Rights groups say outside monitors needed for Rohingya return to Myanmar
Arakan News Agency Human rights groups called on Friday for international agencies to be allowed to monitor the planned repatriation of hundreds of thousands Rohingya Muslim from Bangladesh to the homes they fled in Myanmar during the past three months. The two governments signed a pact on Thursday settling terms for the repatriation process. They […]
Rohingya don’t want to go back to Myanmar, and they must not be forced
Arakan News Agency Responding to the announcement that the Governments of Myanmar and Bangladesh have signed an agreement to send Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar, Sanna Johnson, Regional Director for Asia at the International Rescue Committee said: “This announcement is deeply worrying. Refugees are still arriving in camps in Cox’s Bazar on a daily basis, […]
Myanmar signs pact with Bangladesh over Rohingya repatriation
Arakan News Agency Myanmar and Bangladesh have signed an initial deal for the possible repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who fled violence in Arakan state. More than 620,000 Rohingya have crossed the border into Bangladesh since August, running from a military crackdown that Washington said this week clearly constituted ethnic cleansing. Rights […]
U.S. Congress members decry ‘ethnic cleansing’ in Myanmar; Suu Kyi doubts allegations
Arakan News Agency Members of the U.S. Congress said on Tuesday operations carried out against the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar had “all the hallmarks” of ethnic cleansing, while the country’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi expressed doubts about allegations of rights abuses. The U.S. Senate members also said they were disturbed by a “violent and […]
UN ready to help Myanmar process Rohingya citizenship
Arakan News Agency High Commissioner says crisis is worst since Balkan War and Rwanda The United Nations refugee agency will provide technical assistance to the Myanmar government if it begins to process and verify citizenship for Rohingya to resolve the humanitarain crisis, the body’s top official said on Monday. U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo […]
Aung San Suu Kyi blames world conflicts on illegal immigration
Arakan News Agency Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi said the world is facing instability and conflict in part because illegal immigration spreads terrorism in a speech Monday that comes as her country is accused of violently pushing out hundreds of thousands of unwanted Rohingya Muslims. Suu Kyi did not directly mention the refugee exodus […]
China draws three-stage path for Myanmar, Bangladesh to resolve Rohingya crisis
Arakan News Agency China called for a ceasefire in Myanmar’s Rakhine State so that Rohingya Muslim refugees can return from Bangladesh, proposing a three-stage approach to the crisis as diplomats from 51 mostly Asian and European countries gathered in Myanmar on Monday. More than 600,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since late August, driven […]
Bangladesh says it’s in talks with Myanmar on Rohingya repatriation deal
Arakan News Agency Bangladesh is in negotiations with Myanmar aimed at a deal to repatriate displaced Rohingya and Dhaka’s foreign minister will address the matter at talks in Myanmar this week, the Bangladeshi foreign ministry said on Sunday. More than 600,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled to neighboring Bangladesh since late August, driven out by a […]
Over 100 Rohingya refugees killed in two months while fleeing Myanmar, says UNHCR report
Arakan News Agency United Nations: More than 100 Rohingya refugees have drowned in shipwrecks and boat capsizes as they fled from Myanmar to Bangladesh, according to a UN official. Stephane Dujarric, the chief UN spokesman, on Friday said that the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has received reports of some 30 improvised rafts, carrying more than […]
IMF sees stronger growth in Myanmar, but Rohingya crisis may hurt investment
Arakan News Agency The International Monetary Fund on Friday forecast an economic rebound in Myanmar this year, but said the Rohingya refugee crisis may dampen investment as the country faces international pressure over its treatment of the Muslim minority. More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since late August, driven out by a military […]
French FM expresses support for Myanmar leader
Arakan News Agency French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on Monday expressed strong support for Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi, amid criticism of her administration of the Rohingya crisis, stressing that it guarantees the demands of the United Nations. “I have accepted these demands in a very courageous way because the political conditions […]
Israeli writer: Arms sale to Myanmar is proof that Israel is neither free nor democratic
Arakan News Agency Israeli writer Yossi Melman stressed that Israel is not a free democratic society as it claims, citing three reasons to refute the allegations, including the sale of undeclared arms to Myanmar. “Israel prides itself on being a free and democratic society, and part of the Western world, well, not at least exactly […]
Pope advised not to use term ‘Rohingya’ in Myanmar but rights groups disagree
Arakan News Agency Leading figures in the Catholic Church and international politics have advised Pope Francis not to use the term Rohingya during a trip to Myanmar due to political sensitivities but human rights groups want him to uphold international law on self-identity. Hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya have fled Myanmar following a military […]