‘DO JUSTICE TO NOBEL AWARD’
Be compassionate towards community, Zahid urges Suu Kyi
DEPUTY Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi yesterday reiterated his call to Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi to tackle the Rohingya crisis “based on the values she is known for”.
“She is the one who leads Myanmar and should use her own experiences in the struggle for democracy, liberalisation and humanity (to address the Rohingya issue).
“What she has fought for before should reflect in her own country and this will do justice to the international recognition she has received (as a Nobel Peace prize winner),” he said here yesterday.
Zahid urged the Myanmar government to listen to the voice of Asean and the world on the plight of the Rohingya. He called on Myanmar’s armed forces and political leaders to be compassionate towards the community.
“Listen to our voices and take heed of the ordeal of the Rohingya people. They are not animals, but human beings, too.”
He said the rights of the Rohingya should not be denied just because of religious and racial differences.
Zahid, who is also Superbikers Association of Malaysia (SAM) executive chairman, urged bikers to throw their support behind the government in providing humanitarian aid to the Rohingya.
He started an impromptu donation drive for the Rohingya at the closing ceremony of SAM’s Merdeka Rides 2017 tour.
In less than 10 minutes, more than RM3,500 was collected from about 6,000 bikers.
It was reported that nearly 300,000 Rohingya refugees had fled to Bangladesh since the Aug 25 militant attacks on several police posts and an army base in Myanmar.
Rohingya Muslims face systematic violence, including torture, rape and murder in Myanmar.
Page 1 pic: Rohingya Muslim refugee children run after a vehicle with relief supplies near the Bangladeshi town of Teknaf yesterday.