STOP THE GENOCIDE OF THE ROHINGYAS IN MYANMAR

PRESS RELEASE BY MUSLIM PROFESSIONALS FORUM (MPF)

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

STOP THE GENOCIDE OF THE ROHINGYAS IN MYANMAR

 

1 September 2017 / Eidul Adha 1438

 

The current genocide of the Rohingyas by Myanmarese forces has captured world attention. Civil societies around the world are outraged by the daily images of the brutal atrocities flooding mainstream and other media.

In a chilling UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) report dated 3 February 2017, mass gang rape, slaughtering of babies and children, torture and inhuman treatment were detailed.

The past week has witnessed yet another wave of military crackdown on the Rohingyas in Myanmar’s Rakhine state killing an estimated 3 thousand civilians. 10 thousand homes and shops were razed to the ground, creating thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDP). Forced to flee their homes for the nearest country, scores are now trapped between two countries and wanted by neither.

The devastating cruelty described by the UN as “very likely commission of crimes against humanity”” follows a long standing and systematic persecution of Rohingyas. Decades of abuses, violations, discriminatory policies, exclusion and marginalization has rendered them the most persecuted people in the world.

The deafening silence of Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi and her government’s repeated refusal to allow the OHCHR unrestricted access to the worst affected areas of Rakhine bring to question her commitment towards human rights.

The Muslim Professionals Forum urges the Malaysian government;

  1. to urgently call upon the ASEAN leaders to step up their efforts to ensure the government of Myanmar immediately stops the massacre and the grave human rights violations against the Rohingyas and safeguard their safety and access to justice and reparations.
  2. and her ASEAN neighbours to lead the call in the UN to pressure the government of Myanmar to fully comply with the recommendations of Kofi Annan’s Commission or face economic sanctions, regional and international isolation.
  3. and the ASEAN community to stop the cycle of violence against the Rohingyas and facilitate a sustainable, just and peaceful resolution to the humanitarian crisis.
  4. in the interim to organize relief missions into the affected Rakhine state to provide urgent medical and humanitarian aid to the victims.
  5. and all Malaysians to extend their solidarity and assistance to the Rohingya refugees either directly or indirectly through the various NGOs who have been supporting them regularly over the years.

Board of Directors

Muslim Professionals Forum

musamn@gmail.com