A/HRC/39/64 3. Violence in 2012 We cried when we left; 25 years of hard work lost. My time is almost finished, but what will happen to my children and grandchildren? 24. In this context, two waves of violence swept Rakhine State, in June and in October 2012, affecting 12 townships. The murder, and alleged rape, of a Rakhine woman and the killing of 10 Muslim pilgrims are commonly presented as key triggers. According to the government inquiry commission, the violence left 192 people dead, 265 injured and 8,614 houses destroyed. Actual numbers are likely much higher. Further violence broke out in Thandwe in 2013. 25. Although the Government’s depiction of the violence as “intercommunal” between the Rohingya and the Rakhine has prevailed, it is inaccurate. While there certainly was violence between Rohingya and Rakhine groups, resulting in killing and the destruction of property, these attacks were not spontaneous outbursts of hostility; they resulted from a plan to instigate violence and amplify tensions. A campaign of hate and dehumanization of the Rohingya had been under way for months, and escalated after 8 June 2012, led by the Rakhine Nationalities Development Party (RNDP), various Rakhine organizations, radical Buddhist monk organizations, and several officials and influential figures. It was spread through anti-Rohingya or anti-Muslim publications, public statements, rallies and the boycott of Muslim shops. The Rohingya were labelled “illegal immigrants” and “terrorists”, and portrayed as an existential threat that might “swallow other races” with their “incontrollable birth rates”. In November 2012, the RNDP, in Toe Thet Yay, an official publication, cited Hitler, arguing that “inhuman acts” were sometimes necessary to “maintain a race”. 26. Myanmar security forces were at least complicit, often failing to intervene to stop the violence, or actively participated. They injured, killed and tortured Rohingya and destroyed their properties. Witnesses from Sittwe and Kyaukpyu described cases of security forces preventing Rohingya or Kaman from extinguishing houses set on fire by Rakhine, including by gunfire. Witnesses from Maungdaw described security forces shooting indiscriminately at Rohingya and conducting mass arbitrary arrests, including of Rohingya workers from non-governmental organizations. Large groups were transferred to Buthidaung prison, where they faced inhuman conditions and torture. Prisoners were beaten by prison guards and fellow Rakhine detainees, some fatally. 27. The violence in 2012 marked a turning point in Rakhine State: the relationship between the Rakhine and Rohingya deteriorated; fear and mistrust grew. Although the Kaman are a recognized ethnic group, they were targeted alongside the Rohingya as Muslims, and have since suffered increasing discrimination and marginalization. 28. The Government responded to the violence by an increased presence of security forces and enforced segregation of communities. A state of emergency declared on 10 June 2012 was lifted only in March 2016. Township authorities in Rakhine State imposed a curfew and prohibited public gatherings of more than five people. These restrictions remain in force today in Maungdaw and Buthidaung and have been applied in a discriminatory manner against the Rohingya. They have an impact on freedom of religion, as people are prevented from praying collectively in mosques. 29. The violence displaced more than 140,000 people, mostly Rohingya. The few thousand displaced ethnic Rakhine were able to return or were resettled by the Government. Six years after the violence, 128,000 Rohingya and Kaman remain segregated, confined in camps and displacement sites, without freedom of movement, access to sufficient food, adequate health care, education or livelihoods. The displaced are prevented from returning to their place of origin. Such confinement exceeds any justifiable security measure and constitutes arbitrary deprivation of liberty. Other Rohingya in central Rakhine, including those resettled, also face severe restrictions, including on freedom of movement, which has an impact on daily life. 30. The violence exacerbated the oppression of the Rohingya. Movement outside Rakhine State became even more difficult. Rohingya students have not been able to enrol at Sittwe University since 2012; their access to higher education has been effectively removed. 7