Rohingya issue, PM tells Myanmar

> Najib calls for holistic approach to address violence in Rakhine State

PETALING JAYA: The government has urged Myanmar to find a holistic approach to address the ongoing turmoil in Rakhine State, that has claimed the lives of thousands of Rohingyas and displaced many others.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak, in echoing the call made by United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, also called for calm and restraint in the troubled state.

“The dire situation facing our Rohingya brothers and sisters must be alleviated for the good of Myanmar and the region,” he said in a series of tweets yesterday.

Guterres warned of a humanitarian catastrophe after the recent killing of about 400 people there, the worst outbreak of violence since the crisis erupted.

Malaysia had always taken a strong stand against the purported oppression by Myanmar authorities against the Rohingya minority, with Najib leading a protest last year against the violence.

He criticised the Myanmar government and its Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi over the harsh treatment of the Rohingya community during the protest rally, that was also attended by a large numbers of PAS supporters.

“We are a community of nations. We need to protect the Rohingya people, not because they are of the same religion as us, but because they are humans. Their lives matter,” he said during the event.

On Aug 30, about 1,200 protesters, including Rohingyas, gathered at several locations in Kuala Lumpur to protest the atrocities in Rakhine State.

There are about 40,000 displaced Rohingyas living in Malaysia.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Human Rights Commission (Suhakam) chairman Tan Sri Razali Ismail said the Rohingya here must abide by the laws of this country.

“The instincts of compassion and hospitality of Malaysia to provide refuge to Rohingya refugees who have suffered violence, hardship, threats to life and displacement must also mean that refugees in Malaysia respect and adhere to the laws of Malaysia,” Razali said in a statement yesterday in response to the demonstration on Aug 30.

“Suhakam clarifies that every human being, wherever they are, has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly on the basis of Article 20 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

“This right is constitutionally guaranteed for Malaysians in Article 10 of the Federal Constitution. However, violent protesters lose their protection under the right to peaceful assembly, and the police shall act against those breaking the law.”

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