Habib Siddiqui

The MOU can be read from the link here . As noted by experts, the MOU did not address the main issue concerning the citizenship of the affected Rohingyas, and as such, will not result in any positive outcome. Let me share the comments from the Dhaka Tribune below: ========== Refugee leaders and human rights groups say the agreement fails to ensure basic rights for the Rohingya Rohingya refugees returning to Myanmar will have no explicit guarantees of citizenship or freedom of movement throughout the country, under a secret agreement between the government and the United Nations seen by Reuters. The UN struck an outline deal with Myanmar at the end of May aimed at eventually allowing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims sheltering in Bangladesh to return safely and by choice, but did not make the details of the deal public. Reuters on Friday reviewed a copy of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreed between the UN and Myanmar authorities. The draft also leaked...

Rohingya women tell of new massacre horror: 'Soldiers threw babies in the air and slashed them with machetes. Refugee women of Myanmar reveal the terrifying and bloody campaign of ethnic cleansing suffered by their people. By  Tom Parry (Image: Andy Stenning/Daily Mirror) Whispered testimony from a traumatised Rohingya mother has revealed a gruesome new level of violence against the most defenceless of refugees. Fatima Begum’s husband was shot then had his throat cut as merciless soldiers torched a village in Myanmar. But that is just the beginning of her horrifying story. She then reveals how babies and children were slaughtered in state- ­sponsored war crimes so awful they are difficult to comprehend. In hushed tones, wary Fatima, 25, tells me: “They threw babies in the air and then slashed them with long knives and machetes. “I saw a dead baby cut into four and then they threw the body parts on to a fire. I saw this happen right in front of me. I...

By Poppy McPherson ,   Zeba Siddiqui YANGON/COX’S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters)   - Rohingya refugees returning to Myanmar will have no explicit guarantees of citizenship or freedom of movement throughout the country, under a secret agreement between the government and the United Nations seen by Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A Rohingya refugee child is handed food rations at Jamtoli refugee camp near Cox's Bazaar, Bangladesh, March 29, 2018. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File Photo The UN struck an outline deal with Myanmar at the end of May aimed at eventually allowing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims sheltering in Bangladesh to return safely and by choice, but did not make the details of the deal public. Reuters on Friday reviewed a copy of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) agreed between the UN and Myanmar authorities. The draft also leaked out online. Citizenship and rights of refugees who return to Myanmar were key points of contention during negoti...

By Ram Puniyani Politics in contemporary times is wearing the clothes of religion; much too often. It may be global politics of imperialist countries, to control the oil wealth, or the politics to re-impose values of birth based inequality in South Asian countries, religion is the cover. In Pakistan and many West Asian countries , it in the name of Islam that feudalism-authoritarianism persists and is being strengthened, in Myanmar-Sri Lanka Buddhism is the cover, while in India, it is the label of Hinduism, which is being abused to stifle the values of equality and liberalism. Too often such acts of sectarian politics affect the creative people, their gazal concerts are disrupted, their films are banned-attacked by the storm troopers. Many times warnings are given to them and apologies sought for the hurt feelings of religion or nationalism. Priyanka Chopra, the star from bollywood who has been doing a serial in US television,   Quantico,   has been in the news for sim...

According to UN spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric, the visit will also highlight the “generosity” of Bangladesh in hosting the refugees as well as the need for the international community “to do more.” During the mission, the Secretary-General will be joined by Jim Yong Kim, the President of the World Bank Group. The two top officials are expected to meet with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and other senior officials in the capital, Dhaka. On Monday, they are due to travel to Cox’s Bazar to visit Rohingya refugee communities and humanitarian workers, and advocate for increased donor support. IOM 2018 Flash flooding has damaged key infrastructure including this bridge in Balukhali camp . ‘One storm can wash us all away,’ refugees fear The greatest threat that hundreds-of-thousands face on the ground today, is the ongoing monsoon season, with torrential rain that can cause flash-flooding, and the heightened risk of cyclones which accompany it. For refugees in mak...

(New York) – The Myanmar government should prosecute recently removed army officers for their role in atrocities against ethnic Rohingya, Human Rights Watch said today. On June 25, 2018, in a statement posted on a Myanmar military Facebook page , the military announced the dismissal of Maj. Gen. Maung Maung Soe and belatedly announced the resignation of Lt. Gen. Aung Kyaw Zaw. Each general oversaw military operations in Rakhine State following the deadly attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) on security posts on August 25, 2017. Military forces under the command of Maung Maung Soe and Aung Kyaw Zaw carried out a campaign of killings, rape, and mass arson that forced over 700,000 Rohingya refugees to flee to Bangladesh. Human Rights Watch found that these abuses amounted to crimes against humanity . The June 25 announcement made no reference of their link to atrocities, but instead focused on the weakness of their administration and performance prior to the ARSA a...

By LS HERDENIA, BHOPAL   DATED: june 28 , 2018   I do not hold any brief for Indira Gandhi as far her decision to impose emergency is concerned. There is no doubt that emergency period will be recorded as a black chapter in the democratic history of the country. But certainly I have every reason to differ with Arun Jaitely when he compares Indira Gandhi with Hitler. Hitler perhaps was the cruellest ruler in the history of mankind. Besides destroying all the democratic institutions of Germany, which had a glorious history of democracy. He targeted one particular community (Jews) and wanted their total physical annihilation. But Indira did not target any particular community. In our country there are leaders who orchestrated the genocide of people belonging to particular community in Gujarat. Hitler’s cruelty did not have any limits. Because of his brutal attitude even great scientist like Albert Einstein had to leave his motherland. But during the emergency there is no...

India under Modi government is becoming a den of hatred and lynching mob for minorities, esp. Muslims. See the report below from Outlook India. ============== On Wednesday evening, a mentally-challenged man was thrashed and left with serious injuries by a mob over similar child-lifting and organ trafficking rumours in Agartala. A video of the incident had also gone viral on social media. The trigger for the three back-to-back attacks, the sources said, were the alleged reports about illegal harvesting of the kidneys and other organs of an 11-year-old boy, Purna Biswas, who was found dead in the Tulabagan area of West Tripura district on Tuesday. Amid reports of clashes between locals and the police over the incident, chief minister Biplab Kumar Deb took to social media to debunk the rumours, and claimed that the kidneys and other organs of the boy were found intact, citing the autopsy report. In fact, to counter the social media reports, Deb said there was no facility for kidney ...

After declining for three successive years, money parked by Indians in Swiss Banks rose 50 per cent to CHF (Swiss Franc) 1.02 billion (Rs 7,000 crore) in 2017 over the previous year. While overall, total foreign deposits rose by only 3 per cent, China also saw a significant jump in the money parked by its residents — up 69 per cent, from CHF 9.45 billion in 2016 to CHF 15.95 billion. The latest data from Zurich-based Swiss National Bank (SNB) comes months after a new framework has been put in place for automatic exchange of information between Switzerland and India to help check the black money menace. While Switzerland has begun sharing foreign client details on evidence of wrongdoing provided by India and some other countries, it has agreed to further expand its cooperation on India’s fight against black money with a new pact for automatic information exchange. Bankers attributed the jump in Indian deposits to a variety of factors: the 39 per cent increase in foreign remittances ...