Hundreds of people wait to be registered
as immigration officials and security forces stand by
Those born before 1982 are being checked
to see if they are eligible for Burmese citizenship
In a camp of 3000 people, 700 are being registered in this pilot programme
But in order for a person to gain citizenship
they must be able to prove that they or their parents lived in the country
before independence in 1948
If they have the documents to prove this, they're in with a chance of becoming a naturalized citizen
Though most Rohingya people don't have the necessary papers
Human rights groups have slammed the 1982 law,
for effectively denying the Rohingyas citizenship and rendering them stateless
They're not forcing us - they said it's okay if we don't want to take part
and we can register at our own will
In Maybaung, there are 3 choices of ethnic identification:
Kahman, Bengali, or nothing at all
- making the process awkward for those who identify as Rohingya
What ethincity do most people here identify themselves as?
Mostly Bengali
Over 400 people have been registered so far
Officials here will collect the personal data and send it to Naypyidaw
where a central board will decide who will eligible for citizenship
Critics of the law say the process is baised
and set up to ensure Rohingya won't get citizenship
But the camp residents que up anyway
More out of desperation, than any real hope