Rohingya school urges Selangor to stop demolition or help relocate

The Selangor government has been urged to provide alternatives as opposed to demolishing a school in Serdang, Selangor set up to provide education for orphans and children of Rohingya refugees.

At a press conference today at the school, Serantau Muslim chairperson Raja Ahmad Iskandar Raja Yaacob, who claimed to speak on behalf of the ethnic Rohingya in Malaysia, expressed disappointment over two notices issued by the state government through the Petaling Land Office which had urged the school - Knowledge Garden Learning Centre - to be vacated or risked being demolished.

“At a time when all Malaysians are objecting the cruel treatment of the Rohingya, the state government has instructed that a school for Rohingya children be demolished,” said Raja Ahmad.

Admitting that the land occupied was indeed owned by the state government as a water retention area, Raja Ahmad however raised the welfare aspect touted by the state government.

“Yes, the children are not people of Selangor, but I hope the state government’s promise of welfare includes all ethnicities and races.

“Don’t talk about welfare issues but practice double standards by providing welfare for certain quarters only,” he said.

'Give alternate location'

Stressing that the school was needed for the children to continue their education, in a plea to the state government, Raja Ahmad said it should provide alternatives for the children.

He also expressed hope that a meeting could be set up with the state government to discuss the issue as soon as possible.

“We will meet the executive councillor for education Nik Nazmi Nik Ahmad to discuss about this.

“And the Selangor assembly is ongoing, so insya Allah we will try to bring the voice of the Rohingya children there.

During the press conference, some 20 Rohingya school children dressed in their school uniform held up placards urging the state government to “save their school” and spelling their aspirations, for example to become doctors and others, on the placards.

Following a notice sent on Dec 29, 2016 and a “final warning” on March 14 this year for the land to be vacated, the authorities, said Serantau Muslim secretary Mohd Hakim Mohd Nor, came to demolish part of the school building last Wednesday.

“They came here during school hours and destroyed the school’s canteen. There’s a possibility that the school itself will be demolished.

“I hope they won’t do that in front of the children, who had faced horrors in their home country,” said Hakim.

Small kids, big dreams

The school, which currently has 37 pupils enrolled in standards one to six, are taught by five teachers subjects ranging from Bahasa Malaysia, English, science, the Myanmar language and Islamic studies.

“Most of these children have big dreams; they want to be doctors and law enforcement officers. But how are they supposed to achieve their dreams if they are prevented from obtaining education?

“Our plea is for the menteri besar to come down here and see for himself,” said Hakim.

The school was founded in 2013 in a driving school compound by Rohingya refugee Mohd Rafiq Khairul Bashar, who also serves as the school’s principal.

Among the NGOs that had contributed to its development and maintenance are the Ethnic Rohingya Committee of Arakan (Erca) and Humaniti Malaysia, of which Land Public Transport Commission (Spad) chairperson Syed Hamid Albar is president.

Mohd Noh Tongah, who had discovered the land two decades ago and had since opened the driving school, said he had known Rafiq since he was a boy.

“When he said 120 children needed a place to study, I provided them the space to build the school here.

Having lived at the area for the past 20 years, Noh questioned the need for the water retention area to be widened.

“They want to widen the water retention area. But in the past 20 years, no flood has ever occurred,” he said.- Mkini