Suu Kyi and Myanmar face chorus of anger
YANGON: Nobel peace laureate Malala Yousafzai and Muslim countries in Asia led a growing chorus of criticism yesterday aimed at Myanmar and its civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi over the plight of its Rohingya Muslim minority.
Nearly 90,000 Rohingyas have flooded into Bangladesh in the past 10 days following an uptick in fighting between militants and Myanmar’s military in Rakhine state.
The recent violence, which kicked off last October when a small Rohingya militant group ambushed border posts, is the worst Rakhine has witnessed in years with the UN saying Myanmar’s army may have committed ethnic cleansing in its response.
De facto leader Suu Kyi, a former political prisoner of Myanmar’s junta, has come under increasing fire over her perceived unwillingness to speak out against the treatment of the Rohingyas or chastise the military.
She has made no public comment since the latest fighting broke out.
“Every time I see the news, my heart breaks at the suffering of the Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar,” Pakistani activist Yousafzai, who famously survived being shot in the head by the Taliban, said in a statement on Twitter.
“Over the last several years, I have repeatedly condemned this tragic and shameful treatment. I am still waiting for my fellow Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi to do the same,” she added.
Indonesia’s foreign minister Retno Marsudi met Suu Kyi as well as Myanmar’s army chief General Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyidaw yesterday in a bid to pressure the government to do more to alleviate the crisis.
Dozens demonstrated in front of Myanmar’s embassy in Jakarta yesterday, where armed police were deployed and the mission cordoned off behind barbed wire.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry released a statement saying it is “deeply concerned over reports of growing number of deaths and forced displacement of Rohingya Muslims” and urged Myanmar to investigate reports of atrocities against the community.
Iranian foreign minister Javad Zarif added in a recent tweet: “Global silence on continuing violence against #Rohingya Muslims. Int’l action crucial to prevent further ethnic cleansing – UN must rally.” – AFP