A/HRC/31/71
payment of a bribe. Since January 2016, the Border Guard Police and the “Immigration
Team for the Prevention of Illegal Immigration of Foreigners” (MaKaPa) have been
conducting their annual population check to update Rohingya household lists. They have
announced new and cumbersome procedures for adding children to the lists, which may
perpetuate the problem of unregistered children.
42.
On 8 February 2016, the curfew order imposed in northern Rakhine since June 2012
was once again renewed for two months. The order also prohibits gatherings of five or
more people in public areas, including at mosques, further affecting on daily life and basic
religious observance. The curfew and related restrictions are discriminatory, as they appear
to be enforced only against the Rohingya.
43.
The Special Rapporteur highlights the increasingly dire housing conditions for the
majority of internally displaced persons, including some 95,000 located in Sittwe rural
camps. Longhouses accommodating multiple families were initially designed to last only
two or three years, and many are now collapsing. In 2015, some 25,000 internally displaced
persons were provided with 3,000 individual houses, but only a small minority relocated
voluntarily. The Special Rapporteur reiterates her previous calls to the Government to
ensure durable solutions to displacement in accordance with international standards; these
should include voluntary returns to places of origin and avoid the permanent segregation of
communities. The right to an adequate standard of living must be ensured for those who
remain displaced as well as for those who return.
44.
Little progress has been made in resolving the legal status of the more than 1 million
Rohingya in Myanmar, including their access to citizenship. The citizenship verification
process, which had raised international concern, including that of the Special Rapporteur
(see A/69/398, para. 52 and A/70/412, para. 41), is effectively stalled. Those granted
citizenship through the process, including in Myebon Township, where it was piloted in
June 2014, reportedly remain in camps and continue to face restrictions on their freedom of
movement and access to basic services.
D.
Gender and women’s rights issues
45.
The Special Rapporteur welcomes the adoption of the National Strategic Plan for the
Advancement of Women (2013-2022), and urges the Government to adopt, as a matter of
priority, implementation mechanisms that are adequately funded for the plan to be
implemented.
46.
The Special Rapporteur notes that, while the number of women parliamentarians has
increased following the 2015 elections, women only account for 13 per cent of Members of
Parliament. Equally, women’s representation at the regional and local levels remains low,
for example, making up just 0.25 per cent of village tract administrators. A greater effort
should be made to promote women’s participation in public and political life, in accordance
with the State’s obligations under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women.
47.
Although no national prevalence data currently exist, reports indicate that all forms
of sexual and gender-based violence are a matter of serious concern across Myanmar. In
particular, anecdotal evidence reflects a high prevalence of emotional, physical and sexual
intimate partner violence committed against women. In this context, the Special Rapporteur
welcomes the development of the draft law on the prevention of violence against women in
conjunction with civil society, and emphasizes that it must comply with the Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The draft law, currently
being reviewed by the Office of the Attorney General, has been subject to several
problematic revisions. It should contain a comprehensive definition of rape and include
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