A window into the lives of unregistered Rohingya IDPs, Sittwe, Burma

Nora Rowley

These Rohingya survived June deadly attacks and arson by monks, police and Rakhine civilians on their Sittwe village but the government deny them registered IDP status, and thus regular food rations. They were receiving some donations from Muslims in Yangon. But these stopped when Yangon anti-Muslims violence started in late February. I was checking on a patient when there was a loud cheer. It sounded like the favorite scored a goal in the World Cup! I went outside and saw children running after a truck with food rations and parents standing with wide relieved smiles. Emanuel Stoakes filmed the truck and children. One girl running toward the truck with bowls and boy with a fork. The truck drove past the unregistered grass hut camp to the registered camp. When Assed Baig asked who the food was for, the Rakhne WFP delivery truck handler smirked and said the food was for both camps but would not be distributed until the next day. We left Sittwe the next and found out the following day that the unregistered camp, which had been without food rations for 3 weeks, DID NOT get any of the food distribution from the truck. THAT WAS WHY THE RAKHINE DELIVERY MAN SMIRKED- HE LOOKED HUMANE ON CAMERA BUT HE DIDN'T REALIZE WE WOULD FOLLOW UP. RAKHINE ATTACKED THE ROHINGYA AND THE GOVT IMPRISONS RAOHINGYA AND HAS RAKHINE WORK DELIVERING RELEIF AID TO ROHINGYA.

Please click & watch - A window into the lives of unregistered Rohingya IDPs, Sittwe, Burma

While out in the field in Burma, I visited some of the camps containing many ethnic Rohingya IDPs (internally displaced persons). This was filmed in the poor...