Myanmar: UN expert raises alarm on Rakhine State
Geneva, 7 April 2014 – The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar, Tomás Ojea
Quintana, today pressed the alarm bell on the further deterioration of the human rights situation in Rakhine State.
“Recent developments in Rakhine State are the latest in a long history of discrimination and persecution against the
Rohingya community which could amount to crimes against humanity.” He warned that the evacuation of aid workers,
following the recent attacks on UN and NGO premises in Sittwe, “will only increase the vulnerability of this community”.
“These workers were in Rakhine State providing essential life-saving support, including health services, water and food
to internally displaced persons, isolated villages, and other affected communities,” he explained. “The withdrawal of
these workers will have severe consequences on the enjoyment of fundamental human rights, including the right to life.”
Water availability could reach critical levels within a week in some displacement camps, particularly in Pauktaw. The
impact on healthcare will be particularly severe for the 140,000 people still in such camps in Rakhine State and the
700,000 vulnerable people outside the camps.
Mr. Ojea Quintana noted the Government’s commitment last week to ensure the safety and protection of UN and other
international agencies’ personnel, and underlined the need for the prompt return of all humanitarian staff so that their
life-saving work can resume with all communities.
Prior to these latest developments, in his latest report to the UN Human Rights Council in March the Special Rapporteur reported that, taking into consideration the information
and allegations he had received throughout his six years on the mandate, crimes against humanity may have been committed
in Rakhine State.
National census – further concerns
The Special Rapporteur also expressed concern about the ongoing census in Myanmar: “The Government’s decision against
self-identification of the Rohingya for the census is not in compliance with international human rights standards,” he
stressed.
Self-identification for the Rohingya has been at the root of some protests in the past in Rakhine State that led to
violence and human rights violations and abuses for which there is yet to be accountability. “The ongoing census risks
this cycle repeating itself,” the expert said.
“Self-identification should constitute a pillar of the collection of ethnically disaggregated data. It is related to
respect for the rights of individuals to assert their own identity,” Mr. Ojea Quintana stated. “To deny
self-identification is therefore a violation of human rights.”
During his latest mission to the country last February, the Special Rapporteur heard from a range of ethnic groups that
the ethnic categories included in the census did not reflect how they identified themselves.
“It is not only in Rakhine State that people object to the ethnic categories included in the census,” he noted. “It
became clear during my discussions with communities in Kachin State that the Government has approached the census
without sufficient or meaningful consultation with all affected communities.”
Mr. Ojea Quintana’s views on the census and calls for the prompt return of all humanitarian staff are shared by the
Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Chaloka Beyani; the Special Rapporteur on
minority issues, Rita Izsák; the Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable
standard of physical and mental health, Anand Grover; the Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful
assembly and of association, Maina Kiai; and the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial
discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, Mutuma Ruteere.
The United Nations human rights experts are part of what it is known as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights
Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights, is the general name of the
independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms of the Human Rights Council that address either specific country
situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world.
They are charged by the Human Rights Council to monitor, report and advise on human rights issues. Currently, there are
37 thematic mandates and 14 mandates related to countries and territories, with 72 mandate holders. In March 2014, three
new mandates were added. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive
a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or organization and serve in their individual
capacity. Learn more: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Welcomepage.aspx
For more information log on to:
Human rights in Myanmar: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/CountriesMandates/MM/Pages/SRMyanmar.aspx
Freedom of association: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/AssemblyAssociation/Pages/SRFreedomAssemblyAssociationIndex.aspx
UN Human Rights, country page – Myanmar: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/AsiaRegion/Pages/MMIndex.aspx
ENDS