Where There Is Police, There Is Persecution Government Security
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Physicians for Where There is Police, Human Rights There is Persecution Government Security Forces and October 2016 Human Rights Abuses in Myanmar’s Northern Rakhine State An immigration officer inspects Rohingyas’ paperwork at a checkpoint in Rakhine State. About Physicians for Human Rights For 30 years, Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) has used science and medicine to document and call attention to mass atrocities and severe human rights violations. PHR is a global organization founded on the idea that health professionals, with their specialized skills, ethical duties, and credible voices, are uniquely positioned to stop human rights violations. PHR’s investigations and expertise are used to advocate for persecuted health workers and medical facilities under attack, prevent torture, document mass atrocities, and hold those who violate human rights accountable. Table of Contents Acknowledgements 2 Introduction This report was written by Claudia Rader edited and Widney Brown, Physicians for prepared the report for 4 Methodology Human Rights (PHR) program publication. director, and is based on field 6 Background research conducted from November PHR would like to acknowledge 2015 to May 2016 in Myanmar the Bangladesh-based research 8 Findings (Rakhine State and Yangon) and team who contributed to the Bangladesh. study, design, and data collection 20 Discussion and also reviewed and edited the The report benefited from review report. PHR would also like to 24 Conclusion and by PHR leadership and staff, thank other external reviewers Recommendations including DeDe Dunevant, director who wish to remain anonymous. of communications, Donna McKay, 27 Endnotes MS, executive director, Marianne PHR is deeply indebted to the Møllmann, LLM, MSc, senior Rohingya and Rakhine people researcher, and Claudia Rader, MS, who were willing to share their content and marketing manager. experiences with us. ©2016 Physicians for Human The report benefitted from external The survey for this report was Rights. All rights reserved. review by Adam Richards, MD, approved by PHR’s Ethics Review Library of Congress Control PhD, MPH, PHR board member and Board. Support for the survey Number 2016955265 assistant professor in the Division and report was provided by ISBN 978-0-9981162-0-4 of General Internal Medicine and the National Endowment Health Services Research at the for Democracy. University of California, Los Angeles. India China Mandalay Bangladesh Myanmar Chin State Buthidaung Maungdaw Myanmar Rakhine State Laos Area Enlarged Sittwe In Myanmar’s northern Rakhine State, ethnic Rohingyas have been Key subjected to decades of government-perpetrated human rights abuses, Checkpoint which have severely impacted their ability to survive, to access health City care, and to provide for their families. Security forces have penetrated Government Clinic into nearly all parts of the state and Rohingyas cannot travel far without encountering a security post, where they routinely risk assault, detention, and extortion. As this map illustrates, security posts are positioned on most of the access routes to government clinics, and many of the Rohingyas surveyed by Physicians for Human Rights said that they had often decided not to seek advanced medical care because of fear of passing through these checkpoints. Physicians for Human Rights phr.org Nay Pyi Taw Thailand Yangon 100 km Introduction A Rohingya man talks to a census worker at his house compound in Rakhine State. The government of Myanmar views Rohingya as migrants from Bangladesh and refuses them citizenship; it has required them instead to register as “Bengali.” Photo: Soe Than Win/AFP/Getty Images In Rakhine State, in western Myanmar, and bribes have severe impacts on other conflict-affected ethnic areas of the government has committed human households in Rakhine State. Land Myanmar, the presence of state security rights violations against the population confiscations from the predominantly forces, most often the Tatmadaw for decades, including forced evictions, agrarian population take away a (Myanmar Armed Forces), is associated arbitrary detention, restrictions on resource that is crucial for generating with increased rights abuses and freedom of movement, denial of the income and producing food. Extortion impacts on health and livelihoods. In a right to citizenship, and discrimination (being forced to pay bribes to security 2012 household survey in Karen State, in access to health care, work, housing, forces) can remove a significant PHR found that for each hour’s hiking and basic amenities. These violations proportion of this needy population’s distance closer to a military outpost that have continued after the transition income. As a result, households may not a village was located, households in that to the current democratically-elected be able to afford to buy enough food, village had a 23 percent increased risk government, and they have affected send children to school, or travel for of having experienced a human rights all ethnic minorities in the state. Human medical care. The onerous restrictions violation and a seven percent increased rights violations perpetrated by the on movement further limit people’s risk of food insecurity.1 government are an often-overlooked ability to access medical care and to root cause of the anti-Muslim violence transport crops to sell in the market. In Rakhine State, too, any encounter that wracked the region in 2012, Moreover, these rights abuses cause with state security personnel brings the and they continue to be an obstacle poor health outcomes. risk of rights abuses. The high presence to reconciliation and economic there of security outposts means these development. The population studied for this report encounters are common. – the Rohingya – are a Muslim ethnic Between November 2015 and May group of about one million people and But the Rohingya are not the only group 2016, Physicians for Human Rights one of the world’s largest stateless to have suffered from government (PHR) documented the manner in which populations. In Myanmar, they have repression in Myanmar. The narrative the minority Rohingya population in rarely been free from government of abuses against Rohingyas often the state are particularly targeted for scrutiny. Village administrators, overshadows reports of abuses against these violations, and charted the effect informers, and the high number of another ethnic group, the Buddhist the violations have on the health and security outposts scattered across Rakhines, when, in fact, Rakhine livelihood of an already impoverished Rakhine State, where most Rohingyas people have also suffered human population. PHR found that restrictions live, ensure that Rohingyas’ daily lives rights violations such as forced labor, on movement, forced labor, nighttime are closely monitored. This surveillance forced displacement, arbitrary arrests raids, land confiscations, and the dramatically increases the chances and killings, and theft of food and consequential extortion, taxation, of rights violations and extortion – other basic amenities.2 Around the Rohingyas cannot do anything without the government knowing about it. In 2 Where There is Police, There is Persecution In northern Rakhine State, Rohingyas are subjected to a wide range of abuse, restrictions, and penalties which severely impact their ability to survive, to access health care, and to provide for their families. tourist destinations of Mrauk U and violations committed against Rohingya Rakhine State Ngapali, the military has repeatedly people living outside of internally seized Rakhine villagers’ land over the displaced person (IDP) camps, in two Rakhine State is in western last two decades to make room for townships in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar, on the Indian Ocean hotels. Rakhines have also had their and bordering Bangladesh. Ethnic land taken by the military to expand To investigate abuses, PHR investigators conflict in Rakhine State started bases as well as for officers’ personal surveyed 112 Rohingya migrants in decades, if not centuries, before use. Land confiscations around the Bangladesh and interviewed 58 other the outbreak of fighting in Sittwe Kyauk Phyu Special Economic Zone and people, including Rakhines, international in 2012, which left hundreds dead the China-Myanmar pipeline have not aid workers, and Rohingyas in both and displaced 140,000 Rohingyas been resolved. The military also abuse Bangladesh and Myanmar about the and Rakhines into IDP camps. Ethnic Rakhine people by confiscating food situation in Rakhine State. Rakhine people – who number and using them for forced labor and to about 2.1 million and are the most serve as porters in conflict areas in the PHR’s findings show that, in northern populous group in the state – trace central part of the state. Two thousand Rakhine State, Rohingyas are subjected their roots to the Arakan and Rakhines fled their homes in 2015 and to a wide range of abuse, restrictions, Dynawaddy kingdoms that ruled 2016 around the towns of Kyauk Taw and penalties which severely impact their the region starting in about 300 AD. and Ponnagyun to escape these abuses. ability to survive, to access health care, Although Rakhines are Buddhist, A 2015 report identified more cases and to provide for their families. PHR they have a different language and of land confiscation among the ethnic found evidence of routine and severe culture from the Burman people Rakhine population in southeastern violations of the rights to freedom of who inhabit the