MOSQUE REPAIR PROHIBITED

The Na Sa Ka (border security force) camp No. 21 belonging to Area 9, in north Arakan ordered to stop repair work of the floor of Haji Taher Mosque at Ponnyonleik village about 8 miles south-east of Buthidaung. The order was delivered verbally by the said Na Sa Ka camp when they came to know that repair work of the floor of the concrete mosque building was going on. Since last few years the military authorities in north Arakan has totally banned construction of new concrete mosques and Madrasahs. However, repair work was tolerated to certain extent. But at present even repair work of the concrete structures have been prohibited

15 ROHINGYA YOUTHS INDICTED IN FALSE CASE OF RAPE AND MURDER FLED TO BANGLADESH.

15 Rohingya youths, all belonging to Pauktaw Byin village under Taung Bazaar village tract of Buthidaung township have recently fled to Bangladesh to escape arrest in a false case of rape and murder. The incidence in brief was that in the late last year a group of Na Sa Ka entered the house of one villager namely Abdul Malik from Pauktaw Byin village in the dead hours of the night and seized away his 15 years old beautiful daughter. Although the old parents made hue and cry no one came to rescue the victim, as there was curfew from 6 AM to 6 PM in that area and everyone dreaded the wrath of Na Sa Ka. The Na Sa Ka gang-raped the girl for the whole night and as result of severe bleeding the victim died. Her body was then thrown into a bush near the Kalapanzin river. In the morning when the dead body was found and taken to the house of the victim a group of Na Sa Ka who were already waiting near by filed a false case against 15 youths of the same village accusing them of rape and murder. The dead body was sent to Akyab for post-mortem examination. Although every villager knows very well that the girl was violated and killed by the Na Sa Ka, no one dared to give any kind of evidence against them. At last the court has given a verdict that the 15 youths of the village are responsible for the rape and murder of the girl. The guardians of the youths tried their best to bribe the authorities to free them from this false allegation. A large sum of money had also been extorted from them. At last unable to tolerate daily harassment, they all had to flee to Bangladesh to escape arrest.       

District Peace and Development COUNCIL’S WARNING to speed up evacuation of Muslims villages

On 18.5.99 Lt. Col. Tun Hla Oo Chairman of Buthidaung District PDC in a   speech    to    the   Chairmen      and Secretaries of all village committees of the Taung Bazaar village tract, under Buthidaung township warned that serious action would be taken if they fail to complete evacuation process of Muslim villages and confiscation of lands between Maunggritaung and Taungbazar before the end of monsoon. He told the meeting that over 1,000 Buddhist families from interior Burma would be established after the completion of the evacuation process.  He gave necessary directions to make all out preparation for building homes and avail other important needs of the new settlers. The Chairmen of District PDC in another meeting held on 24.5.99 at U Ottama hall, at Buthidaung township ordered to confiscate 100 acres of land at Payabyin village under Thayet Pyin village tract and to complete work of constructing 66 houses for new Burmese settlers. He further instructed to construct 35 houses for new settlers over the demolished mosque site near Aung Mingala army cantonment 6 miles west of Buthidaung township. The above houses are to be constructed with the forced labor of Muslims from near by villages. Earlier, in the month of April, 63 acres of land have been confiscated from one Sayeddur Rahman, a primary teacher, hailing from Yaugma Kyaungdaung village on which 23 houses were built for the new settlers. The new Buddhist village was named " Tharafu village". Another 50 acres of farmland belonging to late Abdus Salam Headman of Buthidaung town situated at just eastern side of Mayu river have been confiscated and a signpost reading "model agricultural plot" has been erected on the site.

ROAD CONSTRUCTION GOING ON WITH FORCED LABOUR

Work on a 31 feet wide metal road covering between Aung Mingala army cantonment about 6 miles west of Buthidaung township and Buthidaung Railway Jetty touching Mayu river had been going on in full swing. Although the UNHCR has provided Kyat 20 million for the construction of the road, the junta is engaging local Muslim villagers and Muslim prisoners as forced labourers in the said project.

ROHINGYA LAND  & FORCED LABOUR FOR NEW BUDDHIST VILLAGES

Under the so-called Border Areas Development Programme, the military junta known as State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) has been establishing hundreds of Buddhist villages over the confiscated Muslim farmlands and uprooted Muslim villages in north Arakan with the forced labor of the Muslims. Under the direct instruction of SPDC Chairman Senior Gen. Than Shwe and Secretary No. 1 Lt. Gen. Khin Nyunt, commander of the Western Command Brig. Aung Swe, personally supervised the settlement programmes. Each family of the new settlers have been provided 3 acres of land for cultivation, 0.2 acre for house building, Kyat 40,000 as lump sum monetary help, 40 Kg of rice free of cost per month, one pair of bullocks and one bullock cart. Each village has also been provided with fifteen 5HP Honda tractors. Muslim villagers of neighbourhood are forced to construct the houses for new settlers, plough the land, transplant paddy and harvest the crop without any payment. 

NEW SETTLERS HARASSING MUSLIMS OF THE NEIGHBOURHOOD

Villagers of the newly settled Buddhist villages near Taung Bazaar have been used to waylay goat, cows, buffaloes and fouls of the Muslims of the neighbourhood giving various lame excuses. Muslims' complaint to the chairman of the Buddhist settlements went totally unheeded. Rumours are rife in the area that the new settlers who have come down from Burma's eastern region of Shan State are cannibals as some of them urged the Muslims to give them their dead ones. One day on May 25, 1999 three Rohingya cowboys of the age of about 14 to 15 have been kidnapped by the new settlers and hid in their village. Startled parents and villagers immediately informed the matter to the near by military regiment Kha- Ma- Ra (light infantry force) 552 who sent 8 soldiers in civilian clothes to persuade the settlers to release the boys. However, the settlers were defiant and told the soldiers that they will not listen to anybody as they have come to this area under the direct order of Chairman and Secretary of SPDC. After a brief brawl more reinforcements were sent and the three Rohingya boys were rescued.

8 Rohingyas jailed on fake allegation

In May 1999 the following Rohingyas namely 1. Mohamed Hashim son of Mohamed Hassan 2. Mohamed Amin son of Baser 3. Mohamed Ayub son of Mohamed Siddiq belonging to Setyogya village under Buthidaung township 4. Rashid Ahmed son of Abdul Hakim 5. Kalaboda son of Hafiz Ahmed 6. Abdullah 7. Abu Siddque and 8. Bentoya belonging to Zummapara village tract under Buthidaung township have been detained by commanding officer of Na Sa Ka camp No. 21, Area 9 with the fake allegation of crossing the border and contacting with insurgent groups. While under Na Sa Ka detention they were beaten up and tortured for 5 days to extract confession. All of them were later sent to Buthidaung police station, which filed cases against them according to report of Na Sa Ka . All of them were later sentenced to 3 months imprisonment each with hard labor by the Buthidaung township court.

Works to establish Army Brigade on confiscated Muslim land going on

More than 522 acres of farmlands and adjoining hilly areas have been confiscated by uprooting 300 Muslim houses in Kyakkapa kan byin village adjacent to newly built Laymyetna Buddhist pagoda, under Buthidaung township in north Arakan. About 150 Rohingya forced labourers are engaged to clear the jungles and to carry out earthworks for constructing buildings for the establishment of an army Brigade. The work has been carried out under the direct supervision of Lt. Col. Tin Myint commanding officer of the No. 15 military operating region.

Junta struck business deal with Khunsa to carry out projects in north Arakan

It is learnt from reliable sources that opium king Khunsa and SPDC had struck a business deal to carry out 10 projects in north Arakan. Preliminary survey works are being carried out by men of Khunsa at the moment.

FRESH REFUGEES

During the recent months, a number of Rohingya refugees have crossed into Bangladesh due to ethnic cleansing policy of the SPDC military government of Burma.

In early May 2000 the police of Cox's Bazar and Bandarban Hill Districts arrested 100 such refugees from different places. It has been reported that, despite repatriation, the Rohingya refugees have again crossed into Bangladesh through the border areas with UNHCR kits and cash money.

The report says that fresh influx of Rohingya refugees began soon after the repatriation began. Since then five to ten Rohingya refugees are daily entering Bangladesh through the border entry.  But some vested interests are spreading misleading information with fallacies and lies through the media about their sheltering in different places of Bangladesh. In fact, the fresh sporadic influx of Rohingyas is caused due to persecution against them in Arakan and as such they deserve all sympathy from the Bangladesh authorities, local people and international community on humanitarian ground, considering the extent of their untold sufferings and miseries in their ancestral homeland of Arakan.

ROHINGYA VILLAGERS FORCED TO SUPPORT NA-SA-KA CAMP

A new NaSaKa camp was established in NaSaKa Area No. 3 in Puran Dia, an islet of the Parrot Island (Tutardip), about 15 miles north of Maugdaw town. The Rohingya shrimp culture project owners around the islet have been subjected to supply all necessities of the camp such as, ration, pocket money, and family expenditures of the forces. In addition, they have to pay for a 13 horse powered boat, 2 communication sets and 2 deep tube wells or water supply.

Over and above, the Rohingya project owners have to contribute for the following monthly expenditures of the forces:- ration Kyats 156,000, family expenditures kyats 300,000, boat maintenance kyats 150,000,  communication set (one time) kyats 300,000, tube wells (one time) kyats 60,000.

EXTORTION FROM THE ROHINGYA VILLAGERS

The Rohingyas have been living in sub-human condition under the tyrannical rule of the Burmese military. They have been subjected large-scale persecution. In their efforts to exterminate them completely, the Commander of the NaSaKa Area No. 5 Major Kyaw Naing had ordered the Rohingya villagers of the 12 village tracts of his area to contribute the all necessary items to them, failing which the villagers have to pay double in addition to an imprisonment for a period of one and half months.

1858 MORE BURMAN BUDDHIST SETTLERS

50 fresh Burman Buddhist families, consisting of 185 males and 168 females, are brought in North Arakan and are settled in Kyainggyi village of Maungdaw township and Pitauk village of Rathedaung township.

Most of these settlers belong to North Ukkalapa in the suburb of the capital Rangoon. The settlers include drug addicts and people of social menace. The poor Rohingya villagers have to do everything for them.

Earlier during the 4^th week of March, 1500 Burman Buddhists had also been brought into to the township of Buthidaung and were settled  in and around the Rohingya villages of Zedibyin, Yaung Chaung, Taminchaung. Arable land of the poor Rohingya villagers had been confiscated for distribution among those settlers at the rate of 3 acres  per family. This is a continued process of the Burmese military, under its so-called border development project, as a part of their extermination design against the Muslim of Arakan.

FORCED LABOUR IN CHIN STATE

The military extract forced labor from the Christian community of the township of Haka in Chin State to build pagodas for the Buddhists. The forced labor situation in the area is intense from 24^th March 2000.

FORCED LABOUR TO BE CONTINUED IN BURMA DESPITE ILO VISIT

The SPDC has agreed to accept a visit to Burma by a delegation from ILO to examine the forced labor situation in the country. It has been said that the acceptance on the part of the SPDC is just to divert the mind of the international community who are critical of Burma human rights records. The decision was taken particularly in the face of the growing fear that Burma would be expelled from the ILO in its ensuing conference in June next.  However, it has been practically found that no good sense prevails yet in the minds of the military and forced labor becomes daily phenomenal in the whole of the country. It has become worst in Arakan.

On 9 May 2000 the Commander of the Dabru Chaung Brigade No. 6 of Buthidaung Brigadier Soe Naing Tut, in a meeting with chairmen and secretaries of the Village PDC, told that more roads would be built in North Arakan for military and communication purposes with the (so-called) contribution of the people. He ordered the following villagers to build an 8 mile long road, with their labor and money, linking Attwang Ngathe village with Palay Taung Regiment 264 and is to be completed by 2001.

(1) Kyithama Palaytaung Rwa (2) San Yin Way Rwa (3) Kwandine Rwa (4) Nanragun Rwa (5) Tharakamanu Rwa (6) Dabru Chaung Rwa (7) U Hla Pe Rwa (8) Rwa Ngyotaung Rwa (9) Attwan Ngatthe Rwa (10) Kindaung Rwa. (Rwa means village). It indicates that the military will continue to exact forced labor from the people

Refugee situation in Bangladesh camps

Rohingya refugees in Kutupalong refugee camp and Nayapara refugee camps in Cox's Bazar District of Bangladesh are passing their days in great anxi­ety due to the uncertainty of their safe return to their homeland of Arakan. Now the repatriation takes place only once a week with small number of refugees being repatriated. No one wants to remain in refugee camp for­ever leaving his sweet home. Everybody is homesick and aspires for early return to his home to live peacefully and honorably. They want safe and vol­untary repatriation, at the earliest possible time, in a favourable and congenial atmosphere. Some of the refugees are reluctant to opt for repatriation fearing the wrath of Burmese military junta. Others are afraid to be impli­cated in false cases and get ar­rested on their return homes.

According to Bangladesh officials a total of 19362 refugees belonging to 4461 families are currently staying at the refugee camps as the repatriation process is underway in a slow pace in line with Dhaka-Rangoon treaty several years ago. Out of the 7000 cleared people, more than 1500 were repatriated and another 5500 are in the process of scrutiny for   receiving them back. The last batch of 36 refugees went back to their home in Arakan province of Burma on May 31, 2000.

UNHCR fears that complicated situations arises if Burma refuses to take the rest of the Rohingyas beyond the last list of 7000 refugees that Rangoon cleared earlier. According to Bangladesh officials, more than 250,877 Rohingya refugees in 1991 fled home to take refuge in Bangladesh due to large-scale persecution against them by the Burmese military and other armed forces. So far, 2,31,549 refugees were repatriated to Arakan on the basis of an agreement between Bangladesh and Burma signed on 29^th April 1992. But the repatriation process was stalled for 16 months when Burma refused to accept the refugees in July 1997 on a so-called plea that the date of the bilateral agreement on repatriation expired.

Sometimes tense situation exists in the refugee camps, usually created by the camp authorities, over forced repatriation. Intermittent cuts and insufficient supply of rations, constant mental and physical harassment by the security forces aiming at their accepting the repatriation are permanent phenomena in the refugee camps. There are instances  that refugees got killed and refugee women died of suicide in the refugee camps.

Military exercise in Bay of Bengal

On 15 May 2000, Burma armed forces conducted a military exercise in Arakan coast in the Bay of Bengal. It was participated by 500 combined forces of army, air force and navy. The Deyawaddi Naval Base made all necessary arrangement for the manoeuvring supervised by two Chinese military experts. It was a rare exercise in recent years.