UN urges Myanmar to grant rights to minority

The UN General Assembly on Monday adopted a resolution urging Myanmar to grant citizenship to its Rohingya Muslim minority and grant them equal access to services.

The non-binding measure was adopted by consensus in the 193-nation assembly, a month after it was approved by the assembly's rights committee.

The resolution expresses "serious concern" over the plight of the Rohingya in Rakhine state, where 140,000 people live in squalid camps after violence erupted between Buddhists and Muslims in 2012.

Under a controversial government-backed plan, the Rohingya would be forced to identify themselves as Bengali - a term seen as disparaging - in order to apply for citizenship. Those who refuse would be given no choice but to live in camps.

Many in Myanmar's government and local Buddhists view the Rohingya as illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh, but the community maintains its has ancestral roots in the country.

The resolution urges the government to protect the rights of all inhabitants of Rakhine state and allow "equal access to full citizenship for the Rohingya minority," to "allow self-identification" and ensure equal access to services.

http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/un-urges-myanmar-to-grant-rights-to-minority/