A/HRC/39/CRP.2 use “open toilets”.2532 The effect of the removal of fences was precisely to open up Rohingya households to greater surveillance and to facilitate the movement of security forces into and across Rohingya property. 1128. On 5 March 2017, the Maungdaw District Fisheries Department issued a letter regarding a decision of the District Administration Office in Maungdaw that only NVC holders could go fishing, and fishermen would be examined at security checkpoints. 2533 Several interviewees reported that they were no longer allowed to fish after this. 2534 One villager from Ah Lel Than Kyaw village tract, Maungdaw Township, explained: The Tatmadaw closed the dock for boats on the shore in our village. They also removed the engines and fans from all our fishing boats. The soldiers said that they were doing this as per government order. Then they went to each village and said that people could only use their boats and recover the engines and fans if they accepted the NVC.2535 1129. Similar restrictions were reportedly applied to people collecting firewood, forest products and others who needed to travel to make a living.2536 Families and communities were denied their livelihoods and food security was affected. 1130. Pressure to accept the NVC increased in the months leading up to August 2017. On 8 February 2017, the Government appointed a Steering Committee to expedite the process. 2537 Despite this, there was little information about the process and many interviewees stated that they refused to accept the cards, which they viewed as likely to entrench their status as “Bengali immigrants”, while providing no guarantee for citizenship. 2538 Some Rohingya believed that accepting the NVC would prevent them from retaining title to property and make them lose their land. 2539 Frequent meetings with Rohingya villagers were convened by the authorities, often organized by the ethnic Rakhine village administrators, together with the immigration authorities (LaWaKa), and often attended by BGP, police and soldiers. 2540 While the purpose of these meetings appears to have been to persuade the Rohingya to accept the cards, they also instilled fear. Rohingya attending these meetings were subjected to threats and intimidation, including warnings that failure to accept would result in greater restrictions on their freedom of movement and livelihoods.2541 Others were told to accept the NVC or they would be forced to leave the country. 2542 1131. A series of more targeted and aggressive meetings were held with Rohingya elders in mid-August 2017, convened by the BGP and Tatmadaw soldiers, often including members of the recently deployed 33rd and 99th Light Infantry Divisions, sometimes together with ethnic Rakhine village administrators.2543 They took place in a number of locations, including Chut Pyin and Koe Tan Kauk in Rathedaung Township, and Min Gyi and Kyauk Pan Du in Maungdaw Township. Some of the most brutal “clearance operations” subsequently took 2532 2533 2534 2535 2536 2537 2538 2539 2540 2541 2542 2543 266 QI-069. Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Irrigation District Fisheries Department Maungdaw District, Maungdaw Letter No. Fisheries-District/Maungdaw-13/ 2017(1829/1831); K-076.40. LI-045, LI-053, LI-077, LI-103, QI-106, YI-005, YI-012. RI-006. K-076.42. Formation of the Steering Committee for issuance of National Verification Card (NVC) in Rakhine State for those who will undergo verification for citizenship, Notification No.21/2017 (8 February 2017). CI-178, CI-194, CI-196, CI-198, LI-066, RI-008. WI-040, V-073, V-151. BI-017, CI-178, CI-179, CI-181, CI-182, CI-194, CI-195, LI-057, LI-066, QI-058, QI-060, QI-066, QI-070, QI-106, RI-010, RI-017, WI-016, WI-042, YI-004, ZI-006, V-073, V-222. CI-182, LI-045, LI-053, LI-066, LI-077, LI-103, QI-106, WI-041, YI-004, YI-005, YI-012, V-073. CI-182, CI-179, CI-181, CI-183, CI-192. CI-197, CI-198, ZI-001.