Demos in solidarity with Rohingya planned for today

KUALA LUMPUR: Two demonstrations in solidarity with the persecuted Rohingya in Myanmar’s Rakhine state have been planned for today, said Umno Youth chief Khairy Jamaluddin.

The first protest will take place at 10am, in front of the United Nations Malaysia building in Jalan Dungun, Damansara Heights while a larger one will be held in front of the Myanmar Embassy in Taman U-Thant at 3pm, he said.

“The crowd (at the first venue) is expected to be smaller, as we want to hand over our memorandum and meet with the UN representative,” said Khairy during a press conference at Putra World Trade Centre.

With him yesterday were Youth leaders from Barisan Nasional component parties including MCA, MyPPP along with representatives from non-government organisations.

The leaders also launched the hashtag #tearsforRohingya along with posters depicting their suffering.

Khairy, reading from a prepared statement, called for the United Nations to convene an Emergency Session on the Rohingya crisis, which had worsened in the past two weeks.

“We also support the Prime Minister’s call for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to find the best approach to solving the bloodshed in a holistic manner,” said Khairy, adding that even diplomacy had limits, and that other measures such as sanctions should be considered.

Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation Malaysia ( Merhrom) president Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani was emotional when he spoke about his community’s suffering. Zafar described what was happening in Rakhine as “ethnic cleansing”.