Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  We understand that any international help that can be provided has to be with the acceptance and support of the Myanmar government as well. It has to be a collaborative effort, in my opinion. Do you think that government is open and ready to receive help, not only with the human rights aspect but also as a new government, in establishing legislative procedures and receiving mentorship on forming a good democratic government?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Canada's foreign minister has announced funding that will provided to enhance democratic institutions in the Government of Myanmar. Should we be mentoring? In your opinion where is our most effective place to maximize our efforts and the resources that we can bring to it acceptably?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  First, to really stress the importance of the issue, what would happen if nobody really did anything internationally or nationally within Myanmar? With respect to the Rohingya Muslims, what would happen if nothing were done?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Appointing ethnic ministers is not so important, in my view. The most important thing is equal treatment for all Myanmar people with one standard. That is more important.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  In fact, there are some camp leaders appointed by the Myanmar government, but they don't have any power. The situation in all the camps is very bad. A huge number of families share a very small space. They don't have proper water, they don't receive proper food, most of the children are suffering from malnutrition, and most of the elders are suffering from chronic diseases.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  These local administrators are not elected personnel; they are appointed directly by the Minister of Home Affairs, so they are faithful in principle to the home ministry. At the grassroots level all of Myanmar, including the Rohingya, is still facing a military-like administration. Because of the constitution, the home minister, the defence minister, and the border affairs minister are not allowed to be appointed by the president but are nominated by the military chief.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Do you think that Canada can offer mentorship that would allow the government to learn how Canada has embraced democracy and how we celebrate it? Do you think that Myanmar would be able to learn from those lessons of Canadian government in an open and inclusive way?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  In fact, the Rohingya people are an indigenous group in Myanmar, so without the amendment of the citizenship law.... With the existing law, if the government is politically willing, they can grant all Rohingya full-fledged citizenship, but the biggest obstacle is that the government—the previous government as well as the current NLD government—has not shown any political willingness to solve this problem.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  When I submitted the same paperwork to the election commission and officials in Rakhine State as well as the union election commission, they dismissed and denied my paperwork by claiming falsely that my parents were not citizens when I was born. This is ridiculous, because after independence, all Myanmar citizens, including my father, even all the speakers of parliament, even the former General Ne Win, all held the same card. But after the adoption of the 1982 citizenship law, they just blindly accused the Rohingya of not being citizens, and they don't recognize the card that the previous government issued.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I would like to request that Canadian businessmen, through the Canadian Parliament and government, not do any business with the Myanmar government. If they are willing, they need to talk to the authorities, especially State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, to solve the Rohingya issue and grant citizenship to the Rohingya so that they can enjoy equal rights together with other people.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  It is our great pleasure to have you as part of our committee today, and we're looking forward to hearing from you as a former member of the lower house, a former member of parliament in Myanmar in 2010. Then, obviously, you're going to share with us your story about what's happened since then and some of the challenges you've faced, both for yourself and also for the Rohingya people in the area.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  My name is U Shwe Maung, also known as Abdul Razak. I was a member of parliament in Myanmar from 2010 to 2015, but I was barred from the re-election in 2015. Thank you.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  As you know, at one point Canada had very extensive sanctions on Myanmar, and most of those were lifted in 2012 after the changes brought in by the Thein Sein government. We still have sanctions on specific individuals and specific entities that were associated with the military regime and particularly with the crackdown on civil disturbances.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  We talked about the Rohingya here and how, because of their Islamic faith, many are confined to displacement camps with no possibility of movement or ability to move freely. A few days ago in Myanmar, state councillor Aung San Suu Kyi pledged to amend the constitution as she reached out to minority ethnic groups. Do you think that her recent pledge for democracy will have a significant impact on the plight of the Rohingya in the foreseeable future?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  The UN special rapporteur for human rights in Burma visited the country in July 2014 and reported that “despite some progress, the human rights landscape remained serious, particularly in regards to the Rohingya.” The then president of Myanmar did not follow up on his pledge to the U.S. president, Barack Obama, to permit the formal establishment of an office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.