Ring the Alarm on Rohingya Crisis

End the persecution of the Rohingya people. We need to raise the alarm and get the world to act.

“There have to be rights for Rohingya in Myanmar before we go back.” Rohingya refugee woman, Kutapalong, Bangladesh.

Two years ago, nearly 3/4 of a million Rohingya people were forced to flee ethnic cleansing in Myanmar into Bangladesh. A UN Fact Finding Mission recommended that top Myanmar military commanders be prosecuted for genocide, yet the international community have failed to act.

Rohingya people in both Myanmar and Bangladesh still face an ongoing human rights crisis. Around 128,000 predominantly Rohingya Muslims are forced to live in internment camps in Rakhine State, Myanmar. Other Rohingya in Rakhine still face ongoing persecution and violence.

Restricted from leaving their villages, even in a medical emergency, Rohingya in Rakhine describe living in a ‘prison’ – they are confined, segregated and stripped of their humanity. Refused basic rights such as citizenship, education and freedom of movement, they feel they have no future.

“As a young man growing up in segregation with no freedom of movement, no education, we can’t do business, and for us we don't know how many years more we will be here, it's a kind of hell, not just for me but for everyone.”  Rohingya IDP living in a camp in central Rakhine

Reports last month show that this violence in Rakhine continues. Rohingya villages continue to be burnt to the ground and Rohingya continue to cross the border into Bangladesh in search of safety. There, they face long term exile, living in dangerous and cramped camp conditions, desperate to go home, but unwilling to do so until they are guaranteed their rights.

The UN Security Council is yet to take any significant action despite powerful evidence and serious concerns raised by the UN itself. It is time to “Ring the Alarm” on the Rohingya crisis and demand the UN Security Council take action to protect the rights of the Rohingya people.

“If we get justice we will go willingly with happiness. We can swim or walk back, but we want justice.”  50-year-old woman, Unchiprang Camp

Join us in calling on the UN Security Council to act and pass a UNSC resolution that:

• Condemns past and ongoing human rights violations in Myanmar and calls for accountability;
• Imposes an arms embargo against Myanmar as well as targeted sanctions against military commanders and military-run companies in Myanmar, as recommended by the UN Fact Finding Mission;
• Calls on the Myanmar government to end movement restrictions and ensure equal rights for all communities, including access to citizenship, as outlined in the Rakhine Advisory Commission's recommendations;
• Reaffirms that any repatriation of refugees must be voluntary, safe and dignified, in line with international standards.

Stand with Rohingya.  Ring the alarm and call on the UN Security Council to act. Sign this petition and we will hand it in to Security Council members at the end of September to raise the alarm.