The People From Nowhere

With Nowhere To Return To
(The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya Men In Thai Detention Center)

Where Is Nowhere?

If anywhere on the planet could be described as "the middle of nowhere" the Arakan in Burma could very well be it. Since Myanmar was created it has been one of the most neglected places on the planet. Aid organizations and NGOs have long been working in Thailand to help refugees fleeing violence and war, but that is on the other side of the country. The Arakan remains isolated as it is tucked between Myanmar and Bangladesh. There it rest as a small sliver of land filled with rivers, mud, and hills. For most of the world it is might as well be on another planet.

So it is of little surprise that when genocide reappeared in the Arakan that most of the world didn't realize it... many still don't. When I ask people if they have heard of the plight of the Rohingya in Burma they often first ask where Burma is. The next question is who are the Rohingya. This is the extent of Western knowledge of Myanmar and the people it oppresses. It is one of the reasons that few in the West are taking action to stop this genocide.

The one term that brings a connection to in the minds of people I talk to is that of "boat people". The images of Burmese refugees taking to rickety boats and braving the waves to hopefully reach safety in Malaysia or Indonesia still rest in the minds of Westerners today. However most of the people in my area of the world don't make the connection between Muslim Rohingya and "boat people" right away. Usually it takes a good deal of explaining to convince people that the Muslims are not the ones committing genocide and creating "boat people" but rather are the refugees. It is this awkward connection between the name Rohingya and "boat people" with which I have been able to describe what "nowhere" is like for these fleeing refugees.

I have come to view the Arakan as being somewhat of "the middle of nowhere" for Rohingya because they aren't legally part of it. Though they have lived there for countless generations and have a strong heritage in the Arakan, the government of Burma claims they are "Bengali invaders". For this reason the Rohingya are homeless in their own homeland. Without citizenship in their own country the Rohingya might as well be anywhere else on the globe than right there at home. And yet they have nowhere else to go.

Those who flee from decades of oppressive rule and modern outbreaks of organized violence are left without a place to which someday return. Due to their lack of Burmese citizenship they have nowhere left to call home. Countries like Thailand, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Indonesia have nowhere to send them home to once they arrive. Those who flee this new wave of genocide enter a state of limbo... a state of unlawful existence according to the countries in which they end up.

The country from which these Rohingya refugees flee is a country where they are targeted for mass executions, slave labor, starvation, and exploitations of all the usual deviant ways. They cannot return to Myanmar with any hopes of a free and dignified life. With hate speech readily preached against them across their homeland, with the threat of more pogroms, and with the reality of starvation and isolation; the Rohingya who flee Burma become people with nowhere to call home.

“They should go to Bangladesh, where they came from, or they should be killed,” Hla Moe Thu, Rakhine Buddhist.

What is Nowhere Like?

For the Rohingya the place that has driven large numbers of them to flee as refugees the place they called home is hellish at best. In June of 2012 their Rakhine neighbors seemed to suddenly realize that Myanmar's "civilian" (an ex-general is President) government was just as xenophobic as the junta had been. Only now the civilians in charge were less likely to stop violence against minorities than their military predecessors had been. All it took was one spark for all hell to break lose.

With the excuse of one Buddhist woman's death the radicalized sect of Buddhism in the Arakan region took to violence instead of the preachings of their Buddha. Arming themselves with guns, knives, and machetes the mobs began to target all Muslim minorities in the region. The Rohingya were prime targets since their typically darker skin and religion made them distinctly different from the Rakhine Buddhists. These few minor differences meant that entire Rohingya villages were easily targeted by torch wielding mobs intent upon slaughtering any Muslims they could catch.

"When the wife of Mohamed Salam was found dead floating in a river, her body carried a sinister message. She was abducted along with two of her children in June, and Salam was later told by sympathetic Buddhists how they had died. According to them, her captors said her breasts gave milk to Muslim babies and her womb gave birth to future generations of Muslims. Her breasts were then hacked off and her genitalia mutilated with sharpened bamboo. Her teenage son was tethered to a motorbike and dragged across a rocky road. Salam would not elaborate on how his daughter met her end." ~ As reported by Brendan Bradly of The Daily Beast.

An eye for an eye. Tooth for a tooth. The Rakhine extremist would exact revenge for the unconfirmed death of a Buddhist woman with such ferocity that no Rohingya person was or is safe today. The need to defend "their people" from "Bengali invaders" was forced upon the rest of the population of the Arakan. People who had been neighbors for years were now enemies due to nothing more than their ethnicity and religion.

This unimaginable hatred is what makes the Arakan a place worthy of being considered "nowhere". When violence is justified through the simplistic view of "us verses them" nobody is safe. When one house is burned, when one life is stolen, there will always be a victim's relative, or friend, or neighbor who is willing to take it upon themselves to exact revenge. It is in this cycle of violence that the Arakan has become a place where no one can truly consider it home.

When the government did show up it rounded the Rohingya up into concentration camps. Taking the opportunity to deal with it's "Rohingya question" once and for all, Burma laid siege to the Rohingya community. Government officials allowed for Rohingya in internally displaced peoples' camps (IDP camps) to be blockaded and refused international relief. Only the most presentable camps, considered wretched and squalid by NGOs, were allowed visitors from the outside world. And even in these concentration camps the Rohingya were found to be starving to death.

This is what nowhere is like for the Rohingya. It is a country where their homes have been burned, where those still left in their villages are kept prisoners by the government, where their children starve due to neglect by Burmese officials... this is nowhere for them to call home.

Life On The Outside...

"Thailand should respect the basic rights of Rohingya ‘boat people’ and stop detaining them in horrific conditions. The government should immediately allow them to pursue their asylum claims with the UN refugee agency"

~ Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch

For the Rohingya who make it out of Burma there is often no time to breathe a breath of freedom. In Thailand the Rohingya are vulnerable to human trafficking, at times at the hands of Thai officials themselves. Those who evade exploitation are more often than not captured by Thai police and taken to detention centers. Instead of being allowed to seek legal asylum in Thailand, these Rohingya are treated like common criminals with little regard to the tragedy that made them refugees in the first place. 

Organization like Human Rights Watch have noted the horrific conditions in which Rohingya are kept in Thailand. Detention centers where 10 to 15 immigrants are supposed to be held now hold upwards of 250 men at a time. These Rohingya are kept in cages like animals. There is little room for them to sit down let alone move about. In these facilities there is no bathroom for the Rohingya men to use. They are simply locked up and forgotten about. 

For nearly six months now these Rohingya have been kept caged in Thailand. In conditions that many pet owners wouldn't keep their dogs or cats, these Rohingya are made to live the most undignified of lives. They are not allowed to be leave. They are simply made to wait till their "temporary stay" in Thailand expires and the government can ship them back to Burma.

Yet these are just a handful of the 20,000 estimated Rohingya who fled so far this boat season. For the rest there is still the threat of exploitation at the hands of human traffickers. Many of which are subjected to trafficking before they even leave Myanmar itself.

Growing concern for these refugees has been fueled by reports that ethnic armies in Burma have engaged in trafficking of Rohingya trying to flee the violence in Burma. This was reported in the Trafficking In Persons report by the United States this year. It stated that the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army had willfully trafficked Rohingya refugees in both Thailand and Myanmar. Other groups have been known to traffic Rohingya along the borders with China and Bangladesh as well. All of these victims are extorted of money and valuables before being either abandoned or sold to traffickers across the border in the destination country. 

Then there has been the issue of Rohingya women being trafficked across Southeast Asia as mail-order brides and sex slaves. Many of these women and girls are taken from the areas hardest hit by the genocide back in Burma. They are sold by "brokers" who then ship them to Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Thailand. From there it is anyone's guess where the Rohingya girls end up. One can only imagine the life these girls are forced to live once they are snatched up from the middle of nowhere and sent away from what family they have left.

Nowhere Left To Run.

“The government should help Rohingya who escape from oppression and hardship in Burma – not worsen their plight.”

~ Brad Adams, Human Rights Watch

For most of the civilized world it is obvious that if a refugee manages to escape the repressive hold of a tyrannical system they should be given an opportunity to taste freedom. However the government of Thailand (along with others) remains of the opinion that Rohingya refugees should simply be "helped along" to their next destination. For many of the Rohingya in Thai custody this means that they will either be sent back to Burma to suffer once again or introduced to a new and equally terrifying version of hell. The willingness to purchase and sell fellow human beings will forever remain a blight upon Thai society as long as the Rohingya are trafficked by Thai officials. And the over eagerness of the Thai government in sending Rohingya back to the torment of genocide will never be forgotten.

If the Rohingya are to have any hope of a better future they must first be granted a glimmer of hope in neighboring lands. The perilous journey that many take to only be once again rejected by the world must be brought to an end. Governments however cannot be expected to alter their current stances upon the issue as long as prejudices against the Rohingya remain ingrained in the societies which they govern. People across the region in which the Rohingya find themselves must find it within themselves to set aside minor differences and take the opportunity to bring relief to a hurting people.

Though it would be ideal for Rohingya to be granted the ability to remain at home in the Arakan the current situation in Burma makes this impossible. If Thailand, Bangladesh, Malaysia, and all other host nations want to end the tidal wave of Rohingya refugees they will first have to pressure Myanmar to end this genocide. Any economic engagement with Myanmar will need to be done through the scope of how it will affect the genocide for better or worse. Governments around the world should rethink what it means to the oppressed minorities of Myanmar for them to take advantage of Burma's opening up to foreign investment. Sanctions should be reinstated and pressure should be applied both economically and militarily before Burma is allowed to return to the world stage.

As long as state sponsored genocide is being conducted in Burma there will always be Rohingya who find themselves with nowhere left to run. The waves of refugees will only increase for as long as the pains of hunger stab at their sides. This refugee crisis will only end when the genocide of the Rohingya is forcibly concluded... either the outside world or by Burma itself.









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Source Documents

(note: not all sources are listed)

Voice Of America 

http://www.voanews.com/content/rohingya-boat-people-face-deadline-and-no-home/1690358.html

The Daily Beast 

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/06/27/burma-s-rohingya-muslims-targeted-by-buddhist-mob-violence.html

Human Rights Watch

http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/06/03/thailand-end-inhumane-detention-rohingya

The Democratic Voice of Burma

http://www.dvb.no/news/politics-news/rohingya-at-%E2%80%98significant%E2%80%99-risk-of-human-trafficking-us-report/28894

Al Jazeera 

http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/03/201331291132937760.html

BBC News

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7830710.stm

A Legacy Of Mere Existence

The Fate Of A Displaced Generation
(The Darkness Visible series)

Scars of the previous generation are the building blocks for the next...

Thirty plus years have passed since the last massive wave of Karen refugees crossed the border to find safety in Thailand. Those who made the journey faced landmines, mortar bombardment, militias and brutal soldiers on both sides, starvation, thirst, and the reality of being homeless and without a homeland. These Karen would be the one of the first generations to raise their children in foreign lands. These Karen would be the some of the first to sacrifice their youth for the hope that one day they might return home. It was these Karen that had watched their homes being burnt as they ran for their lives. It was these Karen that had seen their fathers, husbands, and sons being slaughtered so that the junta could satisfy it's blood lust. 

Thirty years have passed without much recognition by the outside world. Nobody seemed to care when the Karen were driven off their lands under military bombardment. Nobody seemed to be willing to seek peace with the reclusive regime in Myanmar. Instead the world wrote off the suffering of the Karen. We failed to recognize their needs then just as we now seek to satisfy our wants at their expense today. 

Sixty years of civil war have left many Karen internally displaced in Myanmar. For the first half of the erratic war the Karen were largely able to stay within their own homeland. Slowly they lost ground as the Burmese central government pushed it's forces into the Karen villages. Over the years the Burmese military increasingly became more brutal in it's tactics of ethic cleansing. Deploying landmines around villages, the Burmese assured their forces that the Karen civilians would not return. By attacking refugee camps the Burmese forces assured their government that the Karen would have no choice but to flee the country all together. For sixty years the Karen civilians have bore the brunt of Burma's aggression. 

The Border Consortium, “by the age of five, nearly half of all children were found to be stunted,” due to poor nutrition.

For over thirty years life in refugee camps has left the Karen in a constant state of fear and repression. They can't get the food they need to keep their children strong an healthy. They can't get the education that Burmese or Thai children get. The health care available to children in Bangkok isn't available to the Karen children. For over thirty years the life of a refugee has been all that many Karen children have known. It is the life that their parents were likely born into. It is the life that the previous generation was forced into and the legacy that they now pass on to the next generation.

Karen children grow up with parents and grandparents (if they are lucky) that bare the scars that war has placed upon their rail thin frames. People without a leg or a foot are not unusual. The war takes a little from some and everything from all. A life of constant fear of deportation. A life of persistent fear of hunger. A life where the littlest change in luck can spell disaster. Karen children grow up with all these things.

In the 80's the Burmese government stepped up it's campaign to purge the Karen from it's borders. It shelled areas where Karen civilians believed that they were at peace. Targeting the weak and vulnerable, the Burmese attempted to push the death toll upward at a rate that would crush the Karen peoples' will to fight. This blitz was meant to cripple the rebel militias. It was meant to make the civilians suffer. And by the end of the 80's both of these objectives were achieved.

For the next thirty years the Karen militias lost land at a steady rate. Civilians who had avoided the war for the first thirty years had suddenly found themselves evicted from native lands. Their homes were burnt, their land laid with landmines, and their fields laid to waste. These new victims would add to the refugees crossing into Thailand. By 2009 there would be 120,000 plus Karen refugees in camps dotted all along the border with Burma.

In 2009 the Burmese watched as Sri Lanka launched a genocidal effort to drive the Tamils out. Learning from the lack of international response, Myanmar stepped up their attacks on the Karen. By January of 2013 there would be 20 to 30 thousand more Karen pushed across the border into Thailand. Thus bringing the current estimate of Karen refugees in Thailand to 150,000 plus.

In 2011 there were 381 documented casualties from land mines, the majority of those maimed – around 200 – were civilians, according to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL).

Today the Karen can only boast the longest running modern day civil war, the longest running modern refugee crisis, and the largest rate of landmine deaths among civilians annually. It is at this point in time that the world should ask if this is the legacy that the Karen should be forced to pass onto their children? It is now that the world should take a look at the plight of one of the largest refugee communities (given refugee ratio to total ethnic population) on the planet and ask ourselves if this is tolerable in the modern era? Are we to accept the crippling of an entire generation due to the war crimes of government that claims to be moving toward democracy? Are we to forget the past transgressions of a regime simply because they appease our desire for liberty for all while at the same time they oppress minorities? 

President Obama once said of child soldiers; 

"It is barbaric, and it is evil, and it has no place in a civilized world. Now, as a nation, we’ve long rejected such cruelty.”

And yet President Obama has done little to discuss or condemn Myanmar for it's failure to end the use of child soldiers in the Karen state. This is in spite of the fact that Burma signed an agreement with the UN in June of 2012 to end all forms of child exploitation by the military by December of 2013. We are now in June of that very year and Myanmar has failed to reach any of the initial goals or show any effort to end the practice.

Is this the legacy we want the children of the Karen people to be inheriting? Exploited by a government that has attempted for sixty years to expel their ancestors from their native lands. Used as weapons of war by a regime that seeks to cleanse it's borders of their own people. Is this the legacy that Karen children should be given while the world sets idly by?

We are investing as a nation into a regime that has committed the same atrocities we fought against in World War Two. Our government has lifted the sanctions that kept Burma from gaining meaningful income as a nation. This means that a government (which shows no change from the military junta) that targeted the Karen people for extermination and expulsion has more money to purchase weapons an equipment to complete it's end goal. This means that Thein Sein's masters in the military have more resources to draw upon as they wage war against a crippled people. Our government (and those of the EU also) have made possible the completion of the Karen peoples' holocaust. Yet we cling to promises by the Burmese government that they want to repatriate refugees from Thailand?

Where are these refugees to return to? Their villages are still pot-marked with landmines and artillery craters. Their fields still bare the scars that jet fighters left behind, not to mention any unexploded bombs or shells (live ammunition from both world wars are still found by farmers all across the world). The places they called home have often been sold off to foreign investors and local land grabbers. Resettlement only brings fear and angst to the refugees in Thailand due to a deep-seeded distrust of Myanmar's so called democratic regime.

If the next generation of Karen are to be spared the wounds of the previous generation then the history they share with Burma must be set straight. The aggressors that issued atrocities to be carried out against Karen civilians must be brought to justice. The government that oversaw the war and created the crimes it produced must be reformed till the previous leaders are no longer present. Men like Thein Sein must be made to leave the realm of relevance in Burma before the ethnic minorities have any chance at peace. Generals who profited from Karen suffering cannot be left to in a position from which they can propagate more.

This is the nature of war torn legacies. The chance for peace is only increased when the monsters who created the strife are removed. Once their legacy is removed from the forefront of the society the next generation can begin to create their own. It is only through the absence of divisive figureheads and old tyrants that the victims of tyranny can restore themselves and the world in which they once thrived.

There can be little doubt that the children of the Karen would rather live in a place they can call home. A place where their families' histories are embedded in every acre, every house, every village, and along every well worn rode. There can be little doubt that the children of the Karen would rather not live in a place where the only well worn path is that which has been formed by desperate feet of a refugee. The difference between the two worlds is the difference between a legacy and mere existence.

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Source Documents 

(note: not all sources listed)

IntellAsia.net 

http://www.intellasia.net/burma-military-gains-on-rebels-as-villagers-flee-to-safety-106489

Irrawaddy News

http://www.irrawaddy.org/archives/37235

Karen News.org

http://karennews.org/2013/06/no-way-home-yet.html/

Human Rights Watch
http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/05/28/burma-failing-demobilize-child-soldiers 

The Path From Starvation To Slavery

Ethnic Cleansing Powered By Thai Corruption
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(What Thai "Sympathy" Looks Like)

Around one million Rohingya are currently left starving and helpless as a campaign of ethnic cleansing is being pushed by the Rakhine politicians and Burmese Military. Many are left homeless either by the torches of Rakhine mobs or forced out by the tip of military guns. These homeless Rohingya have been pushed off their land and forced into massive concentration camps where the Myanmar government exploits them for foreign aid that is not delivered. At the same time the Rohingya who are left in their homes are stuck behind blockades of barbwire and military checkpoints. And yet all of this is just the beginning for many of the Rohingya who become known as simply "boat people" to the rest of the world.

Every year thousands of Rohingya die at sea as their boats take to the Andaman sea in search of a new life. Many die of dehydration as that old saying "water, water everywhere..." becomes all to real to them. Others are often drowned as their boats sink or the captain dumps them and heads back for the next batch of victims. But for a portion of others these boats are something else entirely. 

During the days of the slave trade and the triangle of merchant death ships the African communities along the "Ivory Coast' became human cargo. Their tale has been repeated time and time again over the decades. Today the trade in human flesh however has little to do with tobacco, clothing, or spices and sugar. Today the trade is more focused on slave labor and sexual exploitation. There is rarely anyone willing to defend it these days. Yet there is an entire market willing to partake in it. 

For the Thai government this illegal trade has been far to great a temptation for it's officials to resist. Those who do not directly buy and sell Burmese minorities are often these days willing to look the other way as other government and military officials take part. In recent "sting" style busts the Thai government has uncovered countless of their own military commanders and prime ministers who have been directly involved in transporting, buying, and selling Rohingya refugees. Their involvement in this human trafficking has been linked to the sex trade that plagues Southeast Asia and the slave labor that fuels tourists resorts. 

These "stings", which many speculate were face saving PR stunts, have many asking why so many more Rohingya are leaving Burma this season? It also has left many asking why women and children are amongst the "boat people" in ever increasing numbers this season? And more importantly, why has the slave trade in the region changed from mainly slave labor to sex trafficking? 

Back in Burma the women that the Rohingya "boat people", mainly boys and men, once left behind are no longer safe. Rape of young Rohingya women has often turned into the rape of little girls and old women as the Burmese military's presence increased in the Arakan. Gang rapes have left just as many Rohingya women dead as starvation now that the corrupt Burmese military shows little intention of leaving the area.

The threat of rape is a powerful weapon amongst the Rohingya. It is a method of breaking their communities apart and cracking the only defense they have left... their unity. And it is this point that the Burmese military has focused on. Just as with all genocides, the Myanmar government has focused upon crushing the spirits of the entire Rohingya community as they make the Rohingya desperate. 

Once desperate groups like the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party swoop into the scene and being the process of "offering help" to the broken communities. RNDP "brokers" will often seek out individuals who have no paperwork or confiscate any papers the victims can provide. By making their intentions seem pure the human traffickers are able to lure thousands of victims to sea every year. 

Often many Rohingya are given the illusion of an escape by transporting them across the Rakhine State to places such as Sittwe where they are put onto boats. These boats are then organized into convoys that suffer losses due to attacks, sinking, and being blown back ashore. But for those who are set to sea the boats become less than "escape" vessels.

The path that is chosen for "guided" boats is often arranged with human traffickers in Thailand and Malaysia. These boats either break away or set out with convoys of their own. Once out to sea though their destiny is already sealed as the "brokers" on the ships aim for hand-off points. These boats will be more than likely ignored by the Thai military giving them a greater chance of arriving with the maximum amount of human cargo on board.

For the boats that are simply trying to flee the violence and genocide, the actual refugees, the Thai officials have another trap for them. 

If an unescorted Rohingya boat comes in contact with Thai military vessel they are in danger of still becoming human cargo. This is in spite of the official "help along" policy the Thai government put in place to appear humane when dealing with their "Rohingya question". And for the Rohingya aboard the trap is almost impossible to escape from. 

When the Thai military approaches the ship they are purposefully unable to speak or understand the Rohingyas' language. Instead the Thai military officer will get on a phone and force the boat to talk to an "interpreter" who is often operating in nearby waters. This friendly "interpreter" is nothing more than a human trafficker who the military will pass the boats off on. And in many cases the boats that are supposed to be heading for Malaysia end up on the Thai side of the border on plantations that sponsor the human trafficking rings. 

In every case where the Thai officials and government are supposedly showing "sympathy" for the plight of the Rohingya there seems to be an ugly side to the story. While the UN was attempting to get in touch with the hundreds of Rohingya "rescued" by the Thai officials last week the trafficking rings still operated in neighboring camps. Rohingya children, often watched by sex traffickers, were put back over the border into Myanmar where the traffickers work best. And yet the ever compassionate "West" continues to ignore the violations of Thailand when dealing with modern day slavery. 

This is not a crime that goes away simply because we talk about it. It isn't a black market that needs to just be addressed so that it shrinks back into the shadows. This is an organized market willing to break every law on the books to keep itself in action. It is a criminal enterprise that must be attacked and attacked relentlessly. 

To make things worse in this case is the fact that genocide is being used by criminals in Thailand and the surrounding countries to fill their wallets. As nearly a million people suffer under an organized campaign of ethnic cleansing they are also being preyed upon by another criminal regime to support a slave trade. 

It is time that governments around the world start taking action and stop muttering their apologies after the crimes have already been committed. Have we not said "Never Again" one too many times already?

Source Documents 

(note not all documents are listed)

Phuket Wan

(January 20th, 2013)

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/secrets-thailands-trade-men-women-children-revealed-boatpeople-slavery-17459/

(January 16th, 2013)

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/thailand-2013-hidden-agony-21st-century-slave-trade-17434/

Hunted Down Like Dogs

RNDP Puts Up A "Bounty" For Every Dead Rohingya
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(This Boy Is Now A Commodity, Sold As A Slave Or Killed For A Bounty)

Rakhine Prime Minister, U Hla Maung Tin, arrived at Pauktaw this morning and made a beeline for the Rohingya refugee camp. Once there the PM fell in line with his party (the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party) by demanding that the Rohingya in the internally displaced peoples' camp sign documents that state that they are illegal immigrants. The documents state that the Rohingya are illegal Bangladeshi immigrants that have no claim to Burmese citizenship. These documents would be used therefore to deport the Rohingya to a country that has shown no interest whatsoever in accepting them. And without actual legal documents to show that they are either Burmese or Bengali, the Rohingya would officially in Burmese courts be "stateless". 

When the Rohingya in the camp refused to sign the documents Maung Tin threatened the refugees and left. Maung Tin told the Rohingya refugees that if they did not sign that he would see to it that no aid ever made it through the blockades again (including rice from the foreign aid organizations). The RNDP went further by going to Rakhine villages and camps to pass around word of just what these threats entailed. The RNDP then went on to tell the Rakhine that they would pay one lakh kyats for every Rohingya, or kalar (a slur for the Rohingya), they kill. Together, Maung Tin and the RNDP, are making threats that could lead to a return to the June and October riots that launched their genocidal campaign. 

This tactic of "sign or die" has been getting used more and more as the campaign of ethnic cleansing has been amped up. In addition to calling on renewed butchery by the RNDP, the Rakhine extremist have maintained their blockades of Rohingya villages and camps. The RNDP has also begun encouraging Rakhine from Bangladesh and impoverished areas of the Arakan to move into Rohingya villages. By calling the Rakhine "settlers" the RNDP shows that they are intent upon wiping out the memory of these Rohingya villages that were burnt or bulldozed. 

With all the actions taken recently by a major Burmese political party to kill and deport an entire minority one might wonder how the outside world is ignoring this? Time and time again Alder's Ledge has brought proof of genocide taking place right now in Burma and yet these same articles fail to show up in mainstream media. So once again I'm sure there are those wondering just how something like that which has been shown above can take place without their media source covering it. I'm sure there are still far to many people with their eyes closed to this subject to understand that genocide is taking place as they sleep. 

So imagine for a moment that you are a Rohingya trapped behind barbed wire and military checkpoints. Imagine that your family and friends are starving to death as you pick through the grass for any source of food you can find. Imagine that your government, your homeland, is treating you as though you aren't even human. Now imagine that you aren't allowed to leave... you aren't even allowed to travel to neighboring villages or camps. 

All you know is hunger. All you know is pain. All you know is desperation. 

Now imagine that the only way out is to flee by boat. Yet to do this you have to sell everything you have and scavenge for something to bribe the boat's owner. Imagine that you have no way to know if this boat will make it to the presumed safety of Malaysia or not. All you can do is hope that the Nasaka don't catch you as you drift off into the night. 

Imagine that while you starve to death you are approached by Rakhine who promise they can get you out of Myanmar. Imagine that you are asked to sign a paper in exchange for a promise of a better life. Imagine that you don't realize that this paper will make you a slave and that you will be sold in Thailand or Bangladesh. 

But imagine that you stay...

Now try to imagine that the RNDP just visited your village. Imagine that you just heard them proclaim that your Rakhine neighbor can earn cash money just for killing you. You know that your local police don't stop these attacks. You know that the military sides with the RNDP. You know that there is nowhere you can run. Now imagine that you are being hunted... but instead of running, you can only wait for your hunter to strike. You know that you are like a caged animal. You know that there is nowhere in you homeland that you can hide. 

This is the life of nearly a million Rohingya trapped in Burma. This is how the government of Myanmar has allowed ethnic cleansing to occur in the Arakan. The Burmese have committed a forced famine, constructed death camps, blockaded entire villages, and permitted the wholesale slaughter of the Rohingya people. 

It is a story that would enrage the common citizens of the West. It is a narrative that would sell papers across America and Europe. And it is a tragedy that the West could exploit at a moment's notice. Yet the prospects of Myanmar's untapped wealth have curtailed the actions these crimes demand. Once again the numbers were run and the prospect of economic gain topped the cost of saving lives.

Starvation Fuels Slavery

Exportation Helping Complete Ethnic Cleansing
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(It is not their eyes that are blind, but their hearts. Koran 22:46)

Since the October pogroms the Rakhine officials and Myanmar's government have been enforcing a campaign of mass starvation amongst the Rohingya population of Burma. The method of killing those who refuse to leave changed from mass murder to mass starvation. And for many in the media this change from outright slaughter to passive barbarism offered some sort of perverted hope that Myanmar might actually uphold its promise of "democratic reform". Yet here we are over six months later and the original intent of Burma's sins is still being carried out without mercy as Rohingya die on a daily basis. 

In July The Guardian posted a piece in which they quoted an aid worker that described the Rohingya refugee camps as "open air prisons". This was back in July of 2012 when the fighting had only recently ended. This was just as humanitarian workers began to actually see just how horrid the conditions were amongst the Rohingya. Or at the very least the Rohingya they were allowed to see in the camps since many Rohingya were at that point blockaded in their villages. 

"We are worried that malnutrition rates already have and will continue to rise dramatically; if free and direct humanitarian access accompanied by guaranteed security is not granted with the shortest delay, there's no way they won't rise," said Tarik Kadir of Action Against Hunger. (July 2012)

Over the next six months the world did nothing to stop the campaign of ethnic cleansing that the Burmese have been carrying out. Instead the aid groups found it impossible to reach those in desperate need of food, water, medicine, and basic humanitarian aid. All the while governments around the world have increased trade with Burma while denying that any crisis is under way. 

Human Rights Watch, Elaine Pearson, "Would expect a strong international response" to any attempt to deport the Rohingya."

After the October pogroms the Burmese government decided to begin the very deportations the Human Rights Watch organization predicted back in July. But unlike they expected, the world did nothing to stop the deportations. Instead countries like Thailand and Bangladesh have decided to profit off the horrific crimes that Burma has been perpetrating for over half a year now. While America and Europe continue to look for new ways to exploit Burma for its natural resources and economic contributions to the emerging markets of China and India.

Today nearly 1,000 Rohingya are stuck in a system of limbo created by Thailand as the government decides just how many if not all are deported back to Burma. Around 800 of these Rohingya were just recently "rescued" from human trafficking camps. And to add to this around 40 percent of the Rohingya found in Thailand's trafficking rings are below the age of 18. Yet despite facing death back home in Burma and facing slavery at the hands of traffickers, Thailand is in a hurry to send their "problems" back to Myanmar.

Rohingya often end up these days in the hands of human traffickers simply because desperation drives them to desperate actions. Using whatever money or materials they can bribe their captors with the Rohingya appear to enter slavery willingly. And at the same time it is blatantly obvious that nobody wants to be a slave. It is from that point of rationalization that makes us ask why?

Why would they risk breaking up their families and sending them out across southeast Asia? Why would anyone give up apparent freedom for a life of oppression?

The answers are almost as unfortunate as the trade off they are making is.

Rohingya have no freedoms in Burma from the moment they are born to the day that they die. A Rohingya person must be documented in multiple ways from birth yet are never admitted citizenship. Their parents must pay taxes upon them from birth while their children will have to pay taxes upon their death. Movement from village to village during life is taxed and restricted unless being dictated by Rakhine authorities.

In the long list of oppressive laws and restrictions put in place upon the Rohingya the part that preps the Rohingya for human trafficking the most happens to be the slavery they are raised with in Burma. It is a well known fact even outside Myanmar that the Rohingya are often used as slave labor when the Rakhine or military wants free labor. They are not fed nor do they receive any form of compensation during these times of forced labor. Their fields do not get worked, their boats don't go out to fish, and their children do not get fed during these times of slavery. It is this part of Burma's treatment of the Rohingya that prepares them for life as human cargo at the hands of human traffickers.

Thai officials have repeatedly been found cooperating with human traffickers and often doing the trafficking themselves. It is only in recent years that industry and the free market have begun to demand that the "free labor" portion of Thailand's economy be brought under control. Sadly these demands have only arrived out of the desire to gain larger portions of economic shares rather than out of concern for the Rohingya peoples' well-being.

The only good news coming out of Thailand is the fact that they have for now decided to hold the Rohingya till the UN can have a look at them. This does not mean that the Thai authorities will take the UN's suggestions seriously. It does not meant that the Rohingya will not be deported after the UN leaves. It does however mean that for now, at least, these Rohingya are spared the reprisals that await upon return to Myanmar.

For the rest of the world the question of how to stop human trafficking still remains. Last year MTV Exit put on a concert in Myanmar (counter productive since Myanmar is the heart of human trafficking in Southeast Asia). President Obama and other world leaders have talked endlessly about this subject. The United Nations has countless programs and branches dedicated to stopping this crime against humanity. Yet the sin of slavery still plagues us. And for the Rohingya it is a painful way out of Hell on earth.

Source Documents 

(Note not all sources used are listed)

CNN (December 7th, 2012)

http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2012/12/07/myanmar-can-keep-rohingya-from-starving-but-will-it/

(November 26, 2012)

 http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/25/world/asia/myanmar-rohingya-violence-rivers/index.html

The Guardian (July 13, 2012)

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/jul/13/burma-humanitarian-crisis-rohingya-arakan

Rohingya.org (December 16th, 2012)

http://www.rohingya.org/portal/index.php/burma/63-news--article/427-the-rohingya-suffer-ethiopian-like-starvation.html

The Independent (October 30, 2012)

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/the-world-must-act-to-protect-burmas-rohingya-from-starvation-and-slaughter-8262073.html

Phuketwan (December 26, 2012)

http://phuketwan.com/tourism/desperation-marks-rohingyas-fight-rights-survival-17303/

Aljazeera (January 11, 2013)

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2013/01/201311184320327355.html

Only Grass And Dirt To Eat

Starvation: A War Of Attrition
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya Refugee Camp: Searching For Food In The Ditch)

The photo above was taken more than a month ago and was taken in near a Rohingya refugee camp. These Rohingya are living life beyond the villages where their fellow Rohingya live in modern day concentration camps. These Rohingya live where food consist of grass and weeds found alongside dirty streets. They are not allowed to go into the Rakhine villages and purchase food. They are forbidden to use the same water as their Rakhine neighbors. Yet in comparison to the Rohingya still living in the villages, these are the lucky ones. 

Checkpoints much like those seen around the ghettos the Nazi's built during the Holocaust pot mark the area around the refugee camps. Though there are coconuts hanging in the trees outside the camps, though there is rice in the fields that the Rakhine now claim... the Rohingya starve. The barbed wire is a constant reminder that they are considered less than human in their own homeland. The lack of food makes it clear that they are considered of less value than the livestock the Rakhine raise in nearby pastures. This is the life that the Burmese have damned the Rohingya to. 

Ali Hassan, a 24 year old Rohingya man told Phuket Wan Travel News, "My babies are starving in front of my eyes. I cannot buy anything now I have no money." 

Ali Hassan had newborn twins at the time. It is impossible to know for sure if his children have survived. It is hard to imagine any child, let alone babies, living a life of starvation. But his story survives. Even if he and his family do not, his story will never perish. 

This war, this barbarism that Myanmar carries out, is meant to starve the Rohingya out of existence. The violence that plagued the Arakan state forever lingers in the air. Death hovers behind every shadow. It waits for the Rohingya... with open arms it accepts them of every age, gender, shape, and size. This is a war in as much as it pins one group against the other. Yet in this horrific struggle only one is armed... only one gets to fight... only one survives. 

There is an abundance of fish in the seas and waters along the Rakhine coasts. However the Burmese officials have confiscated almost all the fishing equipment the Rohingya once owned. Nets, poles, and hooks... nothing is left to harvest the food that the Rohingya so desperately need. 

For now the Rohingya slowly waist away as the little aid that is making it through the blockades is barely enough to keep even a small portion of them alive. It is in this slow starvation that many are turning to the the very people who cause their suffering to offer "a way out". The Rakhine Nationalities Development Party uses this wide spread starvation to traffic the Rohingya out of Myanmar. 

Over the last couple days nearly 700 Rohingya have turned up in human trafficking camps in Thailand. Over 500 Rohingya had to swim ashore in Malaysia after their boat sank 500 km off the coast. All of these Rohingya were trafficked out of the country by the RNDP. And of the RNDP's trafficking victims... they could easily be considered the lucky ones. 

Over half of the Rohingya who are sent out to sea each year die trying to make their way to Malaysia. Almost all Rohingya who are sent into Thailand are sent back to Myanmar having lost everything they had including the bribes that got them out of Burma the first time. These 1,200 Rohingya are lucky just to still be alive and outside of Myanmar. 

It is important to note at the close of this post that this tragedy, this genocide, could had been prevented. This horrific case of ethnic cleansing could be immediately stopped. All that is needed is for the outside world to finally wake up. To wake up and start taking action.

Smugglers Replace Cattle Cars

More Proof Of Illegal Deportations
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Sixty-two Under The Age of Fifteen Including Three Babies)

As the genocide continues to drive the Rohingya population of Burma to desperate measures the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party continues to exploit their helpless victims. In recent months the RNDP has been taking money and other bribes from the Rohingya in exchange for an apparent way out of the genocide the RNDP is perpetrating. However in most cases the RNDP never truly gets the Rohingya to the safety of a host country. In most cases the Rohingya who pay for a way out are turned over to Myanmar police or dumped into the waiting arms of human traffickers. 

On Thursday (January 10th) the Thai government raided a hidden transit camp for human trafficking on the Thai border with Burma. Upon entering the camp the Thai officials found that the traffickers where holding captive 366 Rohingya refugees. Like many other camps of the such the traffickers were only interested in treating the refugees as human cargo. There was little food and little water for the hundreds of victims. 

Among the Rohingya were 62 children under the age of 15. This group of children out of the original 366 also included three babies under the age of one years old. Among them were also 11 women. Yet the human traffickers had refused to offer any assistance to their victims. 

The raid began after two Rohingya "boat people" were purchased from the traffickers for for 95,000 baht (3,138.94 USD). This led to the Thai military arriving some time over night. However the raid has not ended. The Rohingya captives are still being held at the camp as the Thai officials record their names. 

Thai Public Health medical teams arrived to give assistance to the captives once the camp was secured. This gives those of us on the outside the impression that the Thai officials do not intend to deport the Rohingya back to Myanmar. However there is no guarantee due to the long history Thailand has with its handling of Rohingya in the past. 

(Women And Children Deported By Thai Police)

In the past the Rohingya have been deported regardless of their age and gender. Children and women are more likely to be dropped off in Thailand by their traffickers since the demand for Rohingya slave labor mainly applies to able bodied young men. This makes younger Rohingya and women more apt to be turned over to police or worse. In other cases the children and women are turned over to sex traffickers. 

At best the Rohingya in these camps can hope for an opportunity to make their way to boats and wish to be sent adrift. For many the chance to get out to sea offers the hope that they might make it to safety. In reality the dream of making their way to Malaysia (a country that barely treats them better than Thailand) is as far from reality as they are from freedom. The boats they are often put aboard are more than likely broken, under stocked with water and food, and will often sink at sea. The fact is that nearly half of all the "boat people" of Southeast Asia die at sea before ever coming in sight of their "promised land". 

For those of you on Twitter this "rescue" by Thai officials offers you the chance to take action and scream on behalf of the Rohingya. By sending relentless tweets to the accounts listed below we can raise our voices so that those in a position of power can affect change for these 366 Rohingya. We can unite as one to tell those in power that this is their opportunity to offer hope instead of damning these Rohingya to death. 

Please do your part and scream. 

@USEmbassyBKK - US Embassy in Thailand 

@PM_Abhisit - Former PM of Thailand: Abhisit Vejjajiva 

@UN - United Nations 

@Refugees - United Nations Refugee Agency 

@SybellaWilkes - Senior Communications Officer UNHCR: Sybella Wilkes 

@UN_Spokesperson - UN Spokesperson 

@hrw - Human Rights Watch

@UNrightswire - United Nations Human Rights Office 

@KenRoth - Executive Director, Human Rights Watch: Kenneth Roth

@ukinthailand - British Embassy in Thailand 

Pushed Back Into The Abyss

Failure Of Humanity In Thailand
(part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya Refugees Awaiting Deportation From Thailand)

Found drifting off the shore of Thailand's resort town, Phuket, 73 Rohingya refugees are set to be deported back to Myanmar. Among the refugees are women and children. And despite their claims of physical abuse at the hands of the Burmese military, none are going to receive asylum within Thailand.

The question remains just why the Rohingya would want to stay in Thailand in the first place? 

Human traffickers in Thailand have used Rohingya as slaves for factories and fishing trawlers operating out of Thai waters. Thai police and military are often seen abusing Rohingya refugees and forcing the Rohingya back out to open water. Government organizations in Thailand have been discriminating against the Rohingya for decades. And yet the Rohingya still try to enter Thailand in droves. 

This leaves us to guess that even moderate discrimination and routine abuse are still seen as a better life than what awaits them back in Myanmar. 

(Refugees Show The Wounds Burmese Military Gave Them)

The UN says that the Thai authorities should halt all attempts to deport the refugees by labeling them "migrant workers". This cheap trick in labeling has allowed Thailand to persistently deny entry to Rohingya in the past. On many occasions the Thai navy has claimed that they had at the very least given some supplies to the "boat people" before sending them back to sea. But even in doing this the Thai navy was simply giving the Rohingya a death sentence in boats that obviously had already failed. 

UN officials have pleaded with Thailand to wait until UN observers could arrive to meet with the latest wave of Rohingya refugees. Yet, just as with most cases of "boat people", Thailand shows no intention of waiting before shipping the Rohingya families back over the border into Burma. 

(Thai Military Guard Rohingya Refugees)

In response to this failure by Thailand to show at least some form of humanity we can expect the UN to propose some new plan for Southeast Asian countries when dealing with Rohingya refugees. In doing this the UN will once again fail to do anything to actually stop the cause of this new wave of refugees in the first place. While telling Thailand, and other Southeast Asian countries, to accept the refugees the UN has shown no sign of telling Myanmar to cease the killings that have caused this exodus. 

If the West will not act to stop the genocide the Rohingya will continue to flee by sea. Those who take to the ocean will once again face hostile navies and deadly cases of starvation and dehydration. As history has shown, hundreds... if not thousands... will be lost to the sea or be forced into slavery. 

Life amongst the Burmese government and Rakhine Buddhist has proven impossible for the Rohingya trapped within Myanmar. For this reason death at sea appears to be the only way out. And yet the West promised these people time and time again... Never Again.

Capitalizing On The Unwanted

How Thailand Uses Rohingya As Slave Labor
(Part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya behind bars in Thailand)

As the fate of the "lost boys" in the shipwreck in Tai Muang continues to be left in question some activist have begun making serious accusations against the Thai government. In reaction the Thai authorities did send out a spokesperson in Ranong, a port that borders with Burma, to state one last time that the 112 Rohingya had been "deported". This is of course the official record given by the Thai government. 

One such accusation is that the Thai officials had sold off some or all of the Rohingya into slavery. The claim is that the Rohingya are sold to fishing factories where they are used as "indentured servants" or flat out slave labor. This is enabled by the fact that Myanmar will not accept Rohingya back into the country. So Thailand's old method of deportation is no longer a plausible method of ridding Thailand of what the government views as "undesirables" 

Some evidence is available that shows that human traffickers do take full advantage of the desperation of the Rohingya. These heartless traffickers promise their victims an opportunity to flee Burma and make a better life in Malaysia. When the Rohingya pay the "fee" they are often taken to the highest bidder and forced into slavery. And since Myanmar, Thailand, and Bangladesh do not recognize Rohingya as a minority (and at times not even as human beings) the victims are never offered help by government. 

Rohingya children are especially vulnerable due to the high level of sexual slavery in Southeast Asia. Human traffickers who specialize in child prostitution can easily transport their victims to different markets where "sex tourism" is more profitable. 

So in this light it is highly probable that the Thai officials who "deported" the lost boys did in fact sell their victims to the highest bidder. They will most likely be forced to work on fishing trawlers and in fishing factories. Those who are lucky may be able to save up some money and restart their journey southward. 

All of this could be prevented of course. Human Rights Watch has been very vocal in pointing out that Thailand should and could easily allow human rights groups access to the Rohingya. More Rohingya could be protected from slavery and human rights abuses if the Thai would just allow the Rohingya refugee status. 

And if, just to give the Thai the benefit of the doubt, the Rohingya were actually sent back to Burma they are once again facing mass atrocities at the hands of the Myanmar military and Rakhine mobs. Another outcome the Thai officials had the chance to prevent. Another failure of humanity in the ASEAN member nation.

Lost Boys

Not Exactly Never-never Land
(Part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya Preparing To Flee)

Every day off the coast of Burma the Rohingya people take to the sea in hopes of fleeing the ethnic clashes that have enveloped much of their homeland. These "terrorist", "invaders", and "outsiders" have been targeted for extermination in what appears to be a repeat of ethnic cleansing campaigns of the past. They are an indigenous minority of the region. The areas along the border with Bangladesh and Myanmar has been their home for as long as anyone can tell. But for now, once again, many are forsaking Myanmar and its abuses and risking everything by throwing themselves at the mercy of the sea. 

Around half of those who attempt to flee Myanmar by the water die at sea. Their bodies and their names are forever lost to the cruel ocean and their lives forgot by those who drove them there in the first place. In many ways the ocean is just playing its part in Myanmar's genocide. 

For 112 Rohingya the voyage out of Myanmar took them somewhere just north of Phuket, Thailand yesterday. This refugee boat was different form most however in the fact that the majority of the refugees were children. 56 of the refugees were teenagers, with the youngest being only 14 years old. The remaining 46 are believed to be under the age of 26. 

So what happened to this ship full of Rohingya boys? Are they safe in Thailand? Are they getting aid from the UN in a ASEAN nation? 

This is the disappointing and rather scary nature of what happens to Rohingya refugees when they have the misfortune of landing in Thailand. If they are allowed to land at all. 

Upon landing in the province of Phang Nga the Rohingya were most likely "greeted" by Thai military or coast guard. We do not know who made it to the shipwreck site first. All we do know is that the Thai authorities had scuttled the ship and dispersed the Rohingya before anyone could claim these boys were refugees. This is the customary approach in Thailand. If the ship can't be dragged back out to sea then it will be destroyed and the people aboard told to disappear.  Rohingya are not granted refugee status in Thailand. 

For a few brief moments that Thai authorities did classify the Rohingya as "Burmese". This is ironic since the Rohingya are denied citizenship in Myanmar itself. But the act of being called a citizen is not the same thing as being a citizen for Rohingya. The Thai may have or may be in the act of sending the Rohingya back to Myanmar. Nobody can say for sure what happened to the boys. 

It is a simple fact that human rights organizations are not granted access to Rohingya refugees within Thailand. Had the Rohingya been classified as refugees we would have known. Groups like the Red Cross or the UN would have been on the scene to do their job... we would hope. But the Rohingya aren't allowed that comfort in Thailand. 

Instead these boys did what all Rohingya do when they are unfortunate enough to crash in Thailand. They vanished. 

The most likely explanation is that the Thai police most likely rounded up the boys and sent them to the border with Burma. There they were most likely deported back to the country they attempted to flee from. And with their money spent on this first failed attempt... it will most likely be a long time before any of the 112 Rohingya try to flee again.

As for Thailand.

The lack of humanity shown by the Thai is not new or unique to this latest outbreak of ethnic cleansing in Burma. The Thai have for decades now used their navy to "help along" Rohingya boats that loose power or become disabled off the Thai coast. The practice of shipping Rohingya back to Burma has been standard policy in Thailand for just as long. It is blatantly obvious that the Rohingya just plain are not welcome in Thailand.

Instead of offering to let outside human rights organizations access to the refugees, Thailand stonewalls any attempt by the media or human rights groups to investigate the issue. Any offer to help the Rohingya is denied since the Thai do not want to "encourage" more refugees. And absolutely no sense of transparency is eluded to as the Thai secretly wage war on the world's most neglected group of people.

In the case of the lost boys... never-never land is just a dream.

Neptune And The Exodus

Life At Sea Over Death At Home
(Part of The Darkness Visible series)

(Rohingya Boats Off Bangladesh) 

For decades now the Rohingya boats have made attempt after attempt to leave Myanmar by sea. These rickety vessels are far from seaworthy and often packed with more people than they can hold. But the threat of death at home in Burma drives the ethnic minority to flee in the only way left available to them. Thus the exodus by sea begins once again. 

An estimated 24,000 Rohingya currently call Malaysia home. These Muslim refugees that have fled to Malaysia did not walk across the border. The trip takes a departure from Myanmar under the cover of darkness or in rough seas. Just getting out to sea can be deadly. Then comes the long voyage from Myanmar to Malaysia over open water. And finally, if they are fortunate enough, the survivors try to land in Malaysia without the police or military spotting them first. 

Many Rohingya who try to stop in Thailand due to lack of water, food, or potential sinking are turned back to the open sea. Thai naval ships and police often drag the Rohingya's boats back out to open water where they are abandoned to the elements. Bangladesh will do the same if they are given the opportunity.

This leaves the hundreds of thousands of internally displaced Rohingya few options. They can either risk being killed by the ruthless Rakhine mobs or risk their lives gambling with Neptune. Many are choosing the god of the sea over the god of war. 

On October 31st this daring escape from Burma proved just how risky it really is. Around 130 Rohingya refugees perished in the darkness somewhere in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Bangladesh. The governments of Myanmar and Bangladesh did nothing to recover the bodies or try to look for survivors. It was clear to all those who followed the story that the two governments looked at the deaths as a gift rather than a tragedy. 

This trip into the darkness can cost a Rohingya refugee the equivalent of $1,500 United States dollars. Yet not surprisingly many young Rohingya find the money by saving everything and selling off all they have. They are leaving in these boats with nothing. They are going committing an international crime to be free. And in the end it is predicted that around half of them will never survive the journey. 

Some will perish as the boats succumb to the violent sea itself. Others will die of disease and dehydration as their boats loose power or go off course. Some will suffer at the hands of those who the paid to get them out of the country. But for a many the promise of a better life will keep them alive as they struggle to get out of Myanmar. 

(Rohingya In Burmese Town Of Sittwe)

All of this risk could be taken away. All this needless death could be stopped. And all this suffering could be ended. All the Rohingya need is an ally within the regime of Myanmar's "democratic" movement. 

Aung San Suu Kyi has been given the opportunity to speak up on the behalf of the Rohingya people. Her voice could go beyond the limitations left upon Western governments and organizations by the Burmese authorities. Yet the game of politics has left the Nobel laureate silent. Her lack of desire to speak up and help the Rohingya is directly linked to her political ambitions in Myanmar. Aung San Suu Kyi has found that even she, a supposed humanitarian, can not speak up for the Muslims in Burma and still keep favor with the racist Buddhist of Myanmar. And thus political gain keeps even the seemingly noble Suu Kyi silent while her countrymen suffer. 

For this reason it is likely that more and more Rohingya will perish at sea as they try to escape the ethnic cleansing taking place in Myanmar. For the lack of courage on the part of Burmese leaders and the Western nations thousands will die beneath the waves of the Indian Ocean. It leaves me to wonder just how many deaths it will take before we can finally stop playing politics and start trying to stop genocide.

Europes Sweetheart Hiding Bloody Hands

-
Voice of the Voiceless Series

A long and bitter past has haunted the Rohingya of Myanmar (Burma). For generations upon generations the Burmese have persecuted the Rohingya and more recently passed laws to outlaw them. In 1982 the Burmese government passed a law that made the Burmese Rohingya stateless. This meant that the country they had lived in for as long as anyone could remember now wanted them out. But the fate of the Rohingya was only about to get worse.

Aung San Suu Kyi has done nothing to alive the pain and suffering of people who she is supposed to lead. Instead it was her government that began officially labeling the Rohingya as "Bangladeshis". The irony of her government's ruling is that Bangladesh has gone out of its way to deny immigration of the Rohingya. This has left the Rohingya vulnerable to state sponsored discrimination and oppression. 

In Burma the Rohingya are depicted as ogres, animals, and monsters by their Buddhist neighbors. In rare incidents when the Rohingya have defended themselves against the Burmese mobs the government has stepped in to put down the Rohingya resistance. This has lead to an unknown number of deaths amongst the Rohingya at the hands of their neighbors and Burmese soldiers. 

 

In 1978 the Burmese government marched 200,000 Rohingya across the border into Bangladesh. It was there that around 10,000 of the evicted Muslims died due to the horrible conditions the Bangladeshi government imposed upon them. When not permitted to build more than huts to live in, no access to healthcare, or any form of education for the youth... the majority of the Rohingya immigrated back into their homeland (Burma). 

Sadly this sort of deadly treatment has become more and more normal and has repeated over and over again (more recently in 1991 and 1992). And yet this isn't the only mistreatment the Rohingya have had to endure at the hands of Aung San Suu Kyi's regime. Often the Rohingya are forced into slave labor by the Burmese military and local governments. This is a disgrace not imposed upon the Rohingya's neighbors, the ethnic Rakhine. 


To add to the laundry list of disgraces forced upon the Rohingya there have been numerous incidents of "Myanmar's boat people" drowning as neighboring governments turn the Rohingya away. In 2009 the Thai authorities intercepted five boatloads of Rohingya. The fleeing Rohingya were detained and beaten severely by the Thai forces. Then in the final act of cruelty, the Thai authorities sent the Rohingya boats (without motors or fresh water) back out to sea. Hundreds of the Rohingya aboard the boats are believed to drowned. 


So why is Europe swooning over Aung San Suu Kyi and her government of genocidal fanatics? 

Nobody in Europe today can truly understand the longstanding hatred for the Rohingya in Burma and the neighboring countries. It is not clear to the outside world why this ethnic hatred has burned out of control. And the reason...


For far to long the outside world has been kept in the dark when it comes to Myanmar. Of all the countries in this part of the world Myanmar is the least understood. So why is the West fascinated with Aung San Suu Kyi? Simple... she is the first person in Burmese government to allow the Western world to take a peak beneath the veil. 


But just like other oppressive regimes, Aung San Suu Kyi's government has tried to hide the genocide of the Rohingya within her borders. Instead the government officials in Myanmar have gone out of their way to describe the Rohingya as "Bangladeshi Terrorist". And the celebrities of Myanmar society have taken to the internet to express their rage against the Rohingya. One Burmese actress posted on her FaceBook account that she "hates them 100%". The UN ambassador from Burma has told any other ambassador who would listen that the Rohingya are "dark skinned ogres" who could never compare to the "true Burmese people". 


If anything emotion should be used to describe Western feelings for Aung San Suu Kyi it should be that of disgust. After all, she has done everything within her power to continue the slaughter of the Rohingya within Burma. And it is the government that she represents that continues to push its genocidal goals when dealing with the Rohingya who have called Burma home for as long as anyone can remember.

Source documents used (please note that not all sources are cited below)

The Huffington Post
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/14/myanmar-conflict-rohingya-muslims_n_1595976.html

New York Daily News
http://india.nydailynews.com/newsarticle/4fedddd2b1e35d8f3d000008/burma-s-rohingya-refugees-find-little-respite-in-bangladesh