Category: HUMAN RIGHTS

Photo Credit: EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid

By Joyce Hu
Staff Writer

The 1951 Refugee Convention states, “refugees should enjoy access to health services equivalent to that of the host population, while everyone has the right under international law to the highest standards of physical and mental health,” and the Rohingya refugees of Myanmar are no exception. The Rohingya is a Muslim minority group that has been described as “one of, if not the, most discriminated people in the world,” by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. Because of extensive religious persecution from the Burmese military junta, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled the country. In 2017, roughly 700,000 Rohingya began their exodus out of Myanmar after a militant group—the Arkan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA)—launched violent attacks in the Rakhine region along the western coast. Despite strong international calls for the democratic government to protect the Rohingyan people from this genocide, the Rohingya people continue to suffer from human rights abuses, discriminatory policies, and hostility. In February of 2021, after the National League for Democracy was reelected, a military coup backing the opposition party returned Myanmar to military rule. Amidst civil protests and demonstrations, Rohingya and other civilians were forced to flee from persecution again. It is estimated that there are now around 1.2 million displaced Myanmar people around the world.