India Deports Rohingya Refugees

India deported seven Rohingya refugees who had been detained since 2012 in the eastern state of Assam to their home country of Myanmar on October 4 amid strong anti-illegal immigration sentiments. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) denounced this action, condemning India for denying the refugees legal counsel and not allowing the UNHCR to assess their asylum claims. The refugees’ appeal to restrain deportation was denied by the Indian Supreme Court, which cited that the detainees were accepted by their home country as citizens. Yet, this came before the Supreme Court considered the constitutionality of the government’s move to deport approximately 40,000 Rohingya refugees, of whom approximately 18,000 are registered with the UNHCR, regardless of their refugee status.

Rohingya Muslims have historically been persecuted in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, where they are viewed as illegal Bengali immigrants and are stripped of equal rights and citizenship. They reside mostly in central Rakhine, a western state in Myanmar. After Rohingya militants attacked a police post, killing 12 personnel, the Myanmar military - supported by Rakhine Buddhist mobs - led a brutal offensive in Central Rakhine that drove over 700,000 Rohingya refugees to flee their homes and seek asylum in neighboring Bangladesh.

Though the Myanmar government denies any violence against civilians and denounces the Rohingya for setting their own villages ablaze to garner international sympathy, a UN fact-finding report commissioned by the UN Council for Human Rights found that there was a level of premeditation and genocidal intent in the military offensives. Myanmar claims to be taking steps towards repatriating its Rohingya population and providing them with a path to citizenship through a verification document that labels them as Bengali instead of Rohingya; however, the path to greater equality and citizenship has not been explicitly outlined.

In India, the nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) plans on deporting all 40,000 Rohingya refugees to enforce their strict policies against illegal immigration. Government officials have likened the refugees to “termites” whose massive influx threatens “Assamese jobs and culture.” Rijiju, a prominent minister, justifies the mass deportation as well as the deportation of the seven Rohingya men by stating that India is not “signatory to the accord on refugees” and thus can deport illegal migrants.

However, human rights activists in India point out the government’s irresponsibility, as the refugees will still be in danger if they are sent back. The government’s decision violates the international refugee law of non-refoulement, or the returning of refugees where they would be subject to persecution, which India is subject to even if it isn’t a signatory. The ensuing possible petition by a revolutionary progressive Indian Supreme Court will determine whether or not refugee rights are upheld in an increasingly anti-migrant environment.