ROHINGYA CRISIS

PRESENTED BY DARAKHSHAN SHAIKH

INTRODUCTION

The Rohingya are a majority-Muslim ethnic group who have

lived in the Buddhist nation of Myanmar for centuries.
Rohingya are ethnically from the Rakhine State in Myanmar,
previously known as Arakan. They have faced discrimination
by Myanmar's military since the country's independence in
the late 1940s.
The Rohingya are often described as "the world's most persecuted
minority".
majority of whom are Muslim, who have lived for centuries in
Myanmar. The Rohingya speak Rohingya or Ruaingga, a dialect that is
distinct to others spoken in Rakhine State and throughout Myanmar.
They are not considered one of the country's 135 official ethnic
groups and have been denied citizenship in Myanmar since 1982
Nearly all of the Rohingya in Myanmar live in the western coastal
state of Rakhine and are not allowed to leave without government
permission. Due to ongoing violence and persecution, hundreds of
thousands of Rohingya have fled to neighboring countries either by
land or boat over the course of many decades
HISTORY

Rohingyas have been living in Arakan from time

immemorial, referring to the area now known as Rakhine.
During the more than 100 years of British rule (1824-
1948), there was a significant amount of migration of
laborer's to what is now known as Myanmar from todays
India and Bangladesh. Because at that time Myanmar was
the province of India.
The migration was not acceptable for the native
population.
After independence, the government of Myanmar said
that migration that took place during British rule as
"illegal, and they refuse citizenship to the majority of
Rohingya.
The British also promised the Rohingya separate land a
“Muslim National Area” if they supported them during
the Second World War, at that time the Rohingya sided
with the British while Myanmar’s nationalists supported
the Japanese. Following the war, the British rewarded the
Rohingya with prestigious government posts. However,
they were not given an autonomous state.
In 1982, the Citizenship Act of Myanmar
formally denied citizenship rights for Rohingya
Muslims This law required that a person’s
ancestors belong to a national race or group
present in Myanmar prior to British rule in
1823, to become a citizen. The Rohingya were
still classified as illegal immigrants allowed in by
British colonizers.
Today, the Rohingya are the largest “stateless” community in
the world.
they are deprived of basic rights such as access to health
services, education and employment. Additionally, they have
been denied the right to worship freely. They also face
restrictions on the right to marry, move freely and own
property because of their religious and ethnic identity.
Even though Rohingya population growth has slowed down,
anxieties not only persist but are codified in law: Rohingya
couples are allowed no more than two children.
Since the 1970s, a number of crackdowns
on the Rohingya in Rakhine State have
forced hundreds of thousands to flee to
neighboring Bangladesh, as well as
Malaysia, Thailand and other Southeast
Asian countries. During such crackdowns,
refugees have often reported rape, torture,
arson and murder by Myanmar security
forces
According to the most recently available data
from the United Nations in May, more than
168,000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar since 2012.
Following violence that broke out last year, more
than 87,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh from
October 2016 to July 2017.
ROLE OF OIC

The OIC held and extraordinary session earlier

this year in Malaysia dedicated entirely to the
situation of the Rohingya , OIC as the second
largest intergovernmental organization with the
membership of fifty seven nations across the
four continent
There are simple measure the OIC could pursue
Firstly, the OIC can work with The UN and Mynamar authorities to
resolve this issue
Secondly , OIC as a religious based organization can reframe the
conflict resolution effort of international community in term of an
inter-faith dialogue amongst religious communities and their global
leaders , the OIC itself claims the global Muslim voice , so it should
be able to bring in leading global Muslim personalities who would
already acceptable and respected by buddhist leaders of a country
Finally , the OIC can help to relieve pressure on neighboring
countries that have taken in hundreds of Rohingya refugees
such as Bangladesh Malaysia and other , as Bangladesh is
justified in trying to ensure that the Rohingya do not
become the permanent presence in their own country
because of lack of resources , the OIC therefore organize a
coordinated global effort to provide countries like
Bangladesh the basic essential to ensure the Rohingya are
comfortable during their short tenure before the able to
return their homeland