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Showing posts from April, 2015

Burma Army Blocked Aid to Fleeing Arakan Villagers: Relief Group

By NYEIN NYEIN / THE IRRAWADDY |   Wednesday, April 22, 2015  RANGOON — Local relief workers in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township say that they have been barred from providing support to hundreds of villagers in the area, who were displaced after fighting between the Arakan Army and government troops. Clashes beginning on Friday and continuing over the weekend saw some 450 people from the villages of Pinglong, Aung Lan Chaung, Dan Chaung and Kalakya flee to the nearby village of Zapazeik, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) northwest of Kyauktaw town. A group of Arakan locals, who banded together to provide aid to the villagers, said they were turned back by military checkpoints outside Kyauktaw town when they attempted to deliver aid supplies on Tuesday. The team traveled 100 kilometers south to Sittwe on Wednesday to seek permission to travel to Zapazeik from the state government. “We are now in Sittwe, at the government office, trying to meet with the Border Affa

Refugees From Ruined Village Say Myanmar Army Trapped Them

Aye Aye Mar April 22, 2015 8:01 PM MAE SOT, THAILAND— Tensions have escalated in Myanmar's western Rakhine state, where 400 people suspected of harboring rebels have had their village burned and are now trapped inside a camp by soldiers. One of the people caught in the camp, who did not want to be named, told VOA's Burmese service by phone that access to the camp, which is inside Sabaseit village, had been restricted since Tuesday. “They say they have restricted entry and exit [of the refugee camp]," he said. "For the time being, the problems the villagers are facing include the lack of access to food, fish paste and salt. They say, 'We cannot get out, and we cannot go to the market, either.' ” A local resident who tried to help the refugees said the restricted access was creating some problems. “They do not have anything to eat anymore," he said. "They asked for help by saying that they just have rice and water to eat.”

Obscure Myanmar ethnic rebel group opens new front on western frontier

YANGON | By Hnin Yadana Zaw Thu Apr 23, 2015     (Reuters) - An obscure ethnic insurgent group has opened up a new front in Myanmar's western Rakhine state, aiming to pressure the government to include it among rebel groups engaged in peace talks, a deputy commander of the Arakan Army said. Myanmar's semi-civilian government, which took power in 2011 after 49 years of military rule, has set a priority on ending hostilities with the many groups that have taken up arms since independence in 1948. Last month, negotiators from the military and the National Ceasefire Coordination Team, which represents ethnic armed groups, agreed on a nationwide ceasefire draft accord to be discussed at a summit of ethnic rebel leaders next week. "We were very upset because the government does not recognize our claim to membership in the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team," General Nyu

Arakanese organisation alleges Burma army attacks on civilians

  By DVB     23 April 2015 An Arakanese civil society group has condemned the Burmese army for alleged attacks on civilians. Fighting that flared in Burma’s westernmost state one week ago has forced villagers to flee their homes, according to the Rakhine [Arakan] National Network [RNN]. The group’s chairman, Tin Htoo Aung, accused the Burmese army of practising scorched earth tactics as it moved through central Arakan State. “We have reports about the Burmese army destroying and setting fire to villages in Kyauktaw Township,” He began. “We object to the targeting of the civilian population in the conflict. “Both sides of the fighting must strictly adhere to the Geneva Convention. We strongly condemn any kind of infringement of the existence and freedom of the native population and we will prepare to take necessary action.” The Arakan Army is party to the Nationwide Ceasefire Coordination Team, an ethnic coalition negotiating a potential ceasefire with the g

Mysterious Structures at Remote Hills at Ukhiya, close to the Myanmar border

Mysterious Structures at Remote Hills at Ukhiya, close to the Myanmar border [Original news report in Bengali (in the link given below) with English translation by Mong Pru] The Daily Kaler Kantha Dhaka, 5th April 2015-04-06 Tofail Ahmed, Cox’s Bazaar (Special Investigative Report) The suspicious building complex built on the government forest land close to the Kutupalong Rohingya Camp in Cox’s Bazar Photo: The Kaler Kantha (Financial Express) A mysterious building complex has been constructed ‘very quickly’ close to the Rohingya makeshift camp at Ukhiya in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. The facility included 40 half-brick structures, mosques and hospital. Without the ‘knowledge’ of the general people, the complex was built on a remote area. No one even knows how the complex was built without any knowledge of the administration or the high officials of the forest department. But what is clear is that the construction work is being done under the armed guards. The incidence

Religious Relations Between Arakan And Sri Lanka ( Ceylon)

 Religious Relations Between Arakan And Sri Lanka ( Ceylon) By Ashin Sri Okkantha Buddhism was introduced to Sri Lanka (Ceylon) by Thera Mahinda who to the Island in about the middle of the 3rd century 7 B.C in the reign of King Asoka. It is generally accepted that at the time of the introduction of Buddhism, there was no organised religion in Ceylon. Owing to the popular, enthusiasm, Buddhism became the state religion in Ceylon, under Royal patronage. The Mahavihara was established at Anuradhapura in 3rd century B.C. 8 In later times, Mahavihara became the great centre of' Buddhist culture. As Mahavihara was famous Buddhist study centre, Abhayagirivihara constructed by Vattagamani Abhaya (29-17 B.C.) 9 also became a great centre in Ceylon in the 1st century B.C. The later part of the 1st century B.C saw some very important events in the Buddhist history of Ceylon. From 43 B.C. for 14 years, five Tamils rules in succession at Anuradhapura. King Vattagamani lay in hiding in

Thongran and Rakhine Culture

Thongran and Rakhine Culture By Saw Tun Oo Each year with the Sun’s entrance into the zodiacal sign of the Aries (Mesha), Rakhine New Year commences at about mid-April. New foliage freshen up the trees. Our world smiles with the blossoms of yellow ‘padauk’, bright-red peacock’s pride, and the perched thirsty soil craves for a sprinkle from the heaven. With it the spirit of our cultural renews. What we lost in the past, what we are losing today in our culture, tradition, literature, or the like – once again we realize that we are to remain content with our small aspirations, and yet smaller needs. Another annual get-together with our near and dear ones bringing smiles to our smile-less day-to-day existence. Rakhines of Bangladesh – those living in Cox’s Bazar, Patuakhali, Baraguna, Bardarban and Khagrachari districts – who bear testimony to a stormy period of the southern part of Bangladesh under the Arakanese rule extending from the fifth to the seventeenth centuries AD, have up

New York women inspired by IS plotted bombing, FBI says

The FBI has arrested two women on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack, similar to the Boston bombing. A Brooklyn court charged Asia Siddiqui and Noelle Velentzas with conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction. The two women, US citizens, spoke only to say they understood the charges. They had referred to themselves as "citizens of the Islamic State", prosecutors allege, and Ms Siddiqui had several gas tanks and instructions on turning them into bombs. "My client will enter a plea of not guilty, if and when there is an indictment. I know it's a serious case, but we're going to fight it out in court," said Ms Siddiqui's lawyer, Thomas Dunn. Ms Siddiqui "had repeated contact with members of the foreign terrorist organisation al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula" the court documents said. Her accomplice, Ms Velentzas, referred to Osama Bin Laden as a hero, according to the US Department of Justice. "The defendants al