulalongkorn University, discuss what their research has revealed and their vision for reducing the number of children who are needlessly dying each year. They will also reflect on the findings of the most recent study, the Thai National Injury Survey, which specifically examined the situation in urban and rural Thailand.
 
Belinda Lawton
Media, Communications and Education Officer
The Alliance for Safe Children
Ph: (662) 655 4811
www.tasc-gcipf.org

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La Comunidad
(Common Wealth)
  a film written and directed by Álex de la Iglesia
Courtesy of the Spanish Embassy

Thursday, September 27 at 8:00 pm
  Cover charge for non-members (movie only):  150 Baht

Screening preceded at 7:00 pm by Spanish wine
and a selection of authentic tapas,
courtesy of the Embassy of Spain’s
Commercial Section (www.winesfromspain.com)
and Tapas Café Spanish Bar & Restaurant
for members: 50 Baht; for non-members: 150 Baht

Middle-aged real estate agent Julia Garcia is showing an apartment in Madrid.  It’s a little run-down outside but inside, it’s fabulous.  So much so that Julia decides that as long as she’s got the keys, she might as well invite her husband over for a few days, hoping the change of place will re-ignite her marriage. 

When the ceiling starts to crack and rain down cockroaches, though, Julia pokes around and finds, to her surprise and dismay, the rotting corpse of the previous tenant.  The stiff is removed but, still poking around, she and her husband find a fortune in cash stashed under the floorboards.  They decide to keep it but getting it out of the building will be tough, as the other inhabitants have taken a sudden interest in everything Julia does.  They, it turns out, also know about the money and have a deal to split it up among themselves if anybody finds it.

From this setup, director Álex de la Iglesia (who made his name as a cult director with Day of the Beast and Dance with the Devil, two wildly successful farces) extracts a clever and engaging black comic fantasy that serves up both real laughs and thrills.  Brilliant Spanish  actress Carmen Saura (a favorite in world-famous  Director Pedro Almodavar’s films) is rivetting in the lead.

The movie has collected a huge cache of awards including Spanish Cinema Writers Circle honors, the Special Jury Prize at the Cognac Festival du Film Policier, best picture at Fotogramas de Plata, and a nomination for the Golden Star at the Marrakech International Film Festival.

The screening will also provide an opportunity to sample lovely Spainish wines, courtesy of the Spanish Embassy’s Commercial Section (www.winesfromspain.com), with a light meal of authentic tapas, made and served fresh by Tapas Café Spanish Bar and Restaurant.  Make an evening of it, as you eat, drink and enjoy another award-winning film in our continuing series on the best of contemporary world cinema.

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GAATW Report Launch
Collateral Damage:
The Impact of Anti-Trafficking Measures
on Human Rights around the World

Thursday, September 27 at 10:00 am
 

Since the adoption of the UN Trafficking Protocol in 2000, governments have deployed an enormous amount of resources to anti-trafficking initiatives intended to prevent human trafficking, to prosecute traffickers and to protect victims of this crime.

Increasingly, however, practitioners and human rights organisations have expressed concern about the impact of anti-trafficking strategies, noting that many initiatives have proven counter-productive for the very people they were intended to benefit. Against this background, GAATW commissioned the research and writing of a report appraising the human rights repercussions of government policies and anti-trafficking initiatives on the people living, working and migrating within and across national borders.

The report considers the experiences of eight countries: Australia; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Brazil; India; Nigeria; Thailand; the United Kingdom; and the United States of America. In the main, it seeks to respond to two questions: Have anti-trafficking measures provided scope for a greater number of victims to exercise their human rights more fully in obtaining access to justice and protection from trafficking?; Or have prevention initiatives instead had a negative impact on such victims and/or others?

The report, entitled ‘Collateral Damage: The Impact of Anti-Trafficking Measures on Human Rights around the World’ , differs from others of its ilk in that it is the first to focus not only on trafficked persons but also on ‘victims of anti-trafficking measures’. T he report gives examples showing that actions designed to prevent trafficking in human beings have caused substantial ‘collateral damage’ both to the very people whose rights they aim to protect and other groups, such as migrant workers and sex workers. As a result, trafficked persons and migrant workers, women, children and men, have faced a raft of violations of their human rights, ranging from detention to restricted freedom to forced repatriation to high risk situations. In the light of these findings, the report makes a number of recommendations to governments for improving protection and effectively preventing trafficking.

The report is a thoughtful reminder that the rights and interests of affected people need to be at the very centre of any policy and practice intended to improve their human rights.

Keynote speakers at the launch will be:

  -  Mike Dottridge, Editor of the report and a member of GAATW’s Working-group on Research
  -  Jackie Pollock, researcher and author for the chapter on Thailand and Director of MAP Foundation
  -  Varunee Wongchaikham, Coordinator for the Direct Assistance Programme at SEPOM, a Thailand based NGO assisting trafficked women.

Also, present at the launch will be representatives of member organisations of GAATW from around the world, representatives of Bangkok based NGOs and UN agencies, as well as representatives of the Government of Thailand and the media.

For more information, please contact Michelle Taguinod, michelle@gaatw.org
 
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Job Opening

Reporter

BNA, a leading publisher of government news and information that affects business, seeks a reporter working in SE Asia to be our regional correspondent.

The ideal candidate will be someone based in Thailand or elsewhere in the region and has experience covering business and government news. The beat includes international trade, environment, tax, e-commerce, banking, economics, law and other issues covered by BNA. Stories will be focused on the SE Asia region including Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam as well as regional stories including APEC and ASEAN developments.

Applicants must be native English speakers with several years of experience writing on daily deadline for US-based publications. Language skills, particularly Thai and Vietnamese, are a plus.

This is a substantial, ongoing freelance assignment that historically has been the reporter’s primary string. BNA expects to receive three to five stories per week on average, with room for more from aggressive reporters.

To apply, send a resume or c.v. and up to five published hard news clips (no features, please) to correspondentjobs@bna.com.

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Art/Photo Gallery
for the month of September
 
 Nowhere People:
 Unwanted and Stateless in Asia

An exhibition by Greg Constantine
This exhibition is sponsored by the UNHCR, the U.N. Refugee Agency.

  Exhibition Hours:  Monday-Friday 10:00am-11:00pm
 for the month of September

It is estimated that some 13 million people worldwide are affected by ‘statelessness’. They are denied the fundamental right to citizenship, have no recognized nationality, are refused most social, civil and economic rights and have been forced to live in the margins of society. Statelessness removes people from the protection of laws and leaves them defenseless against harassment, exploitation and human rights abuses. Stateless people are the unwanted and the unwelcome and are some of the most vulnerable, disenfranchised and invisible people in the world, especially in Asia.

Nowhere People is an on-going project from photographer Greg Constantine that exposes the “human face” of statelessness and documents some of the most desperate stateless groups in Asia: the Bihari in Bangladesh, the Rohingya from Burma, stateless children in Malaysian Borneo and the lower caste Dailts or ‘untouchables’ in the Terai of southern Nepal. It explores how statelessness and the denial of citizenship perpetuates extreme poverty, forced migration, landlessness, illiteracy and women’s rights, as well as a number of human rights abuses. Moreover, Nowhere People calls attention to an issue that is shared by all stateless groups:  they are all victims of a radical form of exclusion that has left them voiceless, invisible and paralyzed by poverty, discrimination and an absence of power and choice.

As democratic and multi-ethnic societies continue to reshape cultures around the world, citizenship and the basic rights afforded from citizenship have never been more vital to one’s participation and security in society.  Yet, for ethnic minorities around the world, this fundamental right to citizenship has never been more fragile and at risk. 

This exhibition is sponsored by UNHCR, the U.N. Refugee Agency.  More information on the artist is at:  www.gregconstantine.com
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Our Sincere Thanks

The FCCT gratefully acknowledges the generosity and support of our sponsors.  Please support our sponsors when you can, as they support us!
Major Sponsors – Thanks for their generous contributions to the Club’s programs and activities

• Coca-Cola Company and Thai Pure Drinks, Ltd., authorized bottler for products including Coca-Cola, Fanta, and Sprite
• Maneeya Realty
• Pfizer (Thailand) Limited
• Riche Monde (Thailand), distributor of Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky
  
• Star Alliance for air tickets which make it possible to bring exceptional guest speakers to the FCCT and for our Wi-Fi Internet Service
• Unilever Thailand

Sponsors

• Nation Multimedia Group for daily delivery of The Nation
• Post Publishing Co., Ltd., for daily delivery of the Bangkok Post
• Heineken Thailand

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The Bulletin is published weekly by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand, Penthouse, Maneeya Center, 518/5 Ploenchit Road, Patumwan, Bangkok 10330, Thailand.  President: Amy Kazmin. First vice-president: Simon Montlake. Second vice-president: Nirmal Ghosh. Treasurer:  Henry J Silverman.  Clubhouse manager: Suchawadee Khaosam-ank.  Office telephone: 02 652-0580-1; telefax: 02 652-0582.  Clubhouse telephone: 02 254-8165.  E-mail: fccthai@loxinfo.co.th.  Web site: www.fccthai.com.  Opinions expressed may be entirely those of an individual writer or organization, and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the FCCT, nor does the FCCT, by virtue of publication in The Bulletin, assume any liability therefore.  Copyright © 2007, Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand and others.  All rights reserved.

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About FCCT

For five decades, the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand has played a vanguard role as Southeast Asia’s most active press club.  The club advocates press freedom as a cornerstone of civil society in emerging democracies and is a vital venue for an open exchange of information. Our speakers range from heads of state to local activists to international advocates, many of whom address issues that might not get a full hearing without the support of the FCCT.

Who Comes to See Us?

Prime Minister Surayud Chulanont and all Thailand Prime Ministers since the early 1980’s, Hans Blix, former United Nations Chief Weapons Inspector for Iraq, Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Laureate, Rupert Everett, actor and activist, The Rev. Jesse Jackson, former U.S. Presidential candidate, Xanana Gusmao, President of East Timor, Tom Ridge, former Director of the U.S. Homeland Security Department, His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Dr. Peter Piot, Executive Director UNAIDS, senior members of the Thai government, Ambassadors to Thailand from the U.S.A.., India, Europe, and Asia.

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Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Thailand
Penthouse, Maneeya Center Building
518/5 Ploenchit Road (connected to the BTS Skytrain Chitlom station)
Patumwan, Bangkok 10330
Tel.: 02-652-0580-1
Fax: 02-652-0582
E-mail:  fccthai@loxinfo.co.th
Web Site:  http://www.fccthai.com

Hours of Operation – All departments are open Monday-Friday and closed Saturday, Sunday, and Holidays

Clubhouse
(including Art/Photo Gallery)
10:00 am – 11:00 pm
Restaurant
12:00 noon – 2:30pm
6:00 pm – 9:00pm
Bar
12:00 noon – 11:00 pm
Office
9:30 am – 6:00 pm

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