Myanmar boat people in Sabang

The Jakarta Post

Boat people: 193 citizens of Myanmar were stranded in Sabang regency, Weh, Aceh province after their boat was adrift in the sea for 25 days. Eighty one of them were hospitalized for dehydration. (JP/Hotli Simanjuntak)

Jan. 10, p. 8

Imam Husein, 30, sobbed while a nurse at Sabang Hospital attended to him in a ward. Tears rolled down his face and drenched the shirt he had received from the local community moments after he landed at Sabang Naval Base on Jan. 7. Imam was one of 193 Myanmar refugees stranded off Sabang Island, Aceh, after a 28-day sea journey in the small boat.

Your comments:
This is really ridiculous. There are millions of Muslims living in Myanmar alongside Buddhists, Christians and Hindus. In many parts of Myanmar, Muslims are treated equally and receive the same status as Buddhists. They are able to pray in mosques freely.

In the northern part of Arakan state, the number of Muslims outnumbers the Buddhists and
they control the trade and economy of the region. In Yangon, the capital of Myanmar, the number of mosques is even more than the number of pagodas.

These refugees must be fleeing the country to seek a better life in Malaysia, and not because they are being discriminated against. They are just trying to get the attention and pity of the local community.

NAY OO LWIN

My name is Abu Tahir and I left Myanmar in 1996. I went to Thailand and then Malaysia where I worked on a building site. I stayed in Malaysia for eight years. I couldn’t sleep and I suffered a lot during this time. I had no papers from Myanmar and that’s why I couldn’t take the bus.

In Myanmar, I couldn’t go to school because of the military. We are not allowed to marry, and we are not allowed to build a mosque or repair an old one.

I have six brothers, five of whom are still in Myanmar. One brother died in Malaysia.

In Myanmar we are not allowed to be outside after eight p.m. We can not walk freely and we are not given identity cards.

Every week we must work for the military and give them money. If we sell, for example, a cow or anything, we must give the money to the military. Even the best students in our city are not allowed to go to university. After year 10, school just ends with no chance to study further.

We are not allowed to go to Rangoon. The military have made it clear that they don’t want Muslims in Myanmar. Muslims must leave and they don’t care where to.

The military took so many rice fields, fishing places and even whole villages — they just take them and tell us to leave. We are not allowed to start a business, open a shop or anything — that’s why young people leave the country looking for a better life. There is no chance for tourists to go to Arkan State. The military has killed so many intelligent people over the last 30 years. I would like to meet my family there, but there is no chance. After eight years in Malaysia, I have now spent almost five years in Switzerland. I was able to get a Swiss passport here.

Don’t listen to Nay Oo Lwin - he’s wrong and telling lies. If you want to understand, you need to go there and see it yourself. The life of the Rohingya ethnic people in Myanmar is very difficult and people need to see it themselves.

ABU TAHIR

Nay Oo Lwin’s comments are ridiculous. He must be out of his mind. If Muslims are treated equally in Myanmar, why aren’t Muslims allowed to go to college?

Why aren’t they allowed to have government jobs? Why are they forbidden from holding jobs in the police, army, immigration department, etc? Why are they not allowed to travel to other parts of the country? Besides Yangoon, they are not even allowed to go to Akyab, which is the capital of Arakan State.

Why are they denied citizenship? Why are they not allowed to marry even within their own race? Be honest with yourself, at the least.

ARKANI

Yes, there are millions of Muslims living in Myanmar alongside other ethnic groups. But the Muslims who are living in northern Arakan, such as the Rohingya, face many types of discrimination such as marriage restriction, religious persecution, restriction of movement, confiscation of land and restriction from higher education among others.

If you want to see this situation, you must visit northern Arakan and look around the towns of Maungdaw and Buthidaung.

Unfortunately, the government does not allow foreigners to visit this area as the authorities control this area like a big open cage. They do not grant permission to build a mosque or to repair other religious buildings. Please try to visit the area and find out the truth.

TIN SOE

Rebuilding peace in Aceh after the Helsinki agreement

Ichsan Malik .

The peacebuilding process in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam had as its starting point the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the government of the Republic of Indonesia and the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) in Helsinki, on Aug. 15, 2005.

The agreement was later reinforced with the approval of Law 11/2006 on the governing of Aceh. Since then the thunderous sound of peacebuilding has been heard throughout Aceh, alongside the reconstruction of its tsunami-ravaged areas.

In 2009 peace in Aceh is again vulnerable due to the escalation of violence throughout 2008. The CEWERS (Conflict Early Warning Early Response System) team from the SERAP program, coordinated by the PASKA Aceh and CIDA-CCA, has conducted an analysis of events that occurred in all regions of Aceh from January to October 2008. Overall, teams recorded around 200 cases of violence, which could be categorized as sources of conflict in Aceh during 2008.

The high number of crimes using bombs and weapons, often resulting in deaths, could bring Aceh back into conflict and return the region to another vortex of violence.

One of the key agreements between RI and GAM was the destruction of weapons and about
800 weapons have been destroyed in accordance with the agreed amount. However, it is evident that, post-liquidation, there are still a lot of illegal weapons circulating in Aceh.

During 2008 there have been at least 33 recorded criminal cases involving firearms throughout several Aceh districts: Pidie, Nagan Raya, Meulaboh, Banda Aceh, Bener Meriah, Central Aceh, East Aceh, North Aceh, Lhokseumawe, Aceh Besar and Bireuen.

Armed crimes range from kidnapping for ransom to plain robbery and murder. Most of the incidents occurred between March and July 2008, perpetrated by former separatist combatants, member of the military or police, and a number of unknown assailants.

The table (below) shows the number of monthly crimes involving the use of firearms from February to October 2008.

From a total of 29 cases from March to July 2008, the majority of incidents occurred in East Aceh District, accounting for 34.25 percent of all cases, followed by Pidie and North Aceh (13.79 percent), Central Aceh, Aceh Tamiang and Bireuen (6.90 percent) and Banda Aceh, Bener Meriah and Nagan Raya (3.45 percent).

Management problems were identified as a structural factor for the causes of conflict.

Managerial problems included the misuse of monetary assistance allocated from nonbudgeted funds, the misuse of the government budget and the disruption of the external budget and monetary assistance.

Data collected from field studies and paper searches during January to October 2008 showed that the number of cases fluctuated from month to month; the escalation of conflicts started in March and culminated in June 2008.

Most of the conflicts arose from the diversion of the budget, followed by cases of misappropriation of aid, and lastly, from government budget misuse.

In the case of aid funds management, conflicts arose due to the sluggish distribution of aid and inaccurate data for aid distribution, and from mass demonstrations demanding the implementation of assistance. During January to October 2008, there were at least eight recorded cases of budget misuse in Aceh, most notable being the embezzlement of the remaining government budget. In addition, cases emerged of misappropriation of BRR funds, corrupt book procurement practices, diversion of funds and misuse of funds allocated
for diyat.

Criminal cases involving the use of firearms are clearly due to underlying structural problems, such as the economic crisis, injustice and the fact that many weapons are still circulating in Aceh.

In addition, BRA funds have not addressed the needs of the people for sustainable economic development in the region, for example, by assisting to create employment.

Combatants, noncombatants, victims and conflict-related communities must have their need for an income addressed. Furthermore, cases of kidnapping for ransom must be addressed from the perspective of the lack of any alternative source of livelihood.

Equally, robbery cases and similar incidents need to be seen as a wake-up call for the government and all concerned parties to increase employment and job opportunities for the community and to further develop and increase the local economy.

Firm action against users of firearms is the most effective way to reduce the escalation of firearms-related crime. Strong coordination between police and ex-combatants will also be effective to collect all post-conflict firearms.

Meanwhile, to stop the deliberate misuse of the budget, fast action and adequate preparation by law enforcement agencies are the best approach.

Currently, some efforts have been made but further attempts are required to stem the structural problems which could undermine the peacebuilding process.

In order to prevent conflict escalation due to poor management of funds in 2009, there are several further recommendations.

First, involve various stakeholders in order to make appropriate budget plans; second, develop a clear information system for all stakeholders; third, law enforcement agencies and officers should create a transparent process for the misuse of budget cases; fourth, require authorities who manage the budget to publish progress and final reports; and fifth, the local media should learn to write reports from the perspective of peace in Aceh.


The writer is the chairman of the Institut Titian Perdamaian.

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