SUARAM

NO REFUGE: BURMESE REFUGEES IN MALAYSIA

2009-10-01T16:23:00.003+08:00

Photography Exhibition

Featuring photos by Halim Berbar, Simon Wheatley, Greg Constantine, Zhuang Wubin & Rahman Roslan

Date: 15 to 25 October 2009
Opening hours: Sun to Thu, 11am to 8pm, Fri & Sat, 11am to 9.30pm
Venue: The Annexe Gallery, Kuala Lumpur

Presented By SUARAM and The Annexe Gallery

Admission Free!

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=146951532022&index=1

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Exhibition Opening!
Thursday, 15 October, 8pm
Officiated by YB Charles Santiago, MP for Klang
Featuring performances TBA

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When one complains about human rights abuses in Malaysia, many Malaysians like to claim that at least we are better off than Burma. That is however not true for Burmese refugees in Malaysia. They may have escaped the horrors of living under the military rule of the junta in Burma, but here in Malaysia they live a life of fear all over again. As Malaysia is not a signatory of the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, Burmese refugees do not have rights in this country. Because of this, they are subject to all sorts of abuses, both by the authorities and fellow Malaysians.

Forced to hide in crammed apartments or makeshift encampments in forests, refugees live in constant fear of being detained by the Malaysian police, immigration officers and RELA volunteers. When caught, they are often abused, extorted for money, or sent to overcrowded and unhygienic detention centres. Sometimes they are even sold to human traffickers as slave labour or prostitutes. As the deplorable situation of Burmese refugees in Malaysia gains international attention, it’s high time for us to examine the human suffering we are causing.

NO REFUGE, presented by SUARAM and The Annexe Gallery, aims to highlight the plight of Burmese refugees through the works of five photographers: Simon Wheatley (UK), Halim Berbar (France), Greg Constantine (USA), Zhuang Wubin (Singapore) and Rahman Roslan (Malaysia).The works are photojournalistic documents of the living conditions of a people who are forced to flee to our hospitable country, but have yet to find refuge or hope here.

Parts of the proceeds of the sale of the photographs will be channeled to SUARAM's campaign to advocate for the rights of Burmese refugees.

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ALARMING FACTS ABOUT BURMESE REFUGEES IN MALAYSIA

Burmese refugees and asylum seekers started running to Malaysia more than 20 years ago and the number has increased since then. Currently, there are more than 60,000 Burmese refugees registered with UNHCR but thousands more are unregistered.

Between 2002 to 2008, more than 4,800 Burmese were whipped for immigration offences.

In 2008, 812 Burmese children were detained in immigration detention centres.

In May 2009, two Burmese asylum seekers died at the Juru detention centre due to Leptospirosis, a disease linked to contamination of food or water. In August/September 2009, another six Burmese died due to suspected Leptospirosis.

In Malaysia, many refugees live in poverty. They have difficulties finding jobs due to their illegal status. Even when they can find jobs, they are usually underpaid and vulnerable to abuse from unscrupulous employers.

Refugee children do not have access to public schools. As such, generations of uneducated refugees are being raised here in Malaysia.

As refugees remain unrecognized by the Malaysian Government, they live in constant fear of raids, arrest and detention. Conditions in detention centres face continuous problems of overcrowding, unhygienic conditions, malnourishment and ill-treatment of detainees. Once detained, they never know when they will be released. Many have died in detention centres.

They cannot go back to Burma for fear of their lives, and yet everyday they live in fear here.

FURTHER READING

http://www.unhcr.org/pages/49c3646c125.html

http://worldfocus.org/blog/2009/07/14/a-burmese-familys-story-of-multiple-arrests-weekly-bribes/6299/

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ABOUT THE PHOTOGRAPHERS

HALIM BERBAR
Halim Berbar is a French photojournalist with 30 years of experience, covering historic events including the fall of the Berlin Wall, the release of Nelson Mandela, and Tiananmen Square. Halim Berbar was born in Paris where he studied photography and journalism before working with leading press and photo agencies in France. He has travelled intensively throughout Asia, Europe, Africa and South America. A prize-winning photographer, he has worked with leading international publishers and established corporate clients. He has been based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for the past 15 years and is now the Managing Director of HBL Network Press and the correspondent for SipaPress.

SIMON WHEATLEY
Though he was born in Singapore, Simon Wheatley spent his teenage and college years in the UK, and graduated from Manchester University in 1993 with a degree in American and Latin American Studies. In recent years Wheatley has focused on marginalized urban areas, with a particular interest in issues of youth and urban regeneration. His most renowned work includes his reportage on street life in Budapest, Amsterdam and the UK. Simon Wheatley became a member of Magnum in 2005, and continues to live and work in the UK.

GREG CONSTANTINE
Award winning photographer Greg Constantine was born in the United States and is currently based in Southeast Asia. In late 2005 Greg moved to Asia to begin work on his most recent project, Nowhere People, which documents the struggles of ethnic minority groups who have had their citizenship denied or stripped from them and are stateless. Work from Nowhere People has been exhibited internationally in India, Cambodia, Bangkok and Tokyo. Greg's photographs have been featured in publications including the New York Times, International Herald Tribune, The Economist, PDN Magazine, Stern, Irrawaddy Magazine, CNN and Al Jazeera. He has also collaborated with organisations including Medecins Sand Frontieres, UNHCR, Refugees International and the World Food Program.

ZHUANG WUBIN
Born in Singapore, Zhuang Wubin uses photography to understand the complexity of the Chinese communities in Southeast Asia. He is also keen to document the region away from stereotypes. His photo-essays have been published on Asian Wall Street Journal, Post (HK), zonezero.com (Mexico/US) and Rhythms Monthly (Taiwan). His work has also been exhibited in Albania, Ireland, Indonesia, India and Bangladesh. Zhuang is also a researcher on contemporary Southeast Asian photography.

RAHMAN ROSLAN
Rahman Roslan Kuala Lumpur-based photojournalist, focusing on news and documentary photography. His work has been published in E9 magazine, New York Times, International Herald Tribune, The National UAE, Sutra Magazine, The New Internationalist, Berita Harian Singapore, Strait Times Singapore, UNESCO Korea, several international magazines and newspapers. He has also freelanced for wire agencies such as AFP and Reuters in Kuala Lumpur and is currently working on the effects of urbanisation on communities in major cities in South East Asia.

World Refugee Day 2009

2009-06-10T18:03:00.003+08:00

World Refugee Day falls on 20th June.

All around the world, groups organise different events to celebrate this day to mark the struggle of refugees.

We're happy to announce that Running has been selected to be screened at two Refugee film festivals that are organised to celebrate World Refugee Day. The first one will be held at Sydney, Australia and the second one at Cairo, Egypt. In addition, Running will also be screened at Yogyakarta, Indonesia.

Sydney, Australia
Date: 14 June 2009
Time: 2.00pm - 5.00pm
Venue: 264, Pitt Street, Sydney
Link: http://www.friendsofstartts.org/
Extra info: There are many events being organised all over Australia in conjunction with World Refugee Day from 14 to 20 June. Visit http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/ for more information.

Cairo, Egypt
Date: 20 June 2009
Time: 5.10pm
Venue: Rawabet Theatre, 3, Hussein Al Me'mar Pasha St., Off Mahmoud Bassiouny St.Cairo
Link: cairorefugeefilmfestival.blogspot.com
Extra info: The Refugee Film Festival in Cairo is extensive in nature and there will be many refugee films screened from 16 to 20 June 2009.

Yogyakarta, Indonesia
Date: 20 June 2009
Time: 10am
Venue: Room LONTAR, Pasca Sarjana building, Campus II, Sanata Dharma University
Link: None
Extra info: Organised by JRS Indonesia (www.jrs.or.id)

So if you are currently in those cities or have family or friends located there, do encourage them to catch the screening of Running.

If you're in Malaysia, it's not too late to buy yourself a copy of the documentary and to organise your own screening!

Peace Vigil In Unity for the liberty of Aung San Suu Kyi

2009-05-25T12:11:00.008+08:00

Do you know who Aung Saw Suu Kyi is?

Aung San Suu Kyi, who won the Myanmar democratically-held elections in 1990, has been under house arrest for almost two decades.

On 18th May 2009, she was charged with breaching the terms of her house arrest by hosting an unauthorized visitor after an American man swam uninvited to her compound and refused to leave. She has borne her trials with dignity. Yet they continue unabated.

The world has honoured her with a Nobel Peace Prize and lobbied tirelessly for her freedom but there is a growing helplessness towards the situation as the Myanmar junta continues to keep her in detention without trial.

Peace Vigil: Free Aung San Suu Kyi!!

SUARAM, Tenaganita, KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall and Youth 4 Change (Y4C) is organising a vigil that is part of an initiative of coordinated vigils organised by groups in Southeast Asia. While we have our vigil for Aung San Suu Kyi in Malaysia, other groups in other countries in Southeast Asia will also be having vigils at the same time!

Please come with your friends to show solidarity for Aung San Suu Kyi - one of the greatest leader of peaceful resistance against oppression of our time - and the oppressed people of Burma.

You can also make your own posters and/or banners that shout of support for Aung San Suu Kyi and the people of Burma.

Details of the vigil
DATE: Sunday, 31 May 2009
TIME: 6.00pm
VENUE: Meet at entrance of KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall, No. 1, Jalan Maharajalela
Dress code: Wear YELLOW and/or RED

Map: http://www.scah.org.my/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=261&forum=16&jump=1
Public transportation: Maharajalela Monorail Station stop

Facebook event link: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=91404626058

DVDs sold at The Ricecooker!

2009-05-12T14:09:00.002+08:00

Dear all,

Have you gotten your copy of the DVD yet?

Good news! Now the DVDs are not just available at the Suaram office.

We've just passed some DVD copies of Running to The Ricecooker shop at The Annexe, Kuala Lumpur. The Ricecooker sells cool indie merchandise as well. You might want to pick up more than just the Running DVD.

So instead of popping by at our office, you can pop by at The Ricecooker anytime. Well, the website says that the shop "is (hopefully) open daily from 11 AM to 11 PM". Ahh well, that definitely beats looking for the Suaram office strictly during office hours. :)

Information on how to get to The Ricecooker.

Burmese refugees featured on the Fairly Current Show

2009-05-05T14:32:00.001+08:00

Dear Fairly Current people,

We have a special episode this week looking into the situation of Burmese refugees in Malayisa. Watch the episode here: http://popteevee.popfolio.net/default.aspx?e=76>. Please forward this episode to your friends and contacts, and embed on your blogs, etc.

The context for this episode: last week, the US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations (led by former Democrat presidential candidate John Kerry) released a report, titled 'Trafficking and Extortion of Burmese Migrants in Malaysia and Southern Thailand'. The report was the result of investigations prompted by allegations of the trafficking of thousands of Burmese refugees who were held in detention centres around Malaysia. The refugees were deported to the Thai-Malaysian border, where they were extorted for up to RM2,000 each in return for safe journey back to Malaysia.

This week, we speak with Michael (not his real name), a Burmese human rights and workers' rights activist. He shares with us why and how the Burmese come to Malaysia, and reveals details of the trafficking process. We have also embedded on the PopTeeVee site a special Al Jazeera report by Zan Azlee on refugee children and their rights to education in Malaysia.

Best wishes,
Mark Teh
The Fairly Current Show
PopTV

RUNNING caught in Penang

2009-04-22T14:31:00.004+08:00

We went to the beautiful island of Penang to show them what it's like to live a life of perpetual running.

The beautiful islanders showed up at The Actor's Studio Greenhall and gave us a near full house of under 80 people. On top of that, they showered us with difficult questions during the discussion. We love difficult questions - it just means that brain juices are not going to waste!

After a good intense discussion, some of us went to Kapitan's for the lovely tandoori and briyani. Mmm...

RUNNING to Penang!

2009-04-06T16:35:00.005+08:00

Photo credits: dennisyu

Following the success of the Premiere Screening we had in KL, we're heading up north to Penang.

Date: 18 April 2009 (Saturday)
Time: 8.00pm
Venue: The Actors’ Studio Green Hall, Lebuh Light, Penang

Admission is FREE!
DVD copies of the documentary will be sold at the event.

Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=63244557964&ref=nf#/event.php?eid=63244557964

Please spread the word and bring your friends to the screening!

RUNNING in Melbourne!

2009-04-01T11:17:00.007+08:00

What possibly was the first international screening of Running occurred as a low key and delicious affair of a dinner gathering on the evening of March 30 at Nicol's house in Melbourne. With a few friends and some salads thrown in, they had themselves a homemade discussion.

If you have organized a screening at home, at your university or where ever you are, we invite you to write us a note and send us some photos so we can upload them here too.

Email us at suaram@suaram.net.

DVDs sold on Kinibooks!

2009-03-25T10:46:00.002+08:00

For those of you who live outside of the Klang Valley or Malaysia but want to get your hands on a copy of the DVD, you can purchase it online through kinibooks.com.

Link: http://www.kinibooks.com/product_info.php?products_id=991

Premiere Screening on 21st March

2009-03-23T15:13:00.006+08:00

We had our Premiere Screening last Saturday. Nearly 150 people turned up for the screening and there were people sitting on the floor or standing just to watch the documentary.

Suaram would like to thank everyone who came for the screening and everyone who bought a copy of the DVD.

If you bought one, put the DVD to good use!
- Have your own screening at home with popcorn, friends and family
- Lend your copy to someone else who may not know about refugees
- Blog about the dcoumentary - how did it make you feel? What did you think about it?

Visit this blog or http://www.suaram.net/ for more updates on future screenings :)

DVDs!

2009-03-19T11:56:00.005+08:00

We've been getting a lot of inquiries about copies of the documentary.

DVD copies of Running/Berlari will be sold during the screening this Saturday, 21 March for only RM10.

We would like to encourage people to purchase DVD copies to give to friends/family who cannot make it for the screening or to hold their own private screenings.

If you really need to get your hands on a copy soon, contact Suaram at the following:
Email: suaram@suaram.net
Phone: 03-77843525

We will also set up a way for you to purchase it online soon. Watch this space for more updates on sale of DVD and screenings in other locations.

Meanwhile, see you this Saturday, 2.30pm at The Annexe!

Premiere Screening!

2009-03-10T14:57:00.004+08:00

Come to the premiere screening of Running!!

Spread the word and bring your friends!

Date: 21 March 2009
Time: 2.30pm
Venue: The Annexe Gallery, Central Market

Map: http://www.annexegallery.com/images/stories/annexe_map.jpg
Facebook event: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=69114149578

Trailer:

Enquiries:
suaram@suaram.net
03-77843525

Running

2009-02-08T22:12:00.008+08:00

Imagine leaving all that you have behind to escape to a foreign land. Imagine running away because you fear for your life and the life of your loved ones. Imagine running to escape from persecution, only to arrive at another form of incarceration. Imagine running towards hope and freedom, only to find that hope is all there is.

Running follows the plight of different individuals who ran away from their homes in Burma in the hopes of freedom and a better life. They are each a refugee, asylum seeker and/or stateless person. As they tell their stories, they delve into their difficult lives in Malaysia in search of stability and the hope of a better future that is denied to them in their home country. Their story represents the stories of many other refugees who are currently in Malaysia.

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Bayangkan meninggalkan semua kepunyaan anda untuk melarikan diri ke suatu negara asing. Bayangkan melarikan diri kerana berasa takut untuk nyawa anda dan nyawa orang kesayanganmu. Bayangkan anda melarikan diri untuk melepaskan diri daripada penindasan, hanya untuk sampai ke dalam sejenis pemenjaraan yang lain. Bayangkan berlari ke arah harapan dan kebebasan, hanya untuk mendapat tahu bahawa harapan sajalah yang wujud.

Berlari mengikut kesusahan beberapa individu yang melarikan diri daripada Burma, dalam harapan untuk kebebasan dan kehidupan yang lebih baik. Mereka adalah orang pelarian, pencari suaka dan/atau orang yang tidak berkerakyatan. Mereka menceritakan kehidupan susah mereka di Malaysia dalam pencarian kestabilan dan harapan untuk masa depan yang lebih baik. Ini telah dinafikan kepada mereka dalam negara asal mereka. Cerita mereka mewakili cerita-cerita orang pelarian lain yang kini berada di Malaysia.