By Huson Salm
1) President U Thein Sein’s led Myanmar quasi-democratic government has arranged systematically everything to collect the coming census along the country with the help of UK, USA,UNFPA, and the combination efforts of all ethnic groups, department staffers and concerned authorities, starting from 30th March 2014. The census movement is particularly aimed to collect the accurate data of the roughly estimated 60 million people of the nation for all round equal development of the social projects in future, in accord the nation’s statement.
2) Though the coming nation-wide census progression is unanimously and warmly welcome by Rohingyas in Rakhine state to participate together with the entire nation as a welcoming step of the Union, the entire pessimistic Rakhine people and vigilantes are well organized to sternly discard the label of ‘Rohingyas’ during the census and it has been seen the continuous mass people hostile demonstrations against the innocent, helpless and frustrated Rohingyas and Muslims almost in all townships of Rakhine state under the coordinated leadership and guidance of RNDP while the census commencement draws near.
3) As a matter of fact, while the majority of Rohingyas are weak in knowledge and uneducated to understand the queries of the census, the Union Minister U Khin Ye has had a well initial plan to train some Rohingyas intellectuals, to perform in the census where there are Rohingyas, who will then be undertaking the process among Rohingyas community to overcome the bunch of questionnaires which are both in Burmese and English languages. But inconsiderately, the Minister U Khin Ye has cancelled the plan unreasonably and instead the preparation is arranged with school teachers (Rakhine) in the process. After learning this mood of the Union Minister, the entire Rohingyas get lost of their hope due to the smoothness of the census in Rakhine state.
4) In the meantime, wherever U Khin Ye goes along the state, he usually articulates to the gatherings to fill up correctly in the form, to tell the true identity of the relevant ethnic group whatever they want without hesitantly. And he also said that the individual filling up of the data are not to be applied in any particular purposes except population counting – whatever identity may be, anyone can fill up as per his/her wish, he said. Of course it has been true throughout the course of his articulation.
5) Right now, the Rohingyas people’ concern in Arakan state is that they believe and embrace the identity as “Rohingyas” other than any term. The Rohingyas from Rakhine are standing in line principal of census procedure and under the guidance of the government. But right now, entire Rohingyas are worried that the census collectors -who are already Rakhine- will only write down the term “Bengali” instead of “Rohingya” in the race column though “Rohignyas” would correctly spell their identity as ‘Rohingyas’. Rohingyas are also severely concerned that Rohingyas could not be able to stand tall and face the unjust and incorrect action of the census collectors while Rohingyas are under oppressive, suppressive, threat, unjust, bias, intimidation and limbo situation in front of Rakhine state authorities who have been all along the unfriendly ,antagonistic, aggressive, unsympathetic and inhumane nature in the past three years. This is not totally exaggeration.
6) In these days, the slogans, chanted by Rakhine people throughout Rakhine state are totally unacceptable and all these have been systematically designed by RNDP and local Rakhine leaders who have been well-built destructive forces to devastating overall social destruction of Rohingyas people. Rakhine people’ demonstrations after demonstration are very dreadful, shocking, awful and these have been galvanizing more and more turmoil which leading to social instability and uncertainty of the fate of Rohingyas people in Rakhine state in the future. Rakhine MPs from respective townships, Rakhine state government, district authorities, townships administrators and Rakhine ill feeling elders are accountable for these criminal and they are totally responsible for further social unrest and they are co-conspirators in these crimes.
7) Regarding the census, the entire mass and class Rakhine people will earnestly attempt to undermine the census process in Rakhine state, making spoiling the situation after finding scapegoat the Rohingyas people– to blemish the face of Myanmar government which has been tarnished again and again because of Rakhine people’ inhumane famous criminal calamity to around the world.
8) This is now up to the central government to manage timely the Rakhine marauding forces and mad people not to be erupting the social dispute between two communities again and not to be worsen the situation because of the census –as every citizen has the right to take up in the census to fill up freely and correctly as per his/her wish. It also not suited that an ordinary Rakhine people should be governing against the other community whatever he wants to with big hand without reason. Rohingyas are getting lost of their patience suffering again and again in the hands of even ordinary Rakhine Buddhist people.
9) In this regards, Rohingyas people’ earnest request to the Union government is to exert pressure on Rakhine state government to maintain rule and restoration of law and order to suppress the Rakhine mob and that of the aggressive people from all along Rakhine state’ townships to peacefully wrap up the census operation. Or to be successfully finishing the census activities, if the Rakhine state government does not interest to suppress the destructive forces that carry out against Rohingyas, the military forces should be assigned to control the mob so that Rakhine state would be calm and the census would be accomplished as per the standard of state policy. Otherwise Rakhine people again blotch the profile of the nation and that of the head of the state — which will be stanching to every corner of the world.
