KALADAN NEWS

 

Dated: May 18, 2005

 

 

SPDC Orders ‘Population Control’ in Northern Arakan

 

Maungdaw, May 18: The State Peace & Development Council (SPDC) of Burma has recently instructed Rohingyas from northern Arakan ‘to control population growth’, a school teacher from Maungdaw confirmed.

 

In a recent statement, SPDC observed that ‘northern Arakan is one of the most over populated areas in Burma’. Henceforth, SPDC needs to control its population growth to adjust with other parts of the country.

 

“Due to over population, agro-products of the area are not enough to feed the people and there may be severe economic crisis in the future in the region that will bring people into acute poverty,” an official with the SPDC said.

 

SPDC statement suggested, from now on, people will have to work towards fighting the future population growth.

 

Suggested processes of ‘population growth control’ are: obtaining official permission for marriage, applying to the Township Peace & Development Council (TPDC) through respective Village Peace & Development Council (VPDC), Nasaka (Burmese border security forces) and other concerned authorities.

 

Polygamy of any sort will be seriously dealt with, the statement noted.

 

In case of a divorce or the death of a spouse, one will have to wait for 3 years before getting remarried. For new couples, marriage prerequisites (as age) are set to 18 years for females and 22 years for males.

 

There is also a bar on taking more than 3 children.

 

However, these restrictions are reportedly dodged by bribing the concerned authorities with hard cash or fuel shares (petrol/diesel/kerosene).

 

‘Population growth’ restrictions are complimented with restrictions imposed on free movement (imposed earlier).

 

Township Peace and Development Councils (TPDC) are now ‘all busy bribery and corruption’ centering marriage permissions and travel documents, the official added.

 

These moves are part of a larger ‘Buddization and Burmanisation’ of Arakan (a Burmese state majorly populated with Rohingyas), alleged Rohingya activists. A member of the civil society in Maungdaw concurred.

 

Reportedly, Buddhists from Bangladesh and other parts of Burma are now building SPDC sponsored settlements in Arakan.

 

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