THE decision of the Modi government to deport Rohingyas from Myanmar who have taken refuge in India, is an unconscionable act. The government has submitted an affidavit in the Supreme Court wherein it is stated that there are militant elements among the Rohingya migrants who have links to the Pakistani ISI and the so-called Islamic State and, therefore, pose a security risk.  The government has maintained that as illegal migrants, the government has the power to deport them.

There are around 40,000 Rohingyas living in India who have come here over the years.  They live in squalid conditions in makeshift colonies and camps in Delhi, Faridabad, Jaipur, Jammu and other places. According to the police records of these areas, there are no complaints of any terrorist activity, or, serious crimes involving the people living in these camps. The actual reality contradicts the government’s exaggerated and motivated claim that they are a security risk.

The official attitude to these hapless people is determined by their religion which is Muslim.  The Modi government has made it clear that only illegal migrants who are Hindus, Sikhs, or Buddhists will be allowed to live in India. In fact, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill proposes to give them citizenship but not Muslim migrants. 

India has, in the past, hosted refugees from Tibet, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan. In 1971, lakhs of refugees from East Pakistan crossed over into India.  Even though India is not a signatory to the UN Convention on Refugees, it is a signatory of the Universal Human Rights Declaration and other international conventions on protection of civil and political rights.

Where will the Rohingyas be deported to?  Myanmar does not accept them as its citizens. Bangladesh is already flooded with Rohingya refugees. The Modi government cannot escape its responsibilities as a major regional power that is bound by democratic principles. It has to take a holistic and democratic view of the Rohingya issue. In Myanmar, the Rohingya problem is a longstanding one.  During the decades of military rule they were persecuted and deprived of citizenship rights. The Myanmar government considers them as foreigners who have come from Bangladesh, even though many of them arrived in the Arakan coast four to five centuries ago. 

The recent flare up comes in the background of continuous attacks by Buddhist chauvinists and the armed forces on the Rohingya minority in the Rakhine state. This led to counter attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) which was formed four years ago.  The ARSA is reported to be led by Islamist radicals.  However, the brunt of the counter offensive by the security forces has been borne by the ordinary Rohingya population whose villages have been burnt down and they were forced to flee to Bangladesh.

Over the past month, four lakh Rohingyas – men, women and children – have entered Bangladesh causing a serious problem for the Bangladesh government which is straining to cope with the massive influx of homeless people. India should provide all help and assistance to Bangladesh to tackle this humanitarian crisis. 

It is regrettable that Prime Minister Modi did not utilise his Myanmar visit recently to take up the Rohingya issue as a humanitarian crisis. Instead, he echoed the stand of the Burmese government that it is an internal security issue. Having belatedly realised the enormity of the refugee crisis in Bangladesh, the Modi government must reshape its stand. The government has to use diplomatic channels to urge the Myanmar government to end the violence in Rakhine state and to initiate a political solution. 

As for the Rohingyas who are residing in India, they should be given refugee status and relevant documentation. This will ensure that they do not meld with the local population and acquire false identity papers. It will also facilitate their being sent back to Myanmar when the conditions there are conducive for their return to line with peace and security. Providing them with refugee status and relevant documentation will also help the authorities to monitor if there are any extremist elements trying to utilise their desperate plight. 

The way India treats the Rohingyas will be a test for the democratic and secular principles embedded in the constitution. They cannot be the victims of Islamophobia.

(September 20, 2017)