Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO) Arakan, Burma
Press Release
Dated. May 22, 2005.
Press Release
Dated. May 22, 2005.
Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO) welcomes the renewed US sanction on Burma for SPDC’s continuing grave violations of human rights against Burmese people and large-scale repression of democratic opposition.
The SPDC is paying no heed to the democratic aspirations of the Burmese people and recommendations of the international community. Instead, it is adamant in its refusal to bring about democratic changes while perpetrating human rights abuses particularly in ethnic areas. The ethnic Rohingyas are the worst victims.
The SPDC has arbitrarily denied the Rohingyas of their Burmese citizenship and thus reducing them to a status of "defecto stateless" in their own homeland. Nearly half of their population has been expelled. Those who are still at home are living in subhuman condition counting their days in utmost miseries with uncertain future The SPDC has imposed humiliating restrictions on their freedom of movement, seriously curtailed their economic, social and political rights and has disallowed their children to continue their further studies.
The Rohingyas living in Rangoon and Burma proper have been seldom questioned, harassed, punished and deported under false charges. Even they do not spare the Rohingya parliamentarian like U Kyaw Min, who is an elected MP of National Democratic Party for Human Rights (NDPH) from Buthidaung and a member of the CRPP. He was recently picked up from his residence in Rangoon. His wife and two grown up daughters were also arrested for their stay in Rangoon. The lawyer, relatives and friends of U Kyaw Min are denied permission to visit him.
While appreciating his renewed economic sanction on Burma, we request the US President George W. Bush to take up the matter with the UN Security Council for further necessary action.
We urge upon the ASEAN to disqualify the SPDC from the chairmanship of the ASEAN in 2006.We also urge upon neighbouring Bangladesh to review her policies towards SPDC in line with the democratic aspiration of the Burmese people, including the Rohingyas of Arakan.
Meanwhile, we call upon the SPDC:
To immediately free Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, U Tin Oo and all other political prisoners;
To immediately release U Kyaw Min, a Rohingya MP, and his family members;
To stop repression of the democratic opposition and initiate meaningful tripartite dialogue to bring about political changes in Burma as mandated by the United Nations.
To scrap and stop forthwith all black laws and genocidal actions against ethnic Rohingyas.
Press & Publication Department Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO) Arakan, Burma.