Myanmar, a country besieged by war for decades, also known as Burma, shares a border with Bangladesh. Officially named the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, India is to its west and Thailand is to the east. The stunning coastline of the country spans a massive 1,930 km of uninterrupted beauty, with a population of 54 million, the atrocities that have taken place here beggar belief.
Tula Toli
Tula Toli is a small village located in the Maungdaw District of Rakhine State, Myanmar, near the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. Known also by locals as Min Gyi, this otherwise tranquil place was ravaged by war.
Killing Rohingyas
The Rohingya are an Indo-Aryan-speaking people living in Rakhine State, Myanmar. Recent estimates put their population around 1,000,000, but that was before the massacres which took place as part of intentional ethnic cleansing by soldiers of the Burmese Army.
Mass Emigration
Due to the raging conflict which saw hundreds of thousands of people caught in the crossfire, 603,000 Rohingya refugees crossed from Rakhine into neighboring Bangladesh, according to a 2017 United Nations (UN) report. That number rose to 624,000 a month later, and by December increased by another 1,000.
Persecuted People
In 2013, the UN classed the Rohingyas as one of the “most persecuted minorities in the world.” As an example of that persecution, the Rohingya population is denied citizenship under the 1982 Myanmar nationality law, which “effectively [denies] the Rohingya the possibility of acquiring a nationality,” according to Human Rights Watch.
Not Recognized
Despite the fact that the Rohingya’s history dates back to the 8th century, they are not recognized under Myanmar law as one of the eight “national indigenous races.” Thier freedom of movement is also severely restricted, as are their educational and civil rights.
Tula Toli Massacre
Myanmar soldiers allegedly carried out an attack on the Rohingya on 30 August 2017, apparently backed up by local Rahkines who also resided in the village. The massacre is said to have taken place during a Myanmar Army clearance operation in the village of Tula Toli.
Eyewitness Accounts
Eyewitnesses allege that on that day Burmese soldiers carried out the massacre, slaying at least 200 women, 300 children, and many more hundreds of men. Eyewitness accounts are backed by disturbing satellite images showing Tula Toli completely destroyed, whilst Rakhine areas were left unaffected.
Reporting the Massacre
When two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, went to report on the massacre the last thing they thought was that they’d be arrested for doing so. After being charged under the Official Secrets Act, being accused of obtaining secret state documents, their case moved to trial.
Not Guilty
Both reporters, facing the maximum sentence of 14 years if convicted, plead not guilty to the charges. Both reporters claimed they followed “journalistic ethics.”
No Retreat
Wa Lone said, “Although we are charged, we are not guilty. We will not retreat, give up, or be shaken by this.” Having been detained since December of 2017, the two reporters were devastated, and fellow journalists were outraged.
Undercover Sting
The two reporters were essentially trapped in a sting operation. They were arrested while investigating the execution of 10 Rohingya men in the Inn Din village, located in northern Rakhine. After meeting at a restaurant in Yangon with an undercover officer, they were promptly arrested.
“Deeply Disappointed”
The U.S. Embassy in Yangon posted on their Facebook page that they were “deeply disappointed” by the court’s decision to prosecute the reporters. Following the journalist’s arrest, Reuters published an in-depth report about the alleged massacre whereby seven Burmese soldiers were sentenced to jail.
Setback For Freedom
The Embassy’s social media post continued: “The Myanmar authorities should allow the journalists to return to their jobs and families. Today’s decision is a setback for press freedom and the rule of law in Myanmar.” That post went viral almost immediately, garnering vast worldwide engagement.
Amnesty Response
Meanwhile, Tirana Hassan, Amnesty International’s crisis response director, said, “This is a black day for press freedom in Myanmar. The court’s decision to proceed with this farcical, politically motivated case has deeply troubling and far-reaching implications for independent journalism in the country.”
Military Juntas
Another human right’s activist, Brad Adams, spoke about the situation. Adams, the Human Rights Watch’s Asia director, said in a statement, “The authorities have turned to tactics long-favored by past military juntas, locking up and prosecuting those exposing the truth.” Other people also spoke out.
Miscarriage of Justice
“Today’s decision renders the judiciary complicit in a farcical miscarriage of justice,” said Matthew Bugher, Head of Asia Programme for Article 19, in a statement, adding, “Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo took great personal risks to cast light on events largely hidden from the public’s view.”
Promoting Accountability
Bugher was outraged the journalists were arrested in the first place. “Instead of dragging them through preposterous legal proceedings,” Bugher said, “the government should commend the journalists for their indispensable role in promoting accountability.”
A Profound Impact
A local human rights group, Free Expression Myanmar, that champions freedom of the press in the country, said that this type of open persecution has a “profound impact” on the way journalists report news from the country. “Almost every journalist in Myanmar self-censors on anything relating to Rakhine [the province in which the persecuted Rohingya lived] because of this Reuters case,” they said.
Hiding the Truth
The statement added that, “Prosecuting, and persecuting, two investigative journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo for doing their job is a national shame intended only to stop any information coming out about what is really happening inside Myanmar’s many conflict areas.” Many hope that international governments will apply pressure on the authorities in Myanmar to try and ensure a free press for the future.
Journalists Jailed for Reporting On Rohingya Incidents is an article from: LifeDaily