Kofi Annan, former Secretary-General of the UN and chairman of Myanmar’s Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, where Rohingya Muslims were killed and displaced recently, on Tuesday expressed concern about the alleged human rights violations but said leaders should be careful about levelling charges of genocide.
He stressed there should be no human rights abuses or denial of aid to the affected while combing for insurgents in the State and gave an assurance to journalists that the ban on them covering the story from the troubled spot will soon be lifted.
On Sunday, Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak described the recent retaliatory army action in Rakhine as “genocide” of the minority Muslim Rohingyas. Malaysia has also cancelled two friendly football matches with Myanmar.
The latest developments in Rakhine have divided ASEAN, with Muslim majority countries like Indonesia and Malaysia demanding international intervention.
The Rohingyas have faced persecution in mainly Buddhist Myanmar for generations. They were derecognised as citizens in 1982. Violence between them and Buddhist hardliners erupted in Rakhine in 2012, displacing an estimated 100,000 Rohingyas.
Two months ago, armed “Islamist” militants struck at check posts near the Bangladesh border killing security guards. This led to a crackdown on the Rohingyas by the Myanmar army, reportedly leaving nearly 100 dead. At least 10,000 are said to have fled to Bangladesh and 20,000 have been uprooted within Myanmar.
The Advisory Commission is a joint initiative of Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar’s State Counsellor, and the Kofi Annan Foundation. There are eight members in it apart from the UN veteran — two of them international experts, the others from Myanmar. Its mandate is to “propose concrete measures for improving the welfare of all people in Rakhine”.
In his opening statement, Mr. Annan said: “We are deeply concerned by the reports of alleged human rights abuses.”
On Tuesday morning, he met Ms. Suu Kyi and the commander-in-chief of the Myanmar armed forces, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, after completing a visit to the disturbed areas on Monday. “We stressed in our meetings that whatever security operations might be necessary, civilians must be protected and I urge the security forces to act in full compliance with the rule of law,” he said.
Humanitarian aid
“We have been given the assurance that humanitarian assistance is allowed access and trust that all communities in need will receive the assistance they require.”
Responding to the accusation of genocide, Mr. Annan stated: “This is a very serious charge. It is a charge that requires legal review and a judicial determination... It is not a charge that should be thrown around loosely.”
Journalists have been debarred from visiting Rakhine since violence broke out in October. Mr. Annan said he had recommended to authorities this policy be altered. “In the not-too-distant future or fairly soon, the press will also be allowed to go in and do their work.”
“There are so many stories and rumours, you don’t know what is happening,” he remarked. “Transparency,” he felt,” is a powerful tool. It will help eliminate some of the rumours we are hearing.”
A free-wheeling press conference was an almost unknown phenomenon in Myanmar during the half a century of military dictatorship. Nine months into a semi-democratic dispensation stewarded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Ms. Suu Kyi, 150 scribes, including a battery of TV and still cameramen, packed a reception hall of a five-star hotel in downtown Yangon. The questions flew thick and fast, with the youthful domestic representatives not wanting in any way in their robust quizzing.
On an optimistic note, Mr. Annan said he was encouraged by the spirit of cooperation between the younger generation of rival groups in Rakhine; and believed the conflict will not destabilise ASEAN. “It will be contained.”
His Commission’s objective is to calm down the situation and generate reconciliation, before focussing on economic and social aspects to achieve prosperity.
The Commission will submit an interim report in the first quarter of 2017 and a final recommendation in the second half of the same year.
( Ashis Ray is a London-based journalist currently in Myanmar. )
