On Tuesday, August 21, CAIR-Chicago and RefugeeOne held a press conference to speak out against and spread awareness about the human rights violations currently taking place against Rohingya Muslims in Burma/Myanmar. CAIR-Chicago was joined by Imam Malik Mujahid of Burma Task Force USA, CIOGC, and the Council for a Parliament of World Religions, and two Burmese refugees.

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The Burmese refugees shared their personal experiences of being refugees and how they witnessed anti-Muslim sentiment and hate in Burma. After telling of their harrowing journeys Mujahid gave the audience background information on the history of the Muslim community in Burma. He explained the need to put pressure on the international community to lift sanctions preventing any and all aid from reaching the Rohingya Muslims.

Since June, the Burmese army and police have led a campaign of persecution targeting Rohingya Muslims through mass arrests and arbitrary violence. 650 Rohingyas have been killed, 1,200 are missing, and more than 80,000 have been displaced.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), RefugeeOne, and the Burma Task Force USA are urging the U.S. State Department and the international community to address the suffering of the almost one million Rohingya in Myanmar (formerly Burma), as well as those who have fled to neighboring Bangladesh.

CAIR also recently sent letters to the governments of Myanmar, Bangladesh and the United States seeking protection for Rohingya Muslims who are facing a renewed wave of ethnic and religious persecution.

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