Renewed Arakan State Violence Underscores Government’s Failure to Protect Minorities and to Prevent Ethnic Cleansing

Renewed communal violence in Arakan State has exposed the Burmese government’s failure to stop ethnic cleansing, protect minority groups, especially Muslim Rohingya, and implement reforms to address the root causes of human rights violations targeting these groups, said the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and its member organisation, the Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (Altsean-Burma) […]

Urgent Aid Needed for Rohingya Starving in Their Own Homes

A new crisis is emerging in Arakan State, Burma, where up to 700,000 Rohingya are trapped in their homes and villages, unable to go out and buy food or farm because of ongoing attacks and threats against them. BROUK is already receiving reports of babies dying from malnutrition […]

BROUK Appeal to World Body to Put Pressure on President Thein Sein’s Rohingya Ethnic Cleansing Proposal

Today, Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK appeals to world leaders at the UN General Assembly to put pressure on President Thein Sein following his proposal to remove all Rohingya people from Burma and place them in third countries.

After President Thein Sein’s proposal, Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK) has received reports till today that there have been mass arrests with Rohingya people kept in detention camps without trial, without food or medical services […]

European Parliament Urges Burma to Amend Citizenship Law and Allow Humanitarian Aid to Rakhine State

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) welcomes yesterday’s European Parliament resolution on the persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Burma, which called on the Burmese government to amend its controversial 1982 citizenship law that effectively […]

Urgent Action: Doctor Held Incommunicado in Myanmar

Dr Tun Aung was arrested on 11 June in Rakhine state, western Myanmar and has been held in incommunicado detention since. He is a practicing medical doctor and the chairman of the Islamic Religious Affairs Council in Maungdaw. He suffers from […]

Bangladesh: Assist, Protect Rohingya Refugees

Humanitarian Aid Desperately Needed; Crisis Situation in Burma Continues

The government of Bangladesh should immediately cease its punitive restrictions on international organizations providing lifesaving humanitarian aid to the more than 200,000 Rohingya Muslims in Bangladesh, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should also open its borders to Rohingya fleeing sectarian violence and abuses by Burmese security forces in Arakan State in western Burma […]

UN Commission of Inquiry will be the Credible Investigation on Arakan Violence

We, the undersigned Rohingya organizations welcome the formation of the Commission of inquiry to investigate on the violence of Arakan State by the President of Burma. At the same time we feel this investigation will not be credible and truly independent because […]

Statement of ASEAN Foreign Ministers on the Recent Developments in the Rakhine State, Myanmar

ASEAN Foreign Ministers reaffirmed their strong support for the ongoing democratization process in Myanmar. Within the context of such positive progress, the ASEAN Foreign Ministers are following closely recent developments in the Rakhine State […]

UN Special Rapporteur Calls for Investigations, Accountability and Reconciliation in Burma

Last week, Tomás Ojea Quintana, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights in Burma undertook his sixth visit to the country. His statement upon leaving Rangoon touched on many crucial issues, including the release of political prisoners, the situation in Arakan State and the need for a truth commission.

Quintana welcomed the release of Phyo Wai Aung, a young man falsely accused, tortured and imprisoned for his alleged involvement in bombings during the Thingyan water festival in 2010. While this was a welcome gesture from President Thein Sein, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners reports that there are an estimated 448 political prisoners still behind bars. Each of these individuals must be released immediately, for as Quintana himself stated, “National reconciliation and democratic transition cannot move forward without this necessary step” […]

Statement of the Special Rapporteur on the Situation of Human Rights in Myanmar

I have just concluded my six-day mission to Myanmar – my sixth visit to the country since I was appointed Special Rapporteur in March 2008. I would like to express my appreciation to the Government of Myanmar for its invitation, and for the cooperation and flexibility shown during my visit, in particular for my visit to Rakhine State […]