A/HRC/39/CRP.2 to northern Rakhine to the Red Cross Movement1227 in September 2017, and two months later to WFP. Beyond these two organizations, the Government reportedly selected a few other international organizations to whom it granted limited access, but none of them had experience working in northern Rakhine before August 2017.1228 One humanitarian actor told the Mission: Some other organizations have permission to operate in northern Rakhine, but are not provided with travel authorisations. This appears to be a deliberate attempt by the authorities to appear to be giving access, but in reality denying it.1229 576. As of August 2018, the majority of humanitarian organizations that were active in northern Rakhine State before August 2017 have not been allowed to resume their field activities in the area.1230 Even when granted access, humanitarian organizations are constrained in their work by restrictive procedures, including the short validity of their travel authorisations. There has been no comprehensive assessment of humanitarian needs in northern Rakhine State. Yet, it is beyond question that the current partial access is wholly inadequate to meet all the needs. 577. In central Rakhine, humanitarian agencies need prior authorisation to visit the camps and other displacement sites. They face questions about the purpose of their visit and are required to submit detailed movement plans. Vehicles entering Sittwe rural camps are stopped at the entry of the camps and asked to provide the necessary authorisations. Access for humanitarian agencies may be restricted without notice. 578. In February 2018, the Emergency Coordination Committee1231 reportedly gave the following stringent instructions to international actors: 1232 • Programmatic needs assessments: A requirement to obtain permission from the Ethics Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – which can take up to six months – to carry out assessments, particularly those used in new areas or for publication. In the case of surveys or reviews, the applicable questionnaires must be shared with the relevant line Ministry in advance. • Memorandums of understanding (MoU): A requirement to include all activities to be undertaken by the organization in the MoU, including details at the village level. Organizations may be required to prove that they deliver equal assistance to ethnic Rakhine and Muslims, regardless of the actual needs of each community. If this is not met, the organization risks expulsion. • Travel authorisations: A requirement to submit requests two weeks in advance for any given two-week period. 579. These instructions are of serious concern. Those related to needs assessment and travel authorisations severely curtail the ability of international organizations to undertake their work effectively and may lead to self-censorship on assessments to be shared publicly. Any requirement that humanitarian assistance be delivered on the basis of ethnicity or other factors apart from humanitarian need could contravene the humanitarian principle of impartiality. 1227 1228 1229 1230 1231 1232 https://www.facebook.com/InfomationCommittee/posts/state-counsellor-office-informationcommittees-statement-regarding-extremist-ter/786270838212691/. The ICRC, IFRC and Myanmar Red Cross work together on their response in northern Rakhine and collectively refer to themselves as the “Red Cross Movement”. QM-005. Ibid. K-069.7. The Emergency Coordination Committee is a body comprised of government representatives, ethnic Rakhine elders, civil society and humanitarian organizations. It vets and monitors the activities of international organizations. K-069.11; V-169, V-345. K-113.4. 137