With wind speed almost 200kmph, around 800,00 people are left without water, food, shelter

Published on 21 May 2023

sources by: https://www.thevibes.com/articles/world/93088/myanmar-junta-hampering-aid-for-rohingya-cyclone-victims-merhrom

KUALA LUMPUR  Refugees from Myanmar who fled violence there to reach Malaysia have expressed concerns at the absence of humanitarian aid in their home country after vast areas were recently devastated by Cyclone Mocha.

The Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation in Malaysia (Merhrom) said it is deeply saddened by the loss of lives and property damage in the tragedy that also hit neighbouring Bangladesh on May 14. 

The most affected areas are in Rakhine state where the Rohingya come from. They include districts of Sittwe, Rathedaung, Buthidaung, Maungdaw, Pauktaw, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, Ponnagyun, Minbya, Myebon, Kyaukpyu, Ramree, Munaung, Toungup. Thandwe, Ayeyarwa and Gwa.

We received information from the Rohingya victims in the affected area that they are still waiting for humanitarian assistance, said Merhrom president Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani, noting that the wind speed was nearly 200kmph.

They do not have food, water, medicine or shelter. Thousands of houses were damaged leaving 800,000 people without shelter. The death toll in Sittwe alone has increased to more than 500 people.

According to the villagers, seawater carried many bodies away. There are many people who are missing and still have not been found.

Zafar said that the military junta currently ruling Myanmar declared that all humanitarian aid must go through them. 

We are afraid the humanitarian aid did not reach the affected Rohingya victims, he said.

Therefore, we appeal to the United Nations, World Food Programme (WFP), UN agencies and member states, private sectors, civil society organisations and the international community to put pressure on the junta that access is granted to distribute the humanitarian aid.

He likened the juntas restrictions on humanitarian agencies sending aid to genocide as people are dying.

We are frustrated that the junta did not take any actions to save the lives of the Rohingya despite the meteorology warning...

Cyclone Mocha leaves Rohingya victims desperate for aid

sources by:https://bebasnews.my/2023/05/21/cyclone-mocha-leaves-rohingya-victims-desperate-for-aid/

 Editor

 

21/05/2023

KUALA LUMPUR  Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization in Malaysia (MERHROM) expressed deep sorrow over the devastating impact of Cyclone Mocha, which struck Myanmar and Bangladesh on May 14, 2023.

The Rakhine State, particularly areas such as Sittwe, Rathedaung, Buthidaung, and Maungdaw, suffered the most significant damage.

Other affected regions include Pauktaw, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U, Ponnagyun, Minbya, Myebon, Kyaukpyu, Ramree, Munaung, Toungup, Thandwe, Ayeyarwa, and Gwa.

Reports received from Rohingya victims in the affected area indicate that they are still awaiting critical humanitarian assistance. Essential supplies like food, water, medicine, and shelter remain scarce. The cyclone caused extensive destruction, leaving 800,000 people without homes.

Tragically, the death toll in Sittwe alone has climbed to over 500 individuals.

With wind speeds reaching 195 km per hour, numerous lives have been lost, and it is anticipated that further casualties will be discovered.

Local villagers reveal that many bodies were carried away by the sea. The search continues for numerous missing individuals who have yet to be located.

The juntas imposition of restrictions, demanding that all humanitarian aid flow through their channels, has raised concerns that assistance may not reach the affected Rohingya victims.

Urgent appeals have been made to the United Nations, the World Food Program (WFP), UN agencies, member states, private sectors, civil society organizations, and the international community.

They are urged to exert pressure on the junta to g...

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• INDONESIA
• Saturday, 20 May 20239:05 PM
• source by: https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2023/05/20/cyclone-mocha-asean-to-send-humanitarian-aid-to-myanmar-on-sunday-may-21

A view of the damage caused by Cyclone Mocha in Sittwe, Myanmar in this handout image released May 17, 2023. Reuters

JAKARTA, May 20 (Bernama): Aseans first emergency response aid to Myanmar following Cyclone Mocha will be delivered on Sunday (May 21) by commercial aircraft, according to Indonesias Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The ministry, in a statement, explained that the aid has been prepared and is in the warehouses of the Disaster Emergency Logistics System for Asean in Subang, Malaysia; and Chainat, Thailand.

The next aid will be sent on May 22 or May 23 using military aircraft from Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand, said the ministry.

Coordination of the transport for the provision of aid using Asean member military aircraft is done through the Asean Military Ready Group on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief.

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This is in line with Indonesias commitment as the chairman of Asean 2023, and the joint statement of the Asean Foreign Ministers who conveyed the willingness to provide humanitarian aid to Myanmar through the One Asean One Response approach.

Executive Director of the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) and representatives of Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand in the Asean Emergency Response and Assessment Team (Asean-ERAT) as well as the Asean Secretariat have arrived in Myanmar to support emergency response efforts.

They are also collecting information in the field and facilitating rapid needs assessment, said the ministry.

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Wellness living a growing trend

More than 400 people were reported dead in Myanmars Rakhine state last Wednesday as a result of Cyclone Mocha, which hit the coastal area between Bangladeshs Coxs Baza...

The first emergency response aid will be delivered tomorrow by commercial aircraft.

sources by : https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/world/2023/05/20/asean-to-send-aid-after-myanmar-cyclone/

JAKARTA: Aseans first emergency response aid to Myanmar following Cyclone Mocha will be delivered tomorrow by commercial aircraft, Indonesias foreign affairs ministry said.

In a statement, the ministry said the aid has been prepared and is in the warehouses of Aseans Disaster Emergency Logistics System in Subang, Malaysia; and Chainat, Thailand.

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The next aid will be sent on May 22 or May 23 by military aircraft from Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand, said the ministry.

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Transportation of aid using Asean member military aircrafts is done through the Asean Military Ready Group on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief.

Asean foreign ministers had conveyed their intention to provide humanitarian aid to Myanmar based on the One Asean One Response principle.

Executive director for the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre), representatives from Indonesia, Brunei, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand in the Asean Emergency Response and Assessment Team (Asean-Erat) and the Asean Secretariat have arrived in Myanmar to support emergency response efforts.

They are also collecting information in the field and facilitating rapid needs assessment, said the ministry.

More than 400 people reportedly died in Myanmars Rakhine state last Wednesday as a result of Cyclone Mocha, which hit the coastal area between Bangladeshs Coxs Bazar district and the town of Kyaukpyu in Myanmar.

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• MYANMAR
• Saturday, 20 May 20233:18 PM MYT

A man (centre) checks his damaged house by cyclone Mocha in Sittwe in Myanmars Rakhine state on May 17, 2023. The death toll in cyclone-hit Myanmar rose to at least 145 according to local leaders, officials and state media, as villagers tried to piece together ruined homes and waited for aid and support. AFP

sources by: https://www.thestar.com.my/aseanplus/aseanplus-news/2023/05/20/some-800000-people-affected-by-cyclone-mocha-in-myanmar-says-un

Geneva, May 20, 2023 (AFP): At least 800,000 people in Myanmar need emergency food aid and other assistance after Cyclone Mocha slammed into the conflict-torn country earlier this week, the United Nations has announced.

Mocha brought lashing rain and winds of up to 195 kilometres (120 miles) per hour to Myanmar and neighbouring Bangladesh on Sunday, with Myanmars junta saying 145 people had been killed and media reports suggesting the number was far higher.

The UNs World Food Programme described a trail of devastation across Myanmars Rakhine State, a region that is home to hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees who live in displacement camps following decades of ethnic conflict.

The cyclone left houses flattened, roads cut off by uprooted trees, hospitals and schools destroyed, and telecommunications and power lines severely disrupted, Anthea Webb, WFPs deputy regional director for Asia and the Pacific, told reporters in Geneva via video-link from Bangkok.

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There are at least 800,000 people in urgent need of emergency food assistance, she said, adding that greater needs for food, shelter, water, health and other humanitarian aid are expected to be revealed as we reach more areas.

And while Bangladesh was spared a direct hit, nearly half a million Bangladeshis and thousands of Rohingya refugees have lost their homes and assets, she said.

Webb said that WFP had started its response to Mocha before the storm hit, reaching 28,000 people in Bangladesh near the Myanmar border with advance cash aid to help them prepare.

...

Myanmar junta travel restrictions are holding up vital aid to cyclone-hit communities

By Helen Regan, CNN

Updated 12:32 AM EDT, Fri May 19, 2023

sources by : https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/18/asia/cyclone-mocha-aid-restrictions-myanmar-intl-hnk/index.html

They were persecuted by their own country. Now, a cyclone has left them displaced

Source: CNNCNN  

Myanmars military junta is holding up humanitarian access to some cyclone-hit communities in western Rakhine state after Cyclone Mocha devastated the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in the poorest parts of the country.

United Nations agencies said Thursday they were still negotiating access to parts of the state four days after Mocha slammed into Myanmars coast on Sunday as one of the strongest storms ever to hit the country.

Hundreds of people are feared to have died and thousands more are in urgent need of shelter, clean water, food and health care as a clearer picture of the devastation is beginning to emerge.

While rescue groups have warned of a large scale loss of life, the exact number of casualties is hard to know due to flooding, blocked roads, and downed communications.

...

By Bernama  May 8, 2023

sources by : https://www.nst.com.my/news/nation/2023/05/907193/govt-mulling-agreement-unhcr-over-issue-refugees-asylum-seekers-msia

PUTRAJAYA: The government is considering entering into an agreement with the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) regarding the commissions role and responsibilities towards refugees and asylum seekers in Malaysia.

Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in a statement after chairing the meeting of the high-level committee on the management of refugees and asylum seekers here today (May 8), said the agreement with UNHCR over the matter was in line with Resolution 428 (V) UN General Assembly (1950).

UNHCR needs to carry out its responsibilities towards refugees and asylum seekers who are in the country in accordance with the mandate and functions of its establishment and not place the burden of refugee management solely on the government or the local community, he said.

While stressing that Malaysia was not a member country of the 1951 Convention on the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol on the Status of Refugees, Ahmad Zahid said the government respected the mandate of the establishment, functions and roles of UNHCR as provided under Resolution 319 (IV) of the UN General Assembly (1949) and Resolution 428 (V) UN General Assembly (1950).

Based on the principles of humanity, the government has allowed this group (refugees and asylum seekers) to stay temporarily in the country before being resettled in another country or returned to their country of origin, he said.

Ahmad Zahid said th...

Once they are registered, govt can help them find work, says home minister, but stresses info is priority now

Published on 09 May 2023

sources by : https://www.thevibes.com/articles/news/92207/decision-on-refugee-employment-should-be-based-on-home-ministry-data-saifuddin

PUTRAJAYA  Any decision to allow refugees to be employed in any sector should be based on data prepared by the Home Ministry, said its minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.

He said that his ministry is now collecting data related to refugees, such as their gender, age and country of origin.

According to him, this follows the decisions made in the National Security Council (NSC) meeting and the recent cabinet meeting.

The (ministry) was given the responsibility to register refugees and issue them with a refugee card (refugee registration document). Previously, the governments initiative was to appoint a third party (Refugee Information Tracking System TRIS) but they could only register about 30,000 (individuals) compared with the data obtained from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) (185,000 people).

The gap is huge. The NSC made a decision that the (ministry) has to register the refugees. Hence, it starts with data, granular data. If we want to consider them in terms of job opportunities, so we have to start with data first, he said.

Saifuddin Nasution said this to reporters after attending the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency Aidilfitri open house at the agencys headquarters here today.

He said that the Immigration Department was given the responsibility to register these refugees, and once they had been registered, the ministry could help find them employment.

Once we get the registration numbers, instead of them looking for work, we can help them find employment, depending on the governments policies and decisions. We are not yet in that direction; what is important now is the data, he said.

Meanwhile, when asked to comment on the recent issue of refugee settlement in Penang, Saifuddin Nasution said that no party can act on its own, and only enforcement agencies are allowed to take action, such as the Royal Malaysia Police and the Immigration Department....

3 years after death threats, Im still here waiting for resettlement by UNHCR

sources by: https://bebasnews.my/2023/05/06/3-years-after-death-threats-im-still-here-waiting-for-resettlement-by-unhcr/

 Editor

 

06/05/2023

By Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani

WAITING for 3 years for protection and resettlement to a third country as a durable solution for my situation is a suffering that cannot be expressed in words. Living in trauma, confinement and depressions for these 3 years is very painful. The reality is that I live in a prison that has no borders.

I am an unwanted human being, a stateless person, a victim of torture, a stateless Rohingya refugee, a victim of fake news and a human rights defender at risk. However, this is not enough to qualify me for protection and resettlement to a third country despite receiving death threats, physical threats, defamation and constant harassment due to the false accusations.

I was falsely accused of demanding Malaysian citizenship and equal rights for the Rohingya in Malaysia. Since then, my family and I have lived in trauma, depression and confinement due to death threats, other threats, defamation and harassment. I lost my dignity, my life, my family, my friends, my livelihood, my freedom of movement, my voice and my advocacy work.

The UNHCR Malaysia denied my rights to protection & durable solutions on 3rd November 2020 when they told me YOU DO NOT MEET THE CRITERIA FOR RESETTLEMENT. There is no further explanation given. I wonder what it means? This is definitely UNACCEPTABLE. My family and I are facing death threats, physical threats, kidnapping threats, rape threats, no freedom of movement, and ongoing threats, defamation and harassment in the past 3 years. I wonder which CRITERIA I do not meet? It is really painful to hear this from the UNHCR Malaysia who are supposed to protect refugees at risk, what more a human rights defender at risk.

Im a poor man, maybe this is why I dont get consideration for resettlement? Im exhausted from seeking refuge. Too exhausted to be a refugee without a state, without protection. Too exhausted waiting for long overdue resettlement. The assasination of Mr Mohib Ullah in the Coxs Bazar refugee camp always haunted me. This will not...

UN agency should be held accountable if something bad happens to me, says Merhrom president

Published on 08 May 2023 7:00AM

sources by : https://www.thevibes.com/articles/news/92075/rohingya-activist-pleads-for-protection-resettlement-by-unhcr

BY The Vibes Team

KUALA LUMPUR  Reflecting the agony that many bona fide refugees face in Malaysia, a Rohingya activist facing harassment and death threats is appealing for protection and resettlement.

Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani, who was driven out of Myanmar by violence, said he has waited for three years for a durable solution to his situation, including the opportunity to be relocated safely to a third country.

He expressed concern following the assassination of Mohib Ullah, a Rohingya activist, in the Coxs Bazar refugee camp in Bangladesh, saying that the event has haunted him.

He said the murder would not have happened if Mohib had been resettled without delay.

Living in trauma, confinement and depression for these three years is very painful. The reality is that I live in a prison that has no borders, said Zafar, who is president of the Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation in Malaysia (Merhrom).

I am an unwanted human being, a stateless person, a victim of torture, a stateless Rohingya refugee, a victim of fake news and a human rights defender at risk.

However, this is not enough to qualify me for protection and resettlement to a third country despite receiving death threats, physical threats, defamation and constant harassment due to the false accusations.

The Vibes had reported in 2021 that Zafar was falsely accused of demanding Malaysian citizenship and equal rights for the Rohingya in Malaysia.

Since then, he has reported that he and his family have been subjected to death threats, other forms of intimidation, defamation and harassment, causing them to end...

Human Rights Watch says Bangladesh shouldnt forget why Rohingya became refugees and recognise that those factors have not changed.

sources by : https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/19/hrw-condemns-bangladesh-myanmar-on-plan-to-repatriate-rohingya

Published On 19 May 202319 May 2023

The Human Rights Watch has criticised sharply a plan to return Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to Myanmar, saying it poses grave risks to their lives and liberty.

Bangladesh is home to about a million Rohingya, most of whom fled a 2017 military crackdown in Myanmar that is now subject to a United Nations genocide investigation.

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Doha photo exhibition sheds light on life of Rohingya refugees

list 4 of 4

Photos: Rohingya in Myanmar count the dead after Cyclone Mocha

end of list

The two countries are looking to return about 1,100 people in a pilot project in the coming weeks even though the...

sources by: https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/5/17/photos-rohingya-in-myanmar-count-the-dead-after-cyclone-mocha

Mocha was the most powerful cyclone to hit the area in more than a decade.

Published On 17 May 202317 May 2023

Rohingya people in cyclone-hit Myanmar buried loved ones outside shattered villages and searched for the missing, expecting little help from a government that denies their identity.

Cyclone Mocha snapped bridges, downed power lines, and ruptured close-lying huts in displacement camps and villages across Rakhine state, leaving tens of thousands of the persecuted minority even more on the edge.

The Arakan Rohingya National Alliance, a human rights coalition, said in a statement more than 400 people were killed and the death toll is expected to rise with hundreds missing.

Many people picked through piles of debris that were once their homes or cleared fallen trees from village paths. Others looked for family members not seen since the cyclone made landfall on Sunday. It was the most powerful storm to hit the region in a decade.

We were trying to run but the water was very high and dragged us down, said Sar Hla Ma Kha, 40, from Basara village. The water was around our chest. My daughter and her son were lost while we were running.

Aa Bul Hu Son, 66, buried his daughter, the latest member of his family to have been taken by the storm.

I just found her dead body in the lake in the village and buried her right away. I cant find any words to express my loss, he said.

Nine out of my 14 family members were killed, he said next to the hastily dug grave. While we were thinking of moving, the waves came immediately and took us.

Contact was slowly being re-established with Sittwe, a city of about 150,000 people, with roads being cleared and the internet connection re-established....

sourcesby:https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/5/14/deadly-cyclone-mocha-slams-into-bangladesh-myanmar

The storm is one of the most powerful to ever hit the region with winds as strong as 250km/h (155 mph).

Published On 14 May 202314 May 2023

Cyclone Mocha has crashed ashore in Myanmar leaving relief workers struggling to assess the extent of the damage because the storm caused major disruption to communications.

One of the most powerful storms to ever hit the region crossed the coast of northwestern Rakhine State, south of the Bangladesh border on Sunday at about 1:30pm (07:00 GMT), uprooting trees, bringing down pylons and cables, and creating a tidal surge that inundated streets in the low-lying region.

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Bangladeshs water crisis and the problem of a green solution

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Whats the difference between hurricanes, cyclones and typhoons?

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Are storms getting more powerful and dangerous?

end of list

With winds of up to 250 kilometres per hour (155 miles per hour), Mocha struck between Myanmars Sittwe and Coxs Bazar in Bangladesh, the home to nearly one million mostly Muslim Rohingya refugees who were...

Death toll seen rising in Myanmars Rakhine state in aftermath of Cyclone Mocha

RFA Burmese
2023.05.17

sources by : https://www.benarnews.org/english/news/bengali/death-reports-05172023162630.html

A man holds a baby as he stands on top of homes destroyed by Cyclone Mocha in the Dar Paing Rohingya camp in western Sittwe, Myanmar, May 17, 2023.

 RFA

Cyclone Mocha killed about 460 Rohingya villagers in Myanmars Rakhine deaths that humanitarian workers said could have been prevented if so many people had not been living in restricted camps near the seashore.

Most villagers were not properly informed of the coming storm, which hit the coast on Sunday with sustained winds reaching over 220 kph (137 mph), and many others were not allowed to evacuate ahead of time, activists and aid workers told Radio Free Asia, a news service affiliated with BenarNews.

The number of dead could increase significantly as many people are missing, the United Kingdom-based Burmese Rohingya Organization (BROUK) said in a statement on Wednesday.

Communication services are down in large parts of Rakhine, in western Myanmar, and no humanitarian aid has reached affected areas in and around the state capital of Sittwe, the group said.

All shelters have been destroyed in the camps, and people have witnessed many family members being carried away by flash floods caused by the cyclone, it said.

Other people in the area were killed by wind-blown tree branches and zinc roof sheets. 

About 130,000 Rohingya have lived for more than a decade in internally displaced persons camps in the Sittwe area. BROUK likened the camps to open air prisons.

A Rohingya survivor from Thet Kae Pyin camp said bodies belonging to 110 Rohingya villagers were buried on Monday and Tuesday. 

Another survivor, a 25-year-old, told RFA that the Rakhine State military council had warned them of the storm several days before it struck. However, all emergency shelter centers were overcrowded with people.

The government and NGOs warned us in advance, but there wasnt enough space for us to evacuate. Thats why we just continued staying in our camp, the 25-year-old said, asking not to be identified for security concerns.

...