Editorial Desk :
THE Organization of Islamic Cooperation has scheduled an emergency meeting with Foreign Ministers following the disclosure Sunday of a video posted online of Myanmar police officers beating Rohingya Muslim villagers. Myanmar news outlets broadcast the video and it went viral on social media. It depicted several police officers beating and kicking two villagers who were among dozens of Rohingya Muslims being questioned during a military sweep of the region, as per a report of an international daily.
The video is rare documentation of abuses by the Myanmar government against Rohingya Muslims in a region virtually closed to non-governmental organizations and aid workers. Meanwhile a spokeswoman for the Jeddah-based OIC, mentioned that the OIC has been
“following up closely the situation in Myanmar with the Rohingya villagers for a few months now, and all the attacks, abuses, beatings and burning of their villages.” The spokeswoman further mentioned that a Foreign Minister level meeting would be held in January to discuss the problem of the Rohingyas and look for a solution.
The beatings occurred during a crackdown by Myanmar army on Nov. 5 that sent Rohingya Muslims, numbering about 34,000, fleeing into Bangladesh, according to the United Nations. The operations have led to allegations of abuses, summary executions and rape of villagers. The government of Aung San Suu Kyi has denied the allegations.
However, Suu Kyi’s office confirmed the authenticity of the footage and noted that it was recorded by a police officer during a clearance operation in northern Rakhine State. The violence in Rakhine State has renewed international criticism that Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi has done too little to help members of the Muslim minority, who are denied citizenship in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar.
Bangladesh will participate in the meeting and will place its position before the extraordinary meeting on overall situation apart from the latest development on Rohingya issue. However this is nothing new. OIC has held meetings before, notably in 2013, to discuss ways to end the Rohingya issue. But these have led to nothing more than vague declarations of support for the Rohingya and a condemnation of the heinous acts by the Myanmar authorities.
Mere meetings and strong words will not achieve anything. Other countries, mainly Western one, think that Muslim countries are leaderless and unable for taking any bold role. The OIC has to prove that the world is wrong. The Muslims are not easy subject of killing or easy abuse.
The OIC must be more proactive in looking for a solution for Myanmar instead of holding further meetings which end in vague resolutions of support which have no basis in reality. It can, through Malaysia and China, pressure Myanmar to recognize the Rohingyas as citizens and as a distinct ethnic group, something which was recognized by the first Burmese President. Under the First Schedule to the Burma independence Act 1947, the Rohingya and all other Muslims who were British subjects — who were born in Burma or whose father or paternal grandfather was born in Burma — were considered citizens of the Union of Burma. Under Annex A of the Aung San-Attlee Agreement, 27 January, 1947, they were citizens of the Union of Burma.
In October 2012, the ongoing conflicts in Myanmar included the Kachin conflict, between the Christian Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the government; a series of genocidal pogroms directed against the Rohingya Muslims that were participated by Rakhine Buddhists, and aided by the government and non-government groups in Rakhine State, including the Buddhist clergy; and a conflict between the Shan, Lahu, and Karen minority groups, and the government in the eastern half of the country. Armed conflict between ethnic Chinese rebels and the Myanmar Armed Forces have resulted in the Kokang offensive in February 2015. The conflict had forced 40,000 to 50,000 civilians to flee their homes and seek shelter on the Chinese side of the border. So we can see that Myanmar is having problems with minorities of all sorts. Myanmar has been isolated from outside for long time and it is no surprise that many in Myanmar cannot accept resorting to brutalities against the Rohingyas and other minorities. It will not help peace in Myanmar for safe living or steady development. The country has resources for all to live happily. It is madness for Myanmar to be brutal against the ethnic Rohingyas for being Muslims. They have been living together peacefully for ages.
A OIC team should visit Myanmar to ensure peaceful coexistence. The proposed Foreign Minister level meeting should be broad-based aiming to ensure effective reconciliation and peace.
THE Organization of Islamic Cooperation has scheduled an emergency meeting with Foreign Ministers following the disclosure Sunday of a video posted online of Myanmar police officers beating Rohingya Muslim villagers. Myanmar news outlets broadcast the video and it went viral on social media. It depicted several police officers beating and kicking two villagers who were among dozens of Rohingya Muslims being questioned during a military sweep of the region, as per a report of an international daily.
The video is rare documentation of abuses by the Myanmar government against Rohingya Muslims in a region virtually closed to non-governmental organizations and aid workers. Meanwhile a spokeswoman for the Jeddah-based OIC, mentioned that the OIC has been
“following up closely the situation in Myanmar with the Rohingya villagers for a few months now, and all the attacks, abuses, beatings and burning of their villages.” The spokeswoman further mentioned that a Foreign Minister level meeting would be held in January to discuss the problem of the Rohingyas and look for a solution.
The beatings occurred during a crackdown by Myanmar army on Nov. 5 that sent Rohingya Muslims, numbering about 34,000, fleeing into Bangladesh, according to the United Nations. The operations have led to allegations of abuses, summary executions and rape of villagers. The government of Aung San Suu Kyi has denied the allegations.
However, Suu Kyi’s office confirmed the authenticity of the footage and noted that it was recorded by a police officer during a clearance operation in northern Rakhine State. The violence in Rakhine State has renewed international criticism that Nobel Peace Prize winner Suu Kyi has done too little to help members of the Muslim minority, who are denied citizenship in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar.
Bangladesh will participate in the meeting and will place its position before the extraordinary meeting on overall situation apart from the latest development on Rohingya issue. However this is nothing new. OIC has held meetings before, notably in 2013, to discuss ways to end the Rohingya issue. But these have led to nothing more than vague declarations of support for the Rohingya and a condemnation of the heinous acts by the Myanmar authorities.
Mere meetings and strong words will not achieve anything. Other countries, mainly Western one, think that Muslim countries are leaderless and unable for taking any bold role. The OIC has to prove that the world is wrong. The Muslims are not easy subject of killing or easy abuse.
The OIC must be more proactive in looking for a solution for Myanmar instead of holding further meetings which end in vague resolutions of support which have no basis in reality. It can, through Malaysia and China, pressure Myanmar to recognize the Rohingyas as citizens and as a distinct ethnic group, something which was recognized by the first Burmese President. Under the First Schedule to the Burma independence Act 1947, the Rohingya and all other Muslims who were British subjects — who were born in Burma or whose father or paternal grandfather was born in Burma — were considered citizens of the Union of Burma. Under Annex A of the Aung San-Attlee Agreement, 27 January, 1947, they were citizens of the Union of Burma.
In October 2012, the ongoing conflicts in Myanmar included the Kachin conflict, between the Christian Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the government; a series of genocidal pogroms directed against the Rohingya Muslims that were participated by Rakhine Buddhists, and aided by the government and non-government groups in Rakhine State, including the Buddhist clergy; and a conflict between the Shan, Lahu, and Karen minority groups, and the government in the eastern half of the country. Armed conflict between ethnic Chinese rebels and the Myanmar Armed Forces have resulted in the Kokang offensive in February 2015. The conflict had forced 40,000 to 50,000 civilians to flee their homes and seek shelter on the Chinese side of the border. So we can see that Myanmar is having problems with minorities of all sorts. Myanmar has been isolated from outside for long time and it is no surprise that many in Myanmar cannot accept resorting to brutalities against the Rohingyas and other minorities. It will not help peace in Myanmar for safe living or steady development. The country has resources for all to live happily. It is madness for Myanmar to be brutal against the ethnic Rohingyas for being Muslims. They have been living together peacefully for ages.
A OIC team should visit Myanmar to ensure peaceful coexistence. The proposed Foreign Minister level meeting should be broad-based aiming to ensure effective reconciliation and peace.
