Aye Mi Aung – A census that will be conducted exclusively for members of the Mon ethnicity in the commercial capital city of Rangoon is currently underway.
An executive committee of 11 members has already formed and operating out the Mon community hall at the southern entrance of the Shwedagon Pagoda, according to Mi Khin Lay Myint, a main organizer and executive committee member.
Mi Khin Lay Myint said the census will seek out and include those that may not publically acknowledge their ethnicity, if it can be proven that one of their parents were Mon.
“First we will collect names at the Mon monasteries in Rangoon. Then, we will continue by going to Mon residence after finding their home address,” said Min Pay Than, who is also on the committee.
According to statistics from the Election Committee, the total Mon population is less than 60,000 in Rangoon, Pegu, and Tenasserim. Mon political parties were not allowed to contest any constituencies in those regions, when Burma went to the polls in 2010.
But the census committee, which is being organized by members of the Mon community, estimates that there are about 200,000 in the Rangoon region, alone.
“Mon residents in Rangoon are forced to be registered as Mon-Burman nationality on their ID cards by the immigration department, even if both of their parents are Mons,” Mi Khin Lay Myint said.
The committee also aims to make corrections about incorrect data previously recorded information about Mon population residing in other regions. This may give Mon political parties more leverage in their respective constituencies during the upcoming elections.
For the Rangoon census budget, 30,000,000 Kyat has been allocated.
