STATE Counsellor of Myanmar Aung San Suu Kyi finally broke her silence on the Rohingya refugee crisis Tuesday insisting that her country was not “afraid of international scrutiny.” But her speech in Naypyidaw drew widespread criticism, such as; she did not denounce atrocities against Rohingyas and claimed the government needed more time to investigate the exodus of the minority group. Suu Kyi condemned human rights violations in Rakhine State and said the perpetrators would be brought to book, but she did not address UN accusations of a campaign of ethnic cleansing by the military.
The speech was delivered entirely in English and aimed directly at an international audience as she had cancelled a planned appearance at the UN General Assembly. She claimed Myanmar is ready to repatriate refugees in accordance with a “verification” process agreed with Bangladesh in the early 1990s. It was not immediately clear how many would qualify to return as most of them were denied of their legal citizenship even though they were born in Myanmar. Though Suu Kyi promised to resettle some refugees, but offered no solutions to halt the army-led campaign against Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine, where soldiers are accused of burning down villages and shooting fleeing civilians.
She did not use the word “Rohingya” in her speech to describe Muslims living in Rakhine, so it is difficult to ascertain whether she is referring to the state’s entire population, or specifically the Rohingya Muslims population. But she did mention the ARSA militant group – the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army. Western diplomats and aid officials welcomed the tone of her message, but some doubted if she had done enough to deflect global criticism. Amnesty International described her speech as “little more than a mix of untruths and victim-blaming”, saying she and her government were “burying their heads in the sand” for ignoring the army’s role in the violence. However, her speech is welcomed by India, China and Russia.
It clearly visible that, Myanmar is actually being ruled by the army. Myanmar’s military junta is so ruthless that they kept Suu Kyi under house arrest for 15 years over a 21 year period. She could not see her British husband when he was in his death bed. Her children were stripped off from their Burmese citizenship and cannot live with their mother. In fact, Myanmar’s military junta has a reputation of ignoring international rules and regulations. Not only Rohingya Muslims but they have led merciless attacks on Chin, Kachin, Chinese and many other ethnic minorities. They are a barbaric group of people who only understands the language of war.
