FOR ROHINGYA specifically

Q. Briefly explain the Rohingya crisis and its impact on

India. How has India responded so far and what should
India do to deal with the issue of Rohingya refugees? (250
words)

Model Answer:

Approach:
• Introduction
• Rohingya crisis
• Its impact on India
• India responded so far
• What should India do?
• Conclusion

Introduction - Rohingya crisis

• The Rohingyas are an ethnic Muslim group residing predominantly in
Rakhine state of majority Buddhist Myanmar.
• Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar’s Rakhine state,neighbouringBangladesh,
are not recognised by the Myanmar government as an official ethnic group
and are therefore denied citizenship, as per the 1982 Citizenship Law, which
was promulgated by the erstwhile military junta.
• Besides a large scale migration from present-day Bangladesh to Burma
during the British occupation of the Arakan State in 1823, Rohingyas pre-
existed (evidence shows) in Burma. Even those who arrived in Burma post-
1823 could not go back to Bangladesh now given that they have no
citizenship claims there. This effectively makes them a stateless people.
• Rohingya is world's most persecuted minority suffering "mass atrocities"
perpetrated by Myanmar’s security forces compelling them to escape to
neighboring countries such as – Bangladesh, India, Indonesia and Thailand
etc. A large number of Rohingyas were not accepted as refugees by these
countries. As a result they often get stranded at sea, die en-route and get
trafficked.
• All of this is happening under the stewardship of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was
awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her courageous and inspiring “non-
violent struggle for democracy and human rights”.
• The issue is further aggravated in the absence of an effective international
pressure to fix the crisis.
Its impact on India
• Migration - In India, there are nearly 40,000 Rohingya refugees, with 16,500
registered with the office of the United Nations Human Rights
Commissioner. This is economically burdensome.
• Islamic extremism -Efforts of radical Islamists to influence some of the
Rohingya youth, to capitalise on the situation and promote anti-India activities
is possible.
• Political tensions -They are spread over several cities and states Jammu, New
Delhi, Jaipur and some places in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and the north-
east. There are a few places in the country where politically instigated
attempts are being made to re-locate them.
• North-East security -India has a stake in the security conditions in upper
western Myanmar adjoining the Naga self-administered zone where the
Khaplang faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim operates.
• The Indian intelligence has also discovered Pakistani Army & ISI
connections with the ranks of “Arakan Rohingya Army” which is currently
involved in an insurgency against Myanmar.
• Also, a lot of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh have been found to
be using Rakhine as a springboard to get refugee status in India,
Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and even Europe.

India responded so far

 • India has accepted thousands of Rohingyas over the past many years despite
it not being a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention or
its 1967 Protocolwhich require countries to accept refugees.
• Today, many Rohingyas are either turned away while trying to enter the
country or sent to jail for illegal entry.
• The Supreme Court has recently refused to stop thedeportation of seven
Rohingya Muslims set to be deported from Manipur to Myanmar. This will be
the first such official deportation from India to Myanmar.
• The new bill, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016,proposes that Hindus,
Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis and Christians entering India
from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistannot be considered as “illegal
immigrants”. While the proposed amendment is technically ‘pro-minority’, it
is being alleged as anti-Muslim.

What should India do?

• It is clearly in India’s interest to ensure that stability and peace return to the
Rakhine state.
• When peace returns to Myanmar, India can ask the latter to rehabilitate the
Rohingyas (like it did vis-à-vis East Pakistan refugees after the 1971 war).
• A stable and democratic Myanmar will naturally gravitate towards India.
• The Rohingya crisis, if it remains unsettled, can become a path
toward increasingradicalisation and pose a greater security threatfor
India. A December 2016 report by the International Crisis Group has
highlighted how the rights violations of the Rohingya community can lead to
radicalisation.
• India should use creative diplomacy to persuade Myanmar to resolve the
Rohingya crisis.

Conclusion
Many countries including India can ill afford to ignore the crisis in Myanmar.
Canada has even displayed its unhappiness by revoking Myanmar’s de facto leader
Ms. Suu Kyi’s honorary citizenship. Formation of an advisory commission, by
Myanmar, on Rakhine State under the chairmanship of Kofi Annan (former
Secretary General of the United Nations) is commendable. It is laudable that the
Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)
having taken a very strident role in this whole issue. Other international
communities like ASEAN should also come forward to help resolving the issue
peacefully and diplomatically.