BURMESE ROHINGYA DEMOCRATIC ALLIANCE (BRAD)

Press Release:
Date: June 20, 2010

A call to End Crimes against Humanity in Western Burma

We undersigned organizations warmly solutes the recent report, titled: Crimes
against Humanity in Western Burma: The Situation of the Rohingyas, launched by
the Irish Center for Human Rights (ICHR), National University of Ireland (NUI)
Galway, which is the one of the Worlds Leading university based human rights
research center.

We express our sincere gratitude towards the members, researchers, associates and all
level of staffs or assistants and contributors both in cash or kinds from every quarter
of humanity, particularly the Irish Government, Irish Center for Human Rights and
Irish Aid and people for making this successful job to be done with tireless and
restless efforts and contributions.

The report was officially launched by the Micheal Martin, the Irish Minister for
Foreign Affairs on June 16, 2010 at Iveagh House, Dublin in the presence of
Rohingya victims who were rescued by the Irish Government in one year ago.

For decades, the Rohingyas have been enduring human rights abuses in Northern
Arakan State of Burma. In every moment, more and more Rohingya men, women and
children are leaving Burma, fleeing the human rights abuses in the hope of finding
peace and security elsewhere in the world. But, their plight has been overlooked for
years and the root causes of their situation still remain under-examined. These
violations are on-going and in urgent need of attention and redress.

A fact-finding mission managed to reach to the region, including Burma, as well as on

extensive open-source research, and confidential meetings with organizations working
in the region. Mission gained much of the most important information came from the
many interviews conducted with Rohingya individuals in and around refugee camps
in Bangladesh, where they were able to speak more freely than they can in Burma
itself about the violations they had endured and which had caused them to flee their
homes.

The Report has examined the apparent cases of enslavement, rape and sexual
violence, deportation or forcible transfer of populations, and persecution against the
Rohingyas may constitute crimes against humanity. Describing the violations as
crimes against humanity raises the possibility that cases against those Burmese
officials who are responsible could be referred to the International Criminal Court

The Report has also revealed the truth on the actual situation of the Rohingyas
through the lens of crimes against humanity. The Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court and international criminal law jurisprudence, especially that of the ad
hoc International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, are used
to provide detailed and clear legal foundations for the examination. As becomes
evident in the individual chapters, there is a strong prima facie case for determining
that crimes against humanity are being committed against the Rohingyas of Northern
Arakan State in Burma.

The Reports affirms that people committing, allowing, aiding and abetting these
crimes must be held accountable, calling the international community including the
UN Security Council and UN Human Rights Council, ASEAN and all other
stakeholders or states to take responsibility to protect the Rohingyas, to respond to the
allegations of crimes against humanity and ensure that violations and impunity do not
persist for another generation, establishing a Commission of Inquiry to investigate and
collect further evidence on the perpetration of crimes against humanity in Northern
Arakan State. Moreover, as raised throughout this Report, there is strong foundation
to believe that further crimes are being committed throughout other areas of Burma,
and the Commission of Inquiry must have a broad mandate to investigate all
allegations of international crimes committed in the country.

Commission of Inquiry should confirm a prima facie case of crimes against humanity,
the Security Council should refer the case to the International Criminal Court,
pursuant to Article 13(b) of the Rome Statute.

We do believe that the ICHR will conduct further researchers in states of Rohingyas
refuge, where they have been being treated as slave labor under the title of temporary
shelter. These kinds of words bring obstructions against international supports
towards the Rohingya victims, living elsewhere in the world.

Base on these live evidences, we request to all level of human societies to come
forward for showing strong solidarity in combating crimes against Rohingya Burmese
minority through allocating them in the states parties to United Nations and
International Treaties including 1951 Convention and its 1967 additional protocol and
putting effective pressures on Burmese military regime for urgent democratic changes
in order to ensure the full rights and dignity of the Rohingyas in Burma.

Signed by:
1. Arakan Rohingya Refugee Committee (ARRC), Malaysia
2. Arakan Rohingya Organization-Japan (JARO)
3. Arakan Rohingya Ulama Council, (ARUC), Malaysia
4. Burmese Rohingya Association in UAE (BRA-UAE)
5. Human Rights Association for Rohingya (HURAR), Arakan-Burma
6. Myanmar Muslim Council (MMC), KSA
7. National Council for Rohingya (NCR), Malaysia
8. National Democratic Party for Human Rights (NDPHR) exile, HQ, USA
9. Rohingya Youth Development Forum (RYDF), Arakan-Burma
10. World Rohingya Congress (WRC), USA

For further information, please contact:

Kyaw Soe Aung,, Tel: +14147364273
Mohammad Sadek, Tel: +60 163094599