Asean stands ready to help

AUnited Nations official back in 2009 called the Rohingya “the most friendless people in the world”. That still appears to be true, but Myanmar is also isolating itself. This was stated emphatically during the weekend by a high-profile UN official. The world body’s human rights envoy to Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, wound up her fifth visit, which lasted 12 days.

Her tone was straightforward and not all that diplomatic. The government of the host country appeared set to deliberately harm its own credibility, the envoy said. Instead of engaging critics, it insists on being defensive. Faced with believable, continuing allegations of abuse and atrocities in western Rakhine state, de facto Myanmar leader and Foreign Minister Aung San Suu Kyi is losing credibility by attempting to defend them.

Ms Lee is spot on. Faced with direct evidence of massive human rights violations against the Rohingya in Rakhine, Ms Suu Kyi’s government attacks the critics. On three occasions, she has appeared to embrace outside help and advice, only to retreat almost at once. She herself called all other Asean foreign ministers to a “retreat”, where she promised to allow Asean-provided aid. She promised to let journalists into the cordoned province to see goings-on first hand. She sent an envoy to Dhaka to discuss possible repatriation of some refugees.

The government late last month took a number of Myanmar journalists to the area where the army and paramilitary police have attacked Rohingya villages. During a three-day, heavily monitored tour, a Rohingya man, Dues Mahmud, approached them. He told the journalists that stories of abuse, theft and torture were untrue. The next day his headless body was found.

No one even knows how many Rohingya refugees have fled. Many still are on the move. Bangladesh authorities report that more than 65,000 have crossed the border into Bengali territory.

At least three large refugee camps are operating, but to call them “camps” is somewhat exaggerated. They are areas where tens of thousands of Rohingya have stopped together, and are living mostly off the local economy — adding to the security, social and economic problems for the local people in an already poverty stricken area.

Ms Suu Kyi has proved unable to get in front of the continuous allegations of brutality and cruelty by the security forces. Instead, the foreign minister has stayed mostly quiet. In visits last month to Indonesia and Singapore, she said nothing in public about the human rights problems.

Last week, she lashed out against Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak for taking the whole Rohingya issue to the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. Mr Najib urged the OIC, which groups 57 Muslim nations, to act on the unfolding “humanitarian tragedy”. Ms Suu Kyi’s ministry called it “regrettable”.

Notwithstanding its public confrontation with Malaysia, Myanmar has finally allowed an “aid flotilla” from Malaysia to bring food and supplies to Rakhine state. Its previous spat over the issue with Malaysia resulted in a delay of aid delivery which was set for Jan 10. This time, the Myanmar government set conditions that the flotilla of ships must first be docked at Yangon and that aid will be further distributed by Myanmar authorities to both Buddhist and Muslim communities in the restive state.

Myanmar stressed the importance of working “through diplomatic channels” when it considered granting permission for aid access. If that is the case, the country should work with its Southeast Asian neighbours through such channels and take advantage of its Asean membership to solve the Rohingya crisis.

The crisis it has created has caused concern throughout the region. Ms Suu Kyi should take the advice of the UN’s Ms Lee to step up and take control of her country’s problems. The critical Rohingya problem won’t solve itself, and Asean is the place to bring it.