Listening to Voices: Myanmar's Foot Soldiers Speak

This publication elevates the voices of foot soldiers from six Non-State Armed Groups (NSAGs) from Myanmar; highlighting their needs, concerns and challenges regarding the Myanmar peace process and their future.1 Using listening methodology, this project conducted listening conversations with one hundred foot soldiers from the All Burma Students Democratic Front (ABSDF), Chin National Front (CNF), Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO), Karen National Union (KNU), Karenni National Progressive Party (KNPP) and the New Mon State Party (NMSP). From these conversations, key themes and commonalities were identified and are detailed in the following sections.

The Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies (CPCS) recognises the diverse range of voices in Myanmar between the armed groups involved in conflict and between individuals within these groups. Listening methodology seeks to identify common themes as well as differences between individuals’ opinions. Using this methodology to gather opinions from a range of NSAGs allowed us to highlight the common themes as well as differences between groups, which are detailed in group summaries in the final section of the publication.

The electronic book can be downloaded at this link. 

Human Rights Violations & Remedies: The Rohingya Case

I feel honored to have the chance to speak as a panel in this discussion on Rohingya issue. I myself is a Rohingya, and I hope participants in this group will finally give me some hopeful and practical assurances that I can take a long with me to convey to my persecuted Rohingya people. I am very much thankful to the sponsors of this meeting who invited me.

Here I would like to present a short and precise analysis of the Human right situation in Rakhine state. Since Rohingya’s identity is denied by Myanmar Government their citizenship question became on stake.

1982 Myanmar citizenship law which the world regards as an arbitrary and harsh law, short of international norm and standard, section 3 says “Only the 8 major indigenous races and sub races associated to them are, Myanmar citizen”. Since Myanmar’s independence in 1948, Rohingya were listed as one of the ethnic races but the 1982 law excluded them. From that time various forms of discriminatory and suppressive rules and mechanism have been in continuation until today. Rohingyas are no longer regarded as Human being. Their socio-economic life is so suffocated that almost all Rohingyas are just eking for survival.

What the successive military Governments intentionally did to strip Rohingya of everything vital for their livelihoods are;

The Women in The Bangsamoro Peace Process: History, Herstory

KUALA LUMPUR (MindaNews/28 January) — When the history of the peace process between the Philippine government (GPH) and the Bangsamoro is written, the story of the women who helped and are helping make it possible – inside the formal peace negotiations and on the ground — will certainly be one of the highlights of this 40-year journey to peace. 

The signatory for government when the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro (CAB) between GPH and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) is signed in February or March, 2014 would be Professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer, the first woman panel chair in the 40-year negotiations (17 with the MILF), under an administration whose Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, is also a woman: Secretary Teresita Quintos-Deles.

Kristian Herbolzheimer, Director of the Philippines Programme of the London-based Conciliation Resources, and a member of the International Contact Group (ICG) that accompanies the GPH-MILF peace process told MindaNews that the Mindanao peace process is, in fact, “one of the most gender-sensitive in the world.”

Ferrer, he said, is “probably the first ever (woman) chair of a negotiating panel signing a peace agreement” and women “have played a key role also in the MILF team as consultants on legal and political issues.”

Read morehttp://www.mindanews.com/peace-process/2014/01/28/special-report-the-women-in-the-bangsamoro-peace-process-history-herstory/

What is the meaning of resettlement in Sri Lanka: "We want our land back as we are also citizens of Sri Lanka".

When you read the field visit report of the resettlement of the Internally Displaced People[IDPs] you all will realize the reality of the so called resettlement scheme of the country. Uduppitty, Moor Street, Mullikulam, displaced camps as well as so called Thiru Murugandi, and Sinnaveli resettled camps are the places where we visited in this field work.

"It is well planned revenge against us." This is some of the complains we heard from various community members in the northern province and which is an unfortunate situation. It is justifiable criticism of the northern province IDPs when the government is not take care of those people, their needs and fulfill their reasonable aspirations with due respect and care.

Some of the people in those camps said, "Government act deliberately forgetting there is a remaining group of IDP like us to resettle in the country."

The government very firmly says that there the most of IDPs have been resettled and there is only very small number of people are remaining to resettle in the north. The general public in the south of Sri Lanka also trust highly those media reports without any doubts. There is a big question mark about the free media as well though this is not the time to discuss it.

The complete version of report can be seen here

Fundamentalism and Post conflict development: Is Malino Peace Agreement successful?

I just came back from the field for my regular visit to Poso, used to have communal conflict, which people from different villages were killing each other. It was worsen when religious element fueled the conflict resulting great exodus of thousand families from both Christian and Muslim to resettle to new community having similar religion. My recent visit on October 11-14  to Poso was to meet three prominent women organization called Aisyiah, WIA and KWS to understand their program and contribution to development agenda in post conflict era. I was lucky to meet Ms. Ruwaidah, peace activist recently as vice head of Aisyiah on my silaturahmi (visit) on October 13, 2013 for 3 hours meeting. Ms. Ruwaidah was the only representative from Muslim women sitting on peace agreement that in some document her name is not recognized. There were other three women from Christian side namely Liesing Lippo, Nelly Silance dan Yanti (name perhaps written differently) who also jointed during final peace talk in December 2001.

What make shocked during my conversation with Ms. Ruwaidah was about disconnection between peace agreement and post conflict development. According to her, the head of district did not pay attention on the result of peace agreement, moreover did not use it as main reference for post conflict development. As a result, there are so many disconnection and inefficient program implementing in post conflict period. She gave me an indicator of failure is increasing fundamentalism in Poso indicating by more Muslim women wearing full body cover, which never been familiar before and during the conflict. Ibu Ani, secretary of muslim woman of Al-Khirat (WIA) added that her neighbor is starting wearing full covered hijab gradually. This situation has become major concern inside Al-Khairat, one of major islamic mass organization in Eastern Indonesia.

If we look at the ten agenda many of them are implementing well or event just ignored by the development. Partly, because the Pokja (working group or Commission) who supposed to implement the ten agreement has been ignored and dis-functioned since the beginning, therefore there is no monitoring by the Pokja. Moreover, the members of Pokja are now active in their own organization and focus on implementing organizational program. "Why dont you try to reactivate the Pokja?", i asked curiously to Ibu Ruwaidah. She said that it is too political because government and rivalry group may read differently. 

The possible way to do is to ensure that element of reconciliation in the development agenda in post conflict area has to be highlight strongly. Because the elite may have open minded perspective right now, but people at grass root level has strong prejudice against different religion. One of Muslim women in Malei Lage, where AMAN Indonesia has been working on increasing women's participation in peacebuilding, is still hesitate drinking or eating food from the christian family. I am sure that it is because of the influence of fundamentalism inside Aiysiah as Ms. Ruwaidah confirmed. If government pay attention on the content of peace agreement, they will ensure that any movement that indicate to segregate society should consider threat for "negative peace" in Poso. ***

Expert Group Meeting: Access to Justice for Muslim Women Living in Conflict Affected Area in Southeast Asia

On 2nd-3rd May 2013, The Asian Muslim Action Network (AMAN) held two days Expert Group Meeting in Bali by inviting 20 Muslim women living in conflict affected areas in Southeast Asia. The workshop was aimed to facilitate sharing and learning experience among Muslim women from conflict zone to discuss about access to justice. In answering problem access to justice, the workshop linkaged framework human rights, which instruments of human rights such as Covenant on Elimination all form of discrimination against women (CEDAW) and UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) of framework of Muslim family law.Some recommendations from the workshop need to be addressed within and without AMAN network, they are:

# Community level:

1. To remove cultural barriers regarding women’s leadership, victims of sexual violence to speak out and access to economy, social, politics by having intensive dialogue with community and religious leaders

2. To address negative community attitudes (and their consequences) towards victims and survivors of sexual violence by encouraging discussion with religious authorities on the differences between rape and zina (fornication)

3. To advocate not to marry off rape survivors with the rapist, and for women’s access to safe abortion services

4. To build on existing indigenous knowledge and practices that already promote women’s access to ECOSOC rights