Landmark major peace conference begins in Myanmar
Arakan News Agency The four-day historical Panglong Conference gathered representatives of the government, parliament, military, invited political parties, ethnic armed and non-armed organisations and civil society. Suu Kyi hopes the peace talks will pave the way towards a federal system for Myanmar. Reform measures introduced by the Myanmar government since 2011 have indeed provided powerful […]
Hundreds protest in Myanmar over Suu Kyi’s panel on Rohingya Muslims
Arakan News Agency Hundreds in Myanmar rallied on Tuesday against an advisory commission led by former U.N. chief Kofi Annan to find solutions to the conflict between the country’s Buddhists and minority Rohingya Muslims, which has cast a pall over democratic reforms. The plight of the Rohingya has raised questions about Myanmar leader Aung San […]
Two Political Parties Object to Myanmar Government’s Rakhine Commission
Arakan News Agency The day before, the office of State Counselor Aung San Suu Kyi announced the appointment of former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan to chair the nine-member commission, which includes three international representatives, four Buddhist and Muslim members from Myanmar, and two Myanmar government representatives.But in a letter to the government on Thursday, […]
Political parties in Myanmar demands to continue the 1982 citizenship law
Arakan News Agency Political parties in Arakan state of Myanmar demands the government to continue the implementation of Citizenship law of 1982, especially due to the affairs of Rohingyas, which may determine their legal status in the country. Agency correspondent reported that these parties called on the government as Buddhists are dominant on government positions […]
Myanmar extends curfew in two cities densely populated with Muslim
Arakan News Agency Myanmar authorities extended the curfew in works in a number of towns north of Arakan State starting on Monday, according to local officials. According to the Myanmar Times, the authorities’ actions began in late at night in the town of Buthidaung and Maungdaw in areas that have experienced violence in 2012 between […]
An Algerian activist denounces Myanmar’s acts against Muslims
Arakan News Agency Algerian human rights activist Donia Massoud has denounced the media blackout practiced by the Government of Myanmar on Rohingya to hide crimes against Muslims in Arakan State. Massoud said in an interview with the New Youth newspaper: “In Arakan State there are restricted area or area which are prohibited to access by […]
Ashin Wirathu: The Quran is the reason for the spread of violence and extremism in the world
Arakan News Agency The Buddhist extremist monk “Ashin Wirathu” said in a local radio station in Myanmar that the teaching of the Quran is “the cause of the spread of violence and extremism around the world,” he added that: “In the world many terrorist incidents are from the followers of the Islamic religion, and they […]
Sri Lanka Conference condemns the ethnic cleansing against Rohingya Muslims
Arakan News Agency The participants in the international conference «Muslims and the prospects for coexistence» held by the Muslim World League in cooperation with the Sri Lanka’s Islamic Center condemned ethnic cleansing suffered by Muslims in Myanmar, and called on its government to recognize their rights, and to protect them and their mosques and villages, […]
Thai court sentences man to 35 years in Rohingya trafficking case
Arakan News Agency A Thai court on Wednesday sentenced a man to 35 years in prison for trafficking ethnic Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar, in a high-profile case that led to the discovery of jungle camps, mass graves and an international trafficking ring. On Jan. 11, 2015, police intercepted five vehicles at a checkpoint in Hua […]
Rights group calls on Myanmar to investigate Rohingya woman’s death
Arakan News Agency Residents of conflict-plagued ethnic minority regions and human rights workers have for years accused Myanmar troops of rights abuses including rape Human rights advocates have called on Myanmar to investigate the death of a young woman from the country’s persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority, who died this month after being found naked and […]
UN chief calls on Myanmar to respect human rights, ahead of his visit to Southeast Asian country
Arakan News Agency United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on Myanmar’s new leadership to pay “full respect” to human rights in the Southeast Asian country. “The new leadership must now overcome discrimination, ensure equality and promote inclusive development for all, with full respect for human rights,” Ban said on Monday on the eve […]
Denied work, Rohingya trapped in limbo in Malaysia
Arakan News Agency The first time he tried to escape a tough existence in his village in western Myanmar in 2004, Junaid Zafar was thrown in jail for five years. Like many other Rohingya Muslims, Zafar was seeking to flee poverty and persecution in Buddhist-majority Myanmar and he did not wait long after being released […]
Thailand to extradite trafficking suspects to Malaysia
Arakan News Agency Thailand has agreed to a formal request to extradite 10 nationals to Malaysia where they will face charges of human trafficking along the two countries’ border. Many of those trafficked were Rohingya Muslims, temporarily held at camps in Malaysia in 2015 while officials attempted a clampdown on trafficking in Thailand. Malaysia’s Deputy […]