Include Chin refugees in citizenship Bill: Chakma NGOs

Include Chin refugees in citizenship Bill: Chakma NGOs

Polity

News: The article discusses the origin and problems of Chin tribes.

Facts:

• Eight organisations of the Chakma community have appealed to the Centre to further amend the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill for including Myanmar along with Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan for allowing citizenship status to Chin tribe.
• Chin is a Myanmarese ethnic tribe which is ethnically related to the majority Mizos of Mizoram and the Kuki-Zomi groups in Manipur.
• In November 2017, about 1,600 Chins, many of whom were women and children, fled to Lawngtlai district of Mizoram following a military offensive against the Arakan Army militants in that country’s Chin State.
• While some went back, around 1,440 refugees have reportedly refused to return due to insecurity in Myanmar.
• There are an estimated 100,000 Chins in Mizoram, which is 20% of the total Chin population in Myanmar.
• About 4,000 Chin refugees are registered with UNHCR in India their ‘refugee status’ will end with effect from August 1, 2018 on the ground that Myanmar has now become “stable and secure” for them to return home and, therefore, they don’t need “international protection”.