Myanmar’s neighbors reacted with growing concern Wednesday as the International Organization of Migration (IOM) said that more than 18,000 Rohingya Muslims had fled their homes within the past week after a spate of violence erupted in Rakhine state. In Dhaka, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called on the United States to pressure Myanmar into stopping the influx of Rohingya into her country’s southeastern region from Rakhine, which is just across the border. Hasina had just met in the Bangladeshi capital with Alice Wells, the acting U.S. assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian Affairs. “The prime minister told [Wells] that Bangladesh has given shelter to them on humanitarian grounds, but it’s now a big problem for us,” Ihsanul Karim, Hasina’s press secretary, told reporters. The exodus along the Myanmar-Bangladesh border started after Rohingya insurgents launched coordinated attacks on 30 police outposts and an army base in the Myanmar townships of Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Rathedaung on Friday. Officials said the attacks killed more than 100 people, including dozens of insurgents, and provoked new clashes as the government stepped up efforts to stop the chaos. In Jakarta on Wednesday, Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi urged Myanmar to curb civilian casualties and prodded Bangladesh to accept fleeing refugees. The top diplomat of the world’s largest Muslim-majority nation told a news conference that she planned to travel to Myanmar soon to witness conditions among Rohingya communities in Rakhine state, according to Merdeka, an Indonesian media outlet. A day earlier, Retno contacted Bangladesh’s foreign minister and also spoke with Myanmar National Security Adviser Thaung Tun to discuss “the disproportionate use of force by Myanmar security forces in Rakhine state,” according to Turkish news agency Anadolu. Marsudi said she talked to the official over the phone and asked Myanmar to “avoid civilian casualties amid the violence” and to provide protection to the Rohingya community. “This security protection is a humanitarian concern; it has to include the people of Rakhine state,” Marsudi said. Thai preparations Also on Tuesday, Thai Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-o-cha met with Myanmar military chief Min Aung Hlaing in Bangkok and said his government was prepared to accept displaced people fleeing the conflict. “Thai Ministry of Defense and security units are preparing to receive displaced people, and have given security forces a migration plan if the fighting escalates,” Prayuth said. He said Thailand would be willing to prepare shelters for the Rohingya and then send them back when the security situation had stabilized. Meanwhile in Malaysia, police said that more than 100 people were arrested Wednesday after about 1,000 ethnic Rohingya demonstrated near a major road in Kuala Lumpur and demanded an end to the violence in Myanmar. A smaller protest was also held outside the Myanmar Embassy. One protester doused himself with gasoline and attempted to set himself on fire before he was stopped by the police, according to Channel News Asia, which showed a picture of the man who appeared to be drenched. Malaysia, a majority Sunni Islam nation, hosts almost 60,000 Rohingya refugees who form part of a large immigrant labor force doing low-skilled jobs, according to the United Nations. Since the fresh cycle of violence began in Rakhine on Aug. 24, more than 18,000 Rohingya have crossed into Bangladesh, Sanjukta Sahany, chief of IOM's office in southeastern Cox’s Bazar district – which is home to Rohingya refugee camps – told a news conference Wednesday. Many of the refugees had bullet and burn injuries, Sahany said. “They are in a very, very desperate condition,” Sahany said. “People are traumatized, which is quite visible.” The Bangladesh border guard has sent back 1,500 Rohingya to Myanmar during the past six days, officials said. On Wednesday morning, Bangladeshi police said they had recovered the bodies of three children and three women from a river Accusations of atrocities The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), an insurgency group that claims it is strictly homegrown and not backed by foreign militants, has taken responsibility for the attacks on the Myanmar police posts. It claims to be fighting for the rights of an estimated 1.1 million poverty-stricken Rohingya, who have no citizenship rights, in western Myanmar’s Rakhine State. Myanmar has declared ARSA a terrorist group, though the office of State Counsellor and de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi only yesterday began calling the insurgents "extremist ARSA terrorists" on its official Facebook page after previously referring to them as "Bengali" terrorists, using a derogatory word for Rohingya, who are deemed illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. As recently as yesterday, Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe, Myanmar’s minister for home affairs, repeated the government’s long-held stance that Rohingya do not exist in Myanmar, during a briefing in Yangon attended by defense ministry officials and National Security Adviser Thaung Tun. “There is no Rohingya among our ethnic groups," he said. "[What] we have seen are the Bengalis in this region who have tried to destroy Myanmar’s rule of law.” In a video uploaded to YouTube on Monday, a man identifying himself as ARSA chief Ataullah Abu Ammar Junini (also known as Ata Ullah), according to the English subtitles, accused Myanmar forces of committing atrocities and using mortars and rocket launchers on Rohingya civilians. “You know that they are burning down Rohingya houses and villages. There are dead bodies on the roads, everywhere and all over,” said Ullah, who was flanked in the video footage by two youthful-looking masked men clutching AK-47 rifles. Ullah, whose face was uncovered, challenged the Myanmar forces: “If you want to wage war, then fight with those youth who are fighting for their rights in self-defense.” On Tuesday, a New York-based rights group said it had accessed satellite data that showed widespread fires burning in at least 10 areas in Rakhine state. Myanmar, also known as Burma, should grant access to independent monitors to determine the sources of fires and assess allegations of human rights violations, according to a statement from Human Rights Watch (HRW). “This new satellite data should cause concern and prompt action by donors and UN agencies to urge the Burmese government to reveal the extent of ongoing destruction in Rakhine State,” said Phil Robertson, HRW’s deputy Asia director. “Shuffling all the blame on insurgents doesn’t spare the Burmese government from its international obligations to stop abuses and investigate alleged violations.” HRW said the burnings followed a buildup of military forces and the deployment of the 33rd Light Infantry Battalion in northern Rakhine, the region that has seen simmering tensions between its Buddhist and predominantly Muslim populations since communal violence broke out in 2012. Both the Myanmar military and ARSA insurgents have traded accusations of committing abuses. Government approach Some 200 civil society organizations (CSOs) in Myanmar had called for an end to the violence in a statement on Monday, expressing concern for affected communities in northern Rakhine state. The CSOs called on the government to "swiftly grant unimpeded access for independent news agencies and provide security to reporters" so that citizens of Myanmar and the international community "receive credible news and updates in real time about the situation of local communities" to avoid the risk of the conflict spreading to other areas. The statement also urged the government to "protect the safety, dignity and basic human rights of all the civilians with equity and fairness and be accountable in accord with international human rights and humanitarian law and standards without any exception." But others in Myanmar say the government is not handling the conflict forcefully enough. On Wednesday, firebrand monk Wirathu of the ultranationalist Buddhist monk group Ma Ba Tha, called on the government to impose martial law in northern Rakhine state and suggested Aung San Suu Kyi's government was bowing to international concerns by not taking a harder stance in the region, without mentioning the leader by name. “It's not only a fear of bullets and gunfire ... it's also a fear of international pressure,” the firebrand monk told a rally of supporters in Yangon. “We had police outposts and they attacked them. But now we have military troops in Rakhine state and all of [the insurgents] are running away. So, you should realize that until martial law is imposed, people in [northern Rakhine] will be killed by Bengalis.” ‘We could have another Cambodia’ As officials across Southeast Asia grappled with a looming humanitarian crisis, parliamentarians from across the region urged governments to take immediate action to protect civilians in Rakhine. “This is the time to act, or we could have another Cambodia in our backyard,” said Malaysian legislator Charles Santiago, chairman of ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR), referring to atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia in the 1970s. “It’s time for ASEAN member countries to shelve the archaic non-interference policy and warn Myanmar to stop the killings,” Santiago said. Santiago's call for action came a day after Britain's U.N. Ambassador Matthew Rycroft asked the U.N. Security Council to meet to "address long-term issues in Rakhine, urge restraint by all parties," in a post on Twitter. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 BenarNews

We pray for the strength and wisdom to achieve a better tomorrow – one where good people of all faiths, Christians and Muslims and Jewish and Hindu, can follow their hearts and worship according to their conscience.” - President Donald J. Trump The Trump Administration’s first International Religious Freedom report paints a grim picture. On August 15, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said conditions in many parts of the world remain “far from ideal” nearly 20 years after the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 required the U.S. government to report on this core freedom: “Religious persecution and intolerance remain far too prevalent. Almost 80 percent of the global population live with restrictions on or hostilities to limit their freedom of religion. Where religious freedom is not protected, we know that instability, human rights abuses, and violent extremism have a greater opportunity to take root.” The report explores the various forms and levels of persecution that ethnic and religious groups experience. The purpose of the report according to the legislation that created it is to “[Stand] for liberty and with the persecuted; to use and implement appropriate tools in the United States foreign policy apparatus, including diplomatic, political, commercial, charitable, educational, and cultural channels; [and] to promote respect for religious freedom by all governments and peoples.” The report is used by the Secretary in determining which countries to place on the “Special Watch List” for having engaged in or tolerated “severe violations of religious freedom,” as recently mandated by the Frank R. Wolf International Religious Freedom Act of 2016. One important topic covered in the report is the Islamic State’s genocide against Yezidis, Christians and other ethnic minorities in Iraq and Syria. It also covers each of the State Department’s designated Countries of Particular Concern (CPCs) – those deemed to commit systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom, including torture, degrading treatment or punishment, prolonged detention without charges, abduction or clandestine detention, or other flagrant denial of the right to life, liberty, or the security of persons. As of October 31, 2016, the current list of CPCs is China, Eritrea, Iran, Myanmar (Burma), North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. As advocates for religious freedom and people of faith who desire to help our brothers and sisters, reports such as this provide a launching pad for action. If you want to make a difference in the lives of those who are suffering persecution, you must be informed. We encourage you to choose a country or a region and read the relevant report(s). Once you are familiar with the state of religious persecution there, pray intentionally for that country. Stand with the persecuted by using information in the 2016 International Religious Freedom report to help make a difference. Christine Virgin Online Editor Take Action: 1. Access the 2016 International Religious Freedom report and choose at least one country or region to research. 2. Write letters or make calls to your senators and representative, asking them to prioritize the information in the report when making legislative decisions. 3. Pray daily for your country or region, and write letters to persecuted Christians through Open Doors USA. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Wilberforce Initiative

Mohammad Selim disappeared the night in May that Cyclone Mora tore through the Rohingya refugee camps on Bangladesh’s west coast. But it wasn’t the storm that killed him – his was one of a handful of recent murders blamed on gangs vying for power over the camps. Selim was snatched while walking home from his father-in-law’s hut. He had been examining the wreckage after the storm ripped through shelters housing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya who have fled persecution and violence in neighbouring Myanmar. A few days later, the family got a call. His mother, Jamila Begum, told IRIN what happened next. “It’s me. It’s Selim,” said the voice on the line. He said he was being held by men who had killed another refugee. “I’m going to die!” he said. “Please forgive me! Forgive me for everything!” After several days, children found a body in the river. “I was thinking, ‘It’s my son. It’s my son,’” said Begum, her heavy-lidded eyes filling with tears. The body was decomposed, but she could tell it was Selim. His hair and penis had been hacked off. Days later, the body of Mohammad Ayub, another resident of Kutupalong camp, was found with his throat slit and his hands tied behind his back. A third man, Mohammad Shafi, known as “Boli", was also killed. The violence is said to have continued, with kidnappings reported as recently as this month. A July report by the Inter Sector Coordination Group, a multi-agency body formed to coordinate aid efforts in the camps and chaired by the International Organization for Migration, warned of the “deteriorating security situation”, citing a “surge” of incidents. Refugees and aid workers have told IRIN that there’s a struggle for control over the camps, and the humanitarian supplies flowing into them, following an influx of refugees fleeing Myanmar. Some suggest the victims, several of whom were community leaders, were targeted by gangs that have developed a mafia-like hold in the camps. Some say the victims were resisting demands. Others say they were murdered by vigilantes angry about corruption in the aid supply. Still others believe the gangs are fostering panic to enforce their control. “I think it is more or less because of money,” said one senior Cox’s Bazar-based aid worker, who asked not to be named because he was not authorised to speak to media. Living in fear Whatever the reasons behind the killings, the effects are obvious: a climate of fear and confusion. Kutupalong is awash with rumours about masked men terrorising residents after dusk. “At night, sometimes we hear the sound of gunfire,” said an elderly woman, Reyhana, who like many Rohingya goes by one name. Home to almost 80,000 people, Kutupalong is a vast maze of dark, sweaty shelters patched together from bamboo and tarpaulin. Naked children clamber across planks balanced over raw sewage. Recent arrivals carve out space beside people who fled Myanmar in the 1990s. Generation is heaped on generation, the legacy of decades of persecution in Myanmar. There were an estimated 300,000 Rohingya already living in Bangladesh before a wave of violence in late 2016 drove tens of thousands of new refugees across the border. Myanmar’s military is accused of killing civilians, raping women, and burning homes during a counterinsurgency offensive launched last October after a new Rohingya militant group carried out deadly attacks on border police posts. As of the end of July, at least 87,000 people had crossed the border since those operations began, according to the UN. Now, a new round of violence threatens to push even more Rohingya to seek refuge in Bangladesh’s ramshackle camps. The same militant group behind the October attacks staged strikes on police and border posts on 25 August, in what observers are calling a "a very serious escalation" in the Rakhine conflict. Thousands of Rohingya have sought to flee, with some turned back by Bangladesh border police. Even before the most recent violence, aid agencies were scrambling to respond to the post-October arrivals by ramping up food distribution and other services. In July alone, more than 270 children were treated for life-threatening severe acute malnutrition, according to the Inter Sector Coordination Group report, while more than 1,900 other children were admitted for treatment for moderate acute malnutrition. New refugees in Kutupalong told IRIN they were lucky to eat two meals a day, which often consisted only of rice. Bangladesh has only allowed about 33,000 Rohingya to register as official refugees; they live in two camps administered by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. The majority of Rohingya live in “makeshift” extensions of camps like Kutupalong. Resources have always been scarce, and the recent influx of refugees drove up the demand for aid, which was subsequently increased. Both factors are thought to have created opportunities for illicit profit for gangs, as well as corrupt community leaders who help administer aid. Aid workers say the nascent Rohingya militancy has a presence in the camps, and threats have been made in its name. A member contacted by IRIN denied the group was involved in the killings. ‘Crisis zone’ Some of the targeted refugees, including Mohammad Ayub, were said to be camp leaders tasked with delivering food. These middlemen, who exist in refugee camps across the world, are influential figures in the community, often with power over who gets on food distribution lists. For some, it’s a bribe-seeking opportunity. Allegations of corruption in the system have long plagued the Cox’s Bazar camps, according to the Inter Sector Coordination Group report. “Elections of leaders in all makeshifts are recommended to tackle alleged corruption among current leaders,” it suggested. The aid worker who spoke anonymously said gangs have been extorting money from various people in the camps, including camp leaders and refugees who make money. After aid distribution, residents are compelled to sell or give up part of their rations, he said. “[The gangs] want control over the camp and select businesses so they can collect ransoms,” said the aid worker. “If anyone goes against them, they target them,” he said, adding that certain refugees might be trying to “oust” the current community leadership. One of the victims of the recent violence, Mohammad Ayub, who ran a shop, had been charged with handing out IOM rations, according to another refugee leader who spoke anonymously. But there were rumours that he was skimming profits for himself. Others said he had been seen arguing with someone who he did business with. Selim’s mother said her son had sold spare rations to make extra money. “We got some rations from WFP or another [agency] like that,” she said. “After saving something, he is selling to someone else to have some money.” She couldn’t think of anyone who would want him dead. Jamila Begum, whose son, Mohammad Selim, was abducted and murdered, poses for a portrait in Kutupalong camp, Bangladesh. IOM did not respond to requests for comment. Line Sofie Adser, a spokeswoman for WFP in Bangladesh, said there was no evidence violence was related to its food assistance. “WFP takes any reports of misuse of food assistance or irregularities in distributions extremely seriously,” she said, adding that WFP staff go door to door twice per month to verify beneficiary lists. “WFP has recently been tasked with coordinating food assistance activities among local actors to ensure smoother, efficient, and safe processes for everyone involved,” she said. But corruption is hard to shake in an emergency situation, said Shahab Enam Khan, a Dhaka-based security analyst. “This is a crisis zone,” he said. “You really don’t have a rigorous monitoring system, despite whatever rigorous monitoring system you are trying to introduce.” The end result is that some refugees go hungry. “So, for example, they’re entitled to 10 kilos of rice but, at the end of the day, in many cases they do not receive the 10 kilos of rice,” said Khan. A “gang culture” has grown alongside desperation in the camps, he added. Police in Cox’s Bazar have accused Rohingya refugees of involvement in drug trafficking syndicates smuggling methamphetamines across the border from Bangladesh. Afruezul Haque Tutal, a senior police officer in Cox’s Bazar, blamed the violence on turmoil within the camps but said the exact motives were still unclear. “Personal interests, internal conflicts, and economic matters are behind these murders,” he said. The deteriorating security situation means that people are fearful of leaving their huts, including pregnant women in labour who have trouble accessing health facilities, according to the Inter Sector Coordination Group report. In addition to the murders, people say that refugees are being abducted. An aid worker and a camp leader both told IRIN that refugees have been held for ransom as recently as this month. Another camp leader, Abu Siddique, was stabbed during an attempted kidnapping and is recovering in hospital, according to the refugee. Other newcomers to the camps were taken and later released, he said. Selim’s mother now lives in fear that those who killed him may come back and harm her or her family. “I need to go,” said Begum. “I have a daughter at home who is afraid.” But there is nowhere to go. Bangladesh doesn’t want the Rohingya, and they can’t return to Myanmar. There is nowhere to hide. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 IRIN

Nationalist monk Ashin Wirathu. Photo: Thura/Mizzima Nationalist monk Ashin Wirathu called yesterday for martial law in Buthidaung and Maungdaw where terrorist attacks continue to take place. “Choose what you like, declare martial law or see sovereignty undermined,” he said. He added that government staff and local people dared not stay in some areas in Maungdaw as security was weak there. Therefore, a National Defence and Security Council meeting should be held and martial law declared in the entire area of Maungdaw township, he said. “If the lives and wealth of the people are secure under martial law, the credit will not go only to the military, the people will thank parliament and the government which declared martial law in that area,” Abbot Wirathu said. He was speaking at a demonstration against the ‘Kofi Anan report and terrorist attacks’ held yesterday, where a participant also read out a statement condemning the terrorist attacks and saying there was no need to amend 1982 Citizenship Law. _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Mizzima

Residents and activists have accused soldiers of shooting indiscriminately at unarmed Rohingya Muslims [Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters] The UK on Tuesday urged the UN Security Council to convene to discuss reports of mass civilian casualties after raids by Myanmar security forces against Rohingya fighters. "UK requests #UNSC meeting on situation in Burma tomorrow. Need to address long-term issues in #Rakhine, urge restraint by all parties," Matthew Rycroft, UK ambassador to the UN, wrote on Twitter. The meeting is expected to take place on Wednesday. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Monday urged Myanmar to grant access to humanitarian agencies. "The secretary-general is deeply concerned at the reports of civilians being killed during security operations in Myanmar's Rakhine state," Guterres' office said. OPINION: Myanmar needs to get serious about peace Deadly attacks on border posts broke out on Friday that killed one soldier, 10 police officers, an immigration official and 77 alleged fighters of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), the Office of State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi said in a statement. Media reports emerged later that said security forces used disproportionate force and displaced thousands of Rohingya Muslim villagers, destroying homes with mortars and machine guns. Satellite data accessed by a rights body and released on Tuesday showed widespread fires burning in at least 10 areas in Myanmar's Rakhine state. Residents and activists have accused soldiers of shooting indiscriminately at unarmed Rohingya men, women and children and carrying out arson attacks. Bangladesh border guards told Reuters they had sent about 550 Rohingya back across the Naf river that separates the two countries since Monday, despite an appeal by Guterres for Dhaka to allow Rohingya to seek safety. Border patrols were also trying to block people from crossing the frontier. Bangladesh is already hosting more than 400,000 Rohingya refugees who have fled Buddhist-majority Myanmar since the early 1990s. Dhaka has asked the United Nationsto pressure Myanmar over its treatment of the Muslim minority, insisting it cannot accept any more. Still, more than 8,700 have registered in Bangladesh since Friday, the UN said. The top UN human rights official, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, called on Myanmar on Tuesday to ensure its security forces refrained from using disproportionate force, adding that the political leadership had a duty to protect all civilians "without discrimination". "This turn of events is deplorable. It was predicted and could have been prevented," he said. Myanmar's National Security Adviser Thaung Tun said at a news conference that Myanmar had come under attack and had the full right to defend itself. He added that "security personnel have been instructed to make sure that innocent civilians are not harmed". The region has seen simmering tensions between its Buddhist and Muslim populations since communal violence broke out in 2012. A UN report found human rights violations, including crimes against humanity against Rohingya by security forces. The UN considers Rohingya one of the world's most persecuted minorities. The global body documented mass gang rapes, killings - including of infants and children - brutal beatings and disappearances. ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ © 2017 Al Jazeera

The Secretary General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), Dr. Yousef A. Al-Othaimeen, has addressed separate letters to Mr. António Guterres, UN Secretary General, and Ms. Aung San Suu Kyi, State Counsellor of Myanmar, on the renewed outbreak of violence affecting the Rohingya Muslim community in Rakhine State, Myanmar. Referring to the indiscriminate use of force against the civilian populations in Rakhine, which had led to miserable situation affecting a huge number of civilians across the region, Dr. Al-Othaimeen reiterated OIC’s call upon the United Nations to continue exerting pressure on Myanmar to end the violence and restore to the Rohingya their basic rights. He also expressed the hope that the United Nations Security Council could urgently and effectively address the issue. The Secretary General expressed the OIC’s concern also to the State Counsellor of Myanmar over the situation in Rakhine State and called upon the authorities to immediately cease the violence, restore the displaced persons to their homes and allow humanitarian aid agencies to assist the affected people. The Secretary General further noted that the current crisis has the potential of destabilizing the entire region unless the core issues of inequality, justice and citizenship are resolved. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation

Rohingya refugees near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh on Aug. 28, 2017. Zakir Hossain Chowdhury—Anadolu Agency/Getty Images An estimated 18,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled across the border into Bangladesh since Friday to escape the latest escalation of violence in western Myanmar's troubled Rakhine state. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Wednesday that more are expected in the coming days as “hundreds and hundreds” remained stranded at the border, Reuters reports. Violence erupted on Aug. 25 when Rohingya insurgents launched deadly coordinated attacks on dozens of state security stations. At least 109 people were killed during and after the the attacks, most of them insurgents, according to government figures. The attacks occurred shortly after a sharp uptick in the deployment of Myanmar military troops to the volatile area, a move prompting the U.N. rights rapporteur to Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, to express "major concern." Rakhine is home to an estimated 1.1 million Rohingya, a stateless Muslim minority that has suffered decades of persecution. In 2012, deadly riots between Muslims and the majority Buddhists forced more than 100,000 Rohingya from their homes. The state has remained strictly segregated ever since. Bangladesh already hosts hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees and has turned back thousands more, according to Reuters. In Oct. 2016, a smaller attack by insurgents triggered a counter-terror operation that ultimately sent some 74,000 Rohingya civilians fleeing across the border, bringing with them horrifying allegations of rape, torture, murder and fire. The U.N. has concluded the "very likely commission of crimes against humanity" as the so-called "clearance operations" were carried out by the Myanmar military and other armed security forces. The Myanmar government's treatment of the Rohingya has been likened to ethnic cleansing. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said Tuesday that he condemns the recent attacks on security personnel, but urged restraint by all involved as the suspects are brought to justice. He further urged the government, led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, to condemn inflammatory rhetoric that has proliferated in the local press and on social media since the attacks. “This turn of events is deplorable," Zeid said in a statement. "It was predicted and could have been prevented.” ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Time

Responding to the news that 18,000 members of the predominantly Muslim Rohingya community have fled fighting in Myanmar to seek safety across the border in Bangladesh, Amnesty International’s South Asia Director, Biraj Patnaik, said: “These people are searching for safety in desperate circumstances. The human rights abuses in Rakhine State have forced them to leave and make it impossible for them to return any time soon. The authorities in Bangladesh must not close the border to those fleeing – they must keep the border open for their safe passage and offer the Rohingya all the necessary assistance they need.” Background Amnesty International’s call on the Bangladeshi government comes as the International Organization for Migration has said that 18,000 Rohingya have fled fresh violence in Myanmar into Bangladesh. A day earlier, the United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Gutteres’ spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, said: “Recognizing that Bangladesh has generously hosted refugees from Myanmar for decades, the Secretary-General appeals for the authorities to continue to allow the Rohingya fleeing violence to seek safety in Bangladesh.” ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Amnesty International

A community member in Lukodi stands next to a memorial of a May 19, 2004 massacre, one of the atrocities for which Dominic Ongwen is facing charges before the International Criminal Court. Over 4,000 victims are participating in the trial. © 2016 G. GT. Testimony before the International Criminal Court (ICC) resumed this month in the case against Dominic Ongwen, a Ugandan former commander of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA). The ICC has officially recognized over 4,000 victims to participate in the case, including people from Abok, Lukodi, Odek, and Pajule, in northern Uganda. These victims are only a fraction of those who suffered during the long conflict there. But their participation represents one of the ICC’s key innovations: victims, represented by their lawyers, making their views and concerns known to the court’s judges. This can help bridge the gap between victims and their communities and the court’s proceedings. Today, Human Rights Watch released a reportlooking at how ICC decisions are made about which lawyers represent victims. It is a narrow issue – and doesn’t relate to the defendant’s guilt or innocence – but by respecting victims’ choices for their legal representation, the ICC can help empower victims of serious crimes. The victims’ experiences around the issue of choosing legal representatives in the Ongwen case are important for future ICC cases. From talking to some of them, we found mixed results. In Lukodi, we heard how community leaders – concerned that victims’ voices would get left out of the ICC’s proceedings – led a search for a lawyer. The ICC’s judge accepted that these lawyers could represent some victims. But the judge ruled that these lawyers were not eligible to receive the court’s legal aid funding to pay their costs and fees. Given that most victims before the ICC are unlikely to be able to afford their own lawyers, this could have undercut their choice. Victims would have had to go with lawyers chosen by the judge with little input from the victims. Other court decisions in the Ongwen case have meant that the lawyers chosen in Lukodi and later, by victims in some of the other areas, are receiving ICC funding. And today, as the trial goes on, both teams of lawyers are giving victims a voice in the courtroom. Many of the people we spoke with expressed pride in seeing and hearing both sets of lawyers during the trial. Our report says, though, that the ICC needs a new approach to reverse what seems to be a trend of giving less and less weight to victims’ views in decisions about their legal representation. Our recommendations are aimed at ICC officials and have little bearing on the broader transitional justice debates in Uganda. But our hope is that the ICC can learn from its recent experience in Uganda and ensure that victims in future cases, whether in the case against Joseph Kony, the LRA leader who remains at large despite a 2005 ICC arrest warrant, or in other countries where the ICC has investigations, will benefit from better and more consistent support in making their own choices about who will speak for them in their quest for justice. _____________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Human Rights Watch

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemns the renewed outbreak of violence affecting the Rohingya Muslim community in Rakhine State, Myanmar, which has led to thousands to flee their homes to neighboring Bangladesh. This has been clearly evidenced in the systematic and organized destruction of many villages and homes by vigilante groups under the cover of army and police forces, particularly in Quarter No. 5 in Maungdow city. The OIC condemns the indiscriminate use of military force, including heavy artillery, on civilian populations, which has displaced more than 20,000 Rohingya across the region. The OIC calls upon the Myanmar government to immediately restore the displaced persons to their homes and allow humanitarian aid agencies to assist the affected people. These events violate the basic rights of the Rohingya and they also represent a grave violation of Myanmar's government international commitments to protect civilians. Such incidents of violence only serve to exacerbate tensions and fuel instability. The government has blamed militants for the violence and has accused the Rohingya of setting fire to their own homes and denied any responsibility by the security forces for the chaos that has ensued. Recent attacks by militant groups are not condoned by the OIC. However, the Government of Myanmar must enforce the rule of law and work to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms. The OIC notes that the recommendations of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, Chaired by Kofi Annan clearly indicated that greater efforts are needed by the government to prevent violence, maintain peace, foster reconciliation and offer a sense of hope to the long suffering Rohingya population. The current crisis in Rakhine state has the potential of destabilizing the entire region unless the core issues of inequality, justice and citizenship are resolved. In that regard the Secretary General calls upon the United Nations Security Council to address the issue. The OIC further calls upon Member States to abide by Resolutions adopted in the Emergency Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers (CFM) in Kuala Lumpur on 19 January 2017 and those adopted by the 44th Session of the Council of Foreign Minsters in Abidjan, Cote D’Ivoire on 11 July 2017. The OIC expresses support for the recent statements issued by OIC Member States, which highlighted concern over the violence and the deteriorating humanitarian situation facing the Rohingya and emphasizes that it is a charter obligation to “safeguard the rights, dignity and religious and cultural identity of Muslim communities and minorities in non-Member-states” _______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation

A middle school teacher, U Maung Ni, from ThihoKyun of Northern Maungdaw reported that Myanmar army burnt down their homes, killed 100s of civilians and alleged them Bengali terrorists. Maung Ni said “Military came to our village and started open fire on us on 26 August 2017. We all ran to save our lives. Later, army blazed our homes. Myanmar regime has been labeling us Bengali terrorists since 1990. We are not terrorists. We are victims of Genocide since 1990. I condemned ARSA militants’ attack on Border Guard Posts in October 9, 2016. Instead of finding the attackers, military and border guards targeted only civilians in October, November and December. In November, ARSA militants came to our village, forced villagers prepare food for them. Ali Akbar informed military about the militants. When soldiers came, they arrested those who fed militants because militants left at that time .Now, ARSA again attacked police posts. Though we don’t support them, we became target of military. Why? We are not terrorists . We are victims of genocide.” On 28 August, army officers warned Anauk Pyin and Nyaung Bin Gyi villages of Rathedaung, two Rohingta villages among twenty two Rakhine villages, depend on ration of WFP since 2012, to leave wherever they can or army will torch the villages. said Amir Hakim Myanmar’s State Media broadcasts propaganda against Rohingya twenty four hours; Bengali terrorists are torching houses and killing Rohingyas, in Ratheduang, Buthidaung and Maungdaw. State Counselor Office Information Center is under supervision of genocider, Zaw Htay who has been organizing propaganda against Rohingya since 2011. According to latest information, 19 Rohingya villages have been blazed into ashes, 700 Rohingya civilians were slaughtered or shot to death by military, 90000 Rohingyas lost their homes. U Kyaw Naing from ThaeChaung IDP camp of Sittwe said ” Current situation in Rathedaung, Buthidaung and Maungdaw is hundred times worse than 2012 massacre. In 2012, Myanmar army used Rakhine extremists to destroy us but since October 2016, military, border guards police and Rakhine extremists led by Aye Maung have been killing us in the name of ARSA. If ARSA really committed crimes, we have no objection to punish them. Why are the thousands of innocent civilians being target of security forces? __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Arakan Times

This has gone on long enough. Bangladesh can no longer afford to sit on the sidelines For far too long have we had to watch silently as the Myanmar army carried out its ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya in their own homeland. For far too long have we as a publication spoken out on this issue, only to see no action being taken to resolve it. Let no one say that this is an internal matter for Yangon. As a nation directly affected by Myanmar’s Rohingya problem, we urge the Bangladesh government to take up this cause, if not for humanitarian reasons, then definitely for the sake of regional prosperity and stability. While there is no doubt that our country has done more than it can in providing aid and refuge to the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fleeing persecution, this is no longer a viable long-term solution. Our nations signed two agreements on the repatriation of the Rohingya to Myanmar — one in 1978 and the other in 1992 — under which many Rohingyas returned home. It’s clear that the Myanmar government’s current intransigence begs for tougher diplomatic action to be taken. The repatriation deals prove two things: That Rohingyas are Myanmar citizens and that bilateral talks between the two nations can yield results. This has gone on long enough. Bangladesh can no longer afford to sit on the sidelines. ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ (c) 2017 Dhaka Tribune