The most persecuted people on Earth.

This is how the United Nations described Myanmar’s Muslim minority group, the Rohingya people, in 2013. In the last two months alone, we have heard of the brutalities committed against the Rohingyas by the Burmese forces. This includes the rape of women and girls, homes being torched with families still inside, entire villages being burned to the ground and public executions.

This is genocide, and yet - for a number of reasons - it has not been as widely documented and is not as widely acknowledged.

King’s College London Bangladesh Society invites you to our discussion ‘Rohingya: A Silent Genocide’, on Tuesday 28th February, where our speakers will be providing their insights into the issue, drawing on their personal experiences of working with the Rohingya community. There will also be a Q and A session at the end of the talk, as well as a spoken word piece by KCL student Kamil Mahmood.

Guest speakers:

Olof Blomqvist - Amnesty International

Olof Blomqvist has been the Researcher for Bangladesh and Maldives with Amnesty International since 2016. He previously worked with Amnesty as a research consultant on Afghanistan, and as the Asia Media Manager. He spent 2011-2012 in Afghanistan with Médecins Sans Frontières, and prior to that worked for the International Crisis Group in Brussels, Belgium.

Amal de Chickera - Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion

Amal de Chickera is a co-founder and co-director of the Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion. He is also the Secretary of the Executive Board. He was lead researcher and author of the Equal Rights Trust’s 2010 publication “Unravelling Anomaly: Detention, Discrimination and the Protection Needs of Stateless Persons” and manager of ERT’s ongoing work on the human rights of stateless Rohingya.

Mohammed Saifullah - Rohingya Solidarity Organisation for Rights

Mohammed Saifullah is currently an activist at the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation for Rights (RSOR) as the UK and Europe representative. Born in Arakan, Myanmar, Mohammed had to flee to Bangladesh with his parents when he was only a year old.

Syed Ikhlaas - Lonely Orphans/South Asians Minority Watch

Syed Ikhlaas heads the charity Lonely Orphans which works with undocumented Rohingya refugees and is a member of the up-and-coming organisation South Asians Minority Watch which also focuses its work around the persecution of the Rohingya community. In the past, Syed has been involved with organisations such as BRAC, the World Bank and the Muslim Agency for Development and Environment.

Rahima Begum – Restless Beings

Rahima Begum is the founder and co-director of international human rights movement Restless Beings, a British charity and alternative news agency. The charity’s projects range from working with street children in Bangladesh, women’s rights issues in Kyrgyzstan and Rohingya lives in Burma and across south east Asia.

We look forward to seeing you there!