U.S. wary of involvement in Myanmar
Exodus described as ethnic cleansing
WASHINGTON — Don’t expect the United States to step in and resolve what is increasingly being described as an ethnic cleansing campaign against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims.
Not wanting to undermine the Asian country’s democratic leader, the U.S. is cautiously criticizing what looks like a forced exodus of more than a quartermillion Rohingya in the last two weeks as Myanmar’s military responds with hammer force to insurgent attacks.
But neither Trump administration officials nor lawmakers are readying sanctions or levying real pressure on Aung San Suu Kyi’s government. A bill making its way through Congress seeks to enhance U.S.-Myanmar military cooperation.
“Further normalization of the military-to-military relationship with Burma is the last thing we should be doing right now,” said Walter Lohman, Asia program director at the right-leaning Heritage Foundation. “What a terrible signal to be sending.”
Human rights groups are equally appalled. The United Nations says 290,000 Rohingya have fled from Myanmar, the country also known as Burma, into neighboring Bangladesh since Aug. 25. It is the biggest flight of the long-suppressed minority in a generation. The Rohingya are denied citizenship in Myanmar, regarded by majority Buddhists as illegal immigrants although many have lived in the ethnically diverse Southeast Asian nation for generations.
Rohingya refugees packed into camps in Bangladesh are becoming desperate. Fights are erupting over food and water. Vivian Tan, speaking for the U.N. refugee agency, said new arrivals are setting up spontaneous settlements along roadsides or on any available patches of land.
The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, which has previously warned of the risk of genocide in Myanmar, says the widespread destruction of homes and villages suggests “an effort to ethnically cleanse the region of its Rohingya population and to prevent their eventual return.”
Refugees International accuses the military of blocking life-saving aid and of committing rights abuses, “which we believe amount to ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity.” It called for re-imposition of sanctions against military officials, such as visa bans and asset freezes and international accountability for officers implicated in wrongdoing.
Although the U.S. has long led the international effort to address human rights abuses and bring democracy to Myanmar, the prospects of Washington leading a new pressure campaign appear slim.
U.S. officials are wary of undermining the weak civilian government of Ms. Suu Kyi, which took office last year, ending five decades of ruinous army rule. The military remains politically powerful and oversees security operations, but Ms. Suu Kyi is still seen by Washington as key to sustaining civilian rule and eventually addressing the Rohingya’s long-term grievances. Last year she invited an international commission led by former U.N. chief Kofi Annan to help her government address the sectarian tensions.
Another obstacle: Re-imposing even limited sanctions on abusive military officials would probably require new legislation or executive action.
In the past five years as Myanmartook steps toward democracy, President Barack Obama and Congress almost entirely waived or ended the onceformidable array of U.S. restrictions. Myanmar’s transition was a priority for Mr. Obama and a prized foreign policy achievement.
President Donald Trump has shown little interest. Asked if Mr. Trump was concerned about Myanmar’s violence, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president was “aware of the situation.”
U.S. diplomats are more engaged. U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley said in a statement Friday that Washington is “deeply troubled” by reports of attacks against innocent civilians.