How many displaced Rohingya people are there?
In 2012, an estimated 140,000 people were internally displaced within Burma, and almost 86,000 made the hazardous journey into neighbouring countries.In an attempt to flee the violence, the Rohingya people have become among the world’s least wanted, denied resettlement in Indonesia, Thailand, Bangladesh, Malaysia or Australia.
These people are risking everything for a chance at safety, many dying at sea or in overcrowded detention.
Why are the Rohingya stateless?
A Burmese law passed in 1982 denied the Rohingya people of their citizenship. The Burma Citizenship Law denies their rights to a nationality, and subsequently, removes their freedom of movement, access to education and services, and allows arbitrary confiscation of property.To Burma (and the rest of the world it seems), the Rohingyas are not people. They are stateless. Without the proper required identification documents, they have no chance at being a citizen anywhere.
Stranded at sea
This year alone, thousands of Rohingya people were pushed into crossing the dangerous, 2,000 kilometre-wide Bay of Bengal, off the coast of south-east Asia – many became stranded at sea.Almost 20,000 Australians urged our government to call for, and assist with, immediate search and rescue operations and champion new, humane solutions for refugees in the region.
Click here for more information about the Rohingya from Amnesty International Australia.
Click here for a fundraising effort by Amnesty International Australia.
