Resolving the Rohingya Crisis: Exposing Perpetrators, Stopping Exodus, and Providing Access

This article discusses the Rohingya crisis, which began with a brutal ethnic campaign by the Myanmar military in 2018. Since then, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled to neighboring Bangladesh, where they face poor living conditions and limited access to healthcare and education. The article calls for exposing the perpetrators of the violence, stopping the exodus of refugees, and providing access to the U.S. and the United Nations to assess the situation in Rohingya refugee camps. It also discusses the need to protect Rohingya in Bangladesh and to eliminate barriers inhibiting response activities. The article concludes by calling on the government of Myanmar to recognize Rohingya as legal refugees and respect their human rights.

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Rohingya Crisis
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On 25 of August, it was marked as the anniversary in 2018 since the brutal ethnic
campaign that aimed at cleansing the community perpetrated by Myanmar military (Sullivan,
2018). This led to having two-thirds of the Rohingya population that lived close to Myanmar exit
the country. In the past one year, approximately 700000 Rohingya sought refuge to neighboring
Bangladesh and joined other 200000 Rohingya that had fled following instances of violence and
persecution (Abdelkader, 2017). As described by the military as clearance duties instigated by
attacks by Rohingya soldiers, the military operations have not only been disproportionate but
have also been characterized with indiscriminate killings, rampant cases of sexual violence and
setting ablaze villages. There is mounting evidence of crimes committed against humanity and
the possibility of genocide instances. However, very little has taken place with regards to
accountability. However, the existence of United Nations, the United States of America and the
international community that could play a vital role in resolving Rohingya crisis remains
impeded by sovereignty rights of Myanmar as a country as this bar any country or body from
interfering with its internal affairs. The compulsory mass expulsion of Rohingya commands
resolutions that should be effectuated to solve the Rohingya crisis such as exposing those behind
the mass killings, stopping the ongoing murder and giving access to the U.S and the UN for
assessing the situation in Rohingya refugee camps.
Chances of having Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar particularly those that flew to
other countries remain slim as this is exacerbated by the fact that hundreds of thousands of
Rohingya are still under the yoke of widespread abuse, poor health care, and education amidst
heavy restrictions impounded on their movement (Albert, 2018). Efforts aimed at obtaining
humanitarian aid remain futile as autonomous human rights experts and people from media

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continue being denied entry in such areas. The UN Human Rights Council has not issued a fact-
finding mission.
It is high time that crimes committed against humanity get exposed. It is apparent that
crimes against humanity and the likelihood of Genocide might have taken place targeting
Rohingya. There have been ongoing concerns among the Myanmar military to unravel the
mystery of the mystery of the people responsible for committing such heinous acts. It is during
the first weeks of the exodus that testimonials were collected demonstrating Rohingya were
fleeing from what was considered as ethnic cleansing (Bruce, 2017). In one of the reports
released on October, it revealed that their many accounts of Myanmar military surrounding
villages, torching homes, stabbing, shooting, sexual violence against women which led to
survivors fleeing for their dear lives.
Such inflicting experiences collected by RI and other groups have been backed by the
comprehensive archive efforts conducted by the United Nations and the United States of
America. The department of state in the U.S. has carried out a documentation project that has
integrated more than 150000 pages of archive based on interviews followed by a sampling of
1000 Rohingya refugees in camps. The Fact-Finding mission by the UN conducted its
independent research that demonstrated gross abuses in its interim reports that were oral.
It is through the momentum advanced by such and future evidence collection endeavors that they
should not be tampered or squandered. The U.S. and other UN member countries should demand
access to such documented cases and interviews and publicize the findings of their
investigations. Such actions could help promote accountability efforts.
Though the exact number of Rohingya in Myanmar remains impossible to ascertain, it is
approximated that there are hundred thousand out there. The Rohingya refugees that found their

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way to Bangladesh continue facing restrictions with regards to their movement in Myanmar.
They also have difficulties with accessing better livelihoods and healthcare not forgetting the
arbitrary arrest and other forms of abuses (Sullivan, 2018). Most of the Rohingya refugees
depend on humanitarian aid and there have been reports that their conditions have exacerbated in
the past one year. It is unfortunate that a good number of agencies and international
organizations are unable to gain access to Northern Rakhine state to deliver aid or conduct a
needs assessment. The UNDP and UNHCR signed a memorandum of understanding back in
May 2018 in the matter of the return of Rohingya have been kept waiting to have access to such
places.
The controlled visits and images from the satellite shed some light on the prevailing
conditions. The UN Security Council was permitted to visit some regions of Rakhine State in
May this year and members of the security council were flown over some of the torched villages.
They were also in a position to view the ongoing construction of new military structures on the
torched Rohingya property. To make matters worse, in the Central Rakhine state, it is estimated
that more the 100000 (Sullivan, 2018) Rohingya have been living in abject poverty in some of
the displacement camps that have served as open-air prisons.
The U.S. and members of the UN have to constantly demand unfettered humanitarian
access and bring an end to some of these grave human rights violations against the Rohingya and
other ethnic minority communities across the country (Sullivan, 2018). Failure to have the
ongoing discrimination and human right violations against the ethnic groups should be met by
intense pressure by international organizations and should entail targeted sanctions, an
international arms embargo and probably a referral to the ICC for crimes committed against
humanity.

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There is a need to protect Rohingya in Bangladesh as they remain targeted. Though the
one million Rohingya refugees are considered safe from the Myanmar military abuses, they are
still exposed to a number of risks. With the camps being a densely populated risk of floods and
landslides in seasons such as the monsoon and the cyclone. However, the Bangladesh
government should be hailed for providing refuge for the many Rohingya and also giving land
and shelter for such minority groups. However, the needs continue rising and exacerbated by the
ongoing restrictions on the NGO operations and services for Rohingya (Sullivan, 2018). The
government refuses to acknowledge the majority of Rohingya as legal refugees. Rohingya will
continue to seek help for many years to come and this means both humanitarian aid and
protection. The U.S. and other members of the UN should push the government of Bangladesh to
eliminate barriers inhibiting response activities. This should entail stopping the ongoing
migration of Rohingya to Bhashan Char Island. It is also the role of international donors to
wholeheartedly fund efforts that were set in 2018 in a joint response plan to aid in the Rohingya
humanitarian crisis that entails lifesaving help for Rohingya refugees and native hosting
communities in Bangladesh.
In conclusion, it is evident that exposing the perpetrators behind Rohingya killings,
stopping the massive exodus of refugees and giving access to both the U.S. and the United
Nations will be strategic in resolving the Rohingya crisis. The government of Myanmar should
recognize Rohingya as legal refugees and respect the human rights of such a minority group.

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References
Abdelkader, E., 2017. The history of the persecution of Myanmar’s Rohingya. [Online]
Available at: https://theconversation.com/the-history-of-the-persecution-of-myanmars-rohingya-
84040
[Accessed 22 October 2018].
Albert, E., 2018. The Rohingya Crisis, Council on Foreign Relations. [Online]
Available at: https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/rohingya-crisis
[Accessed 22 October 2018].
Bruce, N., 2017. Rohingya Crisis in Myanmar Is ‘Ethnic Cleansing,’ U.N. Rights Chief Says,.
[Online]
Available at: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/11/world/asia/myanmar-rohingya-ethnic-
cleansing.html
[Accessed 22 October 2018].
Sullivan, D., 2018. 5 Key priorities to address the Rohingya Crisis. [Online]
Available at: https://www.refugeesinternational.org/reports/2018/8/22/5-key-priorities-to-
address-the-rohingya-crisis
[Accessed 22 October 2018].