Maungdaw, Arakan State: Personnel of Burma’s Border Security Force (Nasaka) severely tortured four village sentries last night at Maung Nama Gyi Village of Maungdaw Township, alleging that the sentries were sleeping at their posts, said one of the sentry men who declined to be named.

Every night villagers in Maungdaw Township must provide sentries for their own village on the orders of Nasaka. The Nasaka or the police go to the sentry post occasionally to check on the sentries and look for faults. The authorities can fine them either in cash or kind, such as livestock. Sometimes sentries deemed not to be performing their duty efficiently are taken to a Nasaka camp and forced to work without food.

A group of Nasaka personnel from Aung Mingala Nasaka Camp of Nasaka Area No. 6 went to Maung Nama Gyi Village last night at about 11:00 p.m. and arrested all the four of the village men on sentry duty over the allegation that they had been sleeping at their sentry post while the Nasaka was approaching the post.

Another villager on duty reported, “We were sitting in the sentry post and talking to each other while the Nasaka approached us. We knew of their approach, but we did not halt them, as they would blame us whether we halted them or not.”

Following the allegations, all of the villagers were severely tortured by the Nasaka personnel, who then went to their camp leaving the men at their sentry post. This time, the Nasaka did not fine them.

The victims were identified as Md. Alam (45), son of Sayed, Sultan (50), son of Lalu, Abul Kalam (25), son of Amir Hussain, and Jamal (12), son of Kala. They all belong to Maung Nama Gyi Village of Maungdaw Township.

A local village elder said, “This was a deliberate and unfair action against the Rohingya sentry men, as they had made no mistakes. The sentry men were severely tortured because the Nasaka want to show the local people that they can do anything against the Rohingya people that they wish.”

Rohingyas are forced to act as sentries on a revolving basis in Northern Arakan. Sentries are instructed to watch and report all movement from nightfall to morning. Forcing villagers to perform sentry duty is used as a means for extortion and harassment of Rohingya people, although the authority claims that it is needed for the protection of villages.

If the sentry men react or not to an approaching group of Nasaka personnel, they are blamed for not doing their work properly and punished with torture, fines, or being forced to work without pay in a Nasaka camp, said a local businessman.

A local youth said, “Sentry duty in villages is intolerable for the villagers. After the new Parliament begins its work, we hope that it will be stopped.”