UN Special Rapporteur in Myanmar to Assess Human Rights Situation January 7

MOSCOW, January 5 (Sputnik) — The UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, is due to monitor the human rights situation in the Rakhine and Northern Shan States during a visit to the country beginning January 7th, a statement said Monday.

“In the Northern Shan State, I will look at the human rights situation of religious and ethnic minorities,” Lee stated on the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) website.

“I will also speak with various parties about the situation of sexual- and gender-based violence in the context of the ongoing conflict in this region,” she added.

Lee also emphasized that she intended to focus on human rights within the camps for internally displaced people (IDPs) in the Rakhine State. This is her second official visit to the country.

The official visit to Myanmar of the UN Special Rapporteur is scheduled for January 7-16. Lee is expected to hold meetings with the Chief Minister of the Rakhine State, community leaders and Myanmar government officials, according to the OHCHR's site.

The news came amid ongoing marginalization and discrimination of the Rohingya Muslims, a religious minority in the area. Over decades, the Rohingya have been denied citizenship, forced to flee from their homes and have been repeatedly attacked by Myanmar's military forces.

In October, the Myanmar government put forward the controversial Rakhine State Action Plan. The plan requires the Rohingya to identify themselves as Bengali, illegal migrants from Bangladesh, in order to obtain citizenship. Those who refuse to be registered are placed in detention camps, according to Human Rights Watch.

On December 29, the UN General Assembly adopted a non-binding resolution urging Myanmar to grant citizenship to the Rohingya Muslims, many of whom live in the country's Rakhine State.