On Tuesday the Ayerawaddy court sentenced 51 Rohingyas to two years in prison under section 6 (3) of the Residents Registration Act, who were detained on 21 August from Wakema township while they were leaving Buthidaung and Maungdaw township to reach Malaysia, in search of better opportunities due to economic hardship.
The group was made up of 30 men including 2 children and 26 women.
The children were sent to a youth detention center in Twantay township, Yangon region. The adults were sent to Myaungmya Prison in Ayeyarwady region, according to people who volunteered to assist the Rohingya while they were in custody.
Sources close to the Court said “The 56 were the first group of Rohingya in Ayeyarwady region to be prosecuted under the 1949 Union of Myanmar Residents Registration Act. Previous groups were prosecuted only under immigration law.”
Ayeyarwady region lies directly south of Rakhine State and many Rohingya enter the region as they try to seek refuge there or reach Malaysia.
Also on Tuesday, 19 Rohingya residents from Minbya, Kyauktaw, Mrauk-U and Buthidaung townships in Rakhine state were arrested in Ayeyarwady region’s Mindon township.
