The Rohingya people of Myanmar, who mostly live in the western part, the Rakhine (formerly Arakan) state, bordering the Muslim-majority Bangladesh, are undoubtedly the longest suffering people of our time.
They are subject to various forms of extortion and arbitrary taxation, land confiscation, forced eviction and house destruction, and restrictions on marriage.
Mostly, those who pay are the Rohingya women who are repeatedly becoming victims of rape, molestation and dishonour at the hands of the security forces. These people keep on exploiting the Rohingya women, leaving no security for them at all. Many of the women have been forcibly taken away from their homes, exploited and sent back to the community so that they live in humiliation forever. Thousands of Rohingya women and children have been denied access to humanitarian aid and are unable to return home.
Most women believe that they should not get involved in the common development of their communities in terms of politics, economics or proper healthcare. They believe those are male jobs and therefore don’t pay attention to it.
Almost 75 per cent of Rohingya population in Arakan are women and children because most of the men are forced to leave their homes to escape from daily persecution.
Human rights violation is a common phenomenon among the community of Rohingya. These people are persecuted and tortured on a daily basis, but sadly the international arena has turned a deaf ear to the issue.
