‘Act against Myanmar perpetrators’
Saifuddin urges UN to set up judicial mechanism for Rohingya atrocities
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia says the UN Security Council (UNSC) should set up an international judicial mechanism to try those responsible for the atrocities in Myanmar.
Foreign Minister Datuk Saifuddin Abdullah said the Myanmar government had the primary responsibility to act against the perpetrators of crimes under international law committed against the Rohingya and other minorities in the country.
He said if Myanmar was unwilling or incapable of ensuring justice in this regard, the UNSC had the responsibility to act.
“So let me say to my friends in Myanmar – live up to the ideals of Gen Aung San. Bring the condemned perpetrators to justice. Let the Rohingya return to peace and a life of dignity,” he said in a statement, referring to the revolutionary nationalist leader.
The Rohingya, who are largely Muslim, are considered by the UN as among the most persecuted minorities in the world.
The minister also said that Malaysia would continue to call for international support for Bangladesh, where almost a million Rohingya have found refuge after fleeing Myanmar’s Rakhine State.
“As we work towards a sustainable solution to the situation, one which will preserve the dignity and lives of the Rohingya, the international community must do all it can to support Bangladesh.
“Malaysia has done so, and will continue to do so,” he added.
The statement followed the report of the UN Independent International fact-finding mission on Myanmar.
Saifuddin said the UN report, drawing on meticulous and objective research, provided indisputable proof of what the Myanmar military and its government has been denying all this time.
“The intentional, concerted, systematic, consistent and planned acts and policies to destroy and remove, in particular ethnic Rohingya, from Myanmar,” he added.
As at July, there are 75,520 Rohingya refugees and asylum seekers registered with the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia.