From: Qoitrat@yahoogroups [mailto:Qoitrat@yahoogroups] On Behalf Of Zehera Kassam Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2014 12:58 AM To: Qoitrat@yahoogroups Subject: [Qoitrat] THE PLIGHT OF A MUSLIM MINORITY The plight of Myanmars Rohingya The U.N. says the Rohingya, a Muslim minority in an overwhelmingly Buddhist country, are one of the most persecuted groups in the world. latimes/opinion/editorials/la-ed-rohingya-20140309,0,7735660.story#ixzz2vVT6uS2y Please click the above link and write your comments to Los Angeles Times. It will help these persecuted people. In many countries minorities are persecuted; Burma is the worst. Asghar Vasanwala Muslim children in Myanmars Rakhine state are seen carrying bundles of sticks collected from a forest to sell as firewood. (Gemunu Amarasinghe / Associated press By The Times editorial board March 9, 2014 Myanmar, the country formerly known as Burma, has made substantial progress in the last few years, moving from military rule toward democracy, releasing political prisoners and freeing from house arrest Nobel Prize-winning democracy activist Aung San Suu Kyi However, the government has relentlessly continued its appalling treatment of the Rohingya population that lives in Rakhine state in western Myanmar. A Muslim minority in an overwhelmingly Buddhist country, the Rohingya are effectively denied citizenship unless they can meet onerous requirements, such as tracing their lineage back decades. They are restricted in where they can live and work, are limited to having two children and have been subject to brutal violence at the hands of mobs unchecked by local police. More than 1 million Rohingya live in Myanmar, including about 180,000 in squalid internal displacement camps, according to Human Rights Watch The United Nations has deemed the Rohingya one of the most persecuted groups in the world. Recently, violence against the Rohingya has escalated, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. Two attacks in January left an estimated four dozen Rohingya dead in a village in Rakhine, according to the U.N. report. Myanmars response has been to deny that it happened. Over the last few years, the U.S. has generously applauded the government of Myanmar for its steps toward democracy. President Obama has visited the country; an American ambassador has been installed. Now the United States should press President Thein Sein harder and call for him to extend that democracy to the Rohingya. Its unconscionable that Suu Kyi, a human rights icon, has not wielded her considerable moral authority to talk about this issue. She should abandon her diffident stand on the plight of the Rohingya and forcefully condemn the repression of and violence against them. Its heartening that she is a member of the Burmese Parliament now and hopes to secure a change in the constitution that would allow her to run for president. But a strong leader would not allow short-term political expediency to keep her from speaking out on a critical, life-and-death issue. Copyright © 2014, Los Angeles Times __._,_.___ Reply via web post Reply to sender Reply to group Start a New Topic Messages in this topic (1) For further information and activities of QIA, please visit our website: qoitrat. org. If you want to send suggestionsor queries, please send it on info@qoitrat. org. Join official mailing group of QIA by subscribing on groups.yahoo/ group/qoitrat/. Ph: (+92-21) 32226948, 32237207. VISIT YOUR GROUP • Privacy • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use . __,_._,___
Posted on: Tue, 11 Mar 2014 05:37:08 +0000
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