Maungdaw, Arakan State: Burma’s Deputy Home Minister Phone Swe held a meeting in Maungnama Madrasa in Maungdaw Township at 10 am today having invited local people, said a local elder who attended the meeting.  

In the meeting, about 2000 people participated. The main speakers were the Deputy Home Minister Phone Swe, Director General of the People’s Police Force, Brig-General Khin Yi  and Burma’s border security force (Nasaka) Director  Lt .Col Aung Gyi. The translator was U Khin Zaw.

The Deputy Home Minister said “Rohingya people will be provided white nationality cards before the elections as Bengali nationals. Rohingya people have the right to vote and to be elected. Other parties will come for election campaigns to woo the people, but they should not be believed. I believe that all the Rohingya people will cast votes for USDP candidates. An office for Regional Development for the Rohingya people has been set up in Maungdaw town for social welfare and development.”

Similarly, the Director General of Police, Brig-General Khin Yi  said that he visited Indonesia and Thailand to see the boat-people (Rohingya), but, he failed to see them. “In Indonesia there were about 300 Rohingya rescued by the government and sheltered. We will receive Rohingya who are abroad, but they have to show documents from Burma.”

He said he met the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burma,Mr. Tomás Ojea Quintana and explained about Rohingyas.  He said that there are over 6,000 children not in the family list because of marriage without permission. They will be registered in the family list before elections.

The Nasaka Director, Lt Col Aung Gyi said that Rohingyas are allowed to build houses with cement or wood with tin sheets before elections, but mosques and Madrasas are not allowed to be built before elections. However, after elections, they will be allowed.

A participant at the meeting said “We are happy before the meeting, but after the meeting we were disappointed.”

The meeting was wrapped up at about 11 am, and the delegation went to Bawli Bazaar.