It is about crises where people have had to flee their homes because of war and persecution, and who do not receive sufficient humanitarian assistance to meet their needs. In addition, these crises do not receive the necessary media attention, nor the necessary political attention for there to be any real hope of imminent change in the situation.
All countries with more than 100,000 displaced people have been analysed, and the list is based on the following three criteria:
Criteria 9 – Myanmar
Ethnic minority groups in Myanmar have been in conflict with the military and government authorities for decades, some of them since the country became independent from the United Kingdom in 1948. Hundreds of thousands of people have been driven from their homes as a result of conflicts, which are mostly rooted in minorities’ demands for equal rights, access to land and resources, and greater autonomy.
In Rakhine State in the northwest of the country, there are long-standing tensions between the Muslim minority who identify themselves as Rohingya on one side, and the Buddhist community on the other. Myanmar has been criticized for depriving the people of citizenship and fundamental rights. Over 1million Rohingya in Myanmar do not have access to sufficient healthcare and education, their freedom of movement is limited, and around 120,000 remain in IDP camps. The UN refers to the group as the world’s most oppressed minority.
In late 2016, the conflict in Rakhine gained international attention when 90,000 people were forced to flee their homes. The UN’s desire to investigate possible human rights violations committed against the Muslim minority has repeatedly been rejected by the authorities.
Ongoing fighting in the states of Kachin and Shan in the north and east of the country, called the “forgotten conflict”, has left whole villages in ruins. Violence also escalated in these areas during 2016. In southeastern Myanmar, an estimated 400,000 people remain displaced after decades of conflict, and another 100,000 remain in camps in Thailand.
