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SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Southeast Asian Foreign Ministers urged Myanmar to give the Rakhine State Commission on Violence Investigation a mandate to hold women accountable. officials, said Singapore Tuesday.
FILE PHOTO: An aerial view shows villages formerly inhabited by the Rohingya as seen from Myanmar military helicopters that transported US emissaries into northern Rakhine State, Myanmar, on May 1, 2018. REUTERS / Michelle Nichols / Photo File
The ministers, who met informally on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly last week, expressed grave concern over the violence, said Singapore's Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan on Tuesday. Parliament, calling it a "man-made humanitarian disaster".
Over the past year, more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from Buddhist majority Myanmar to neighboring Bangladesh, according to US agencies, following a military response to Rohingya insurgency attacks on posts of security.
US investigators released a report in late August accusing the Myanmar army of mass rapes and "genocidal" mass killings in Rakhine and demanded that the country's commander-in-chief and five generals be prosecuted. under international law. Myanmar has denied most of the allegations in the report, accusing Rohingya "terrorists" of being responsible for most accounts of atrocities.
"We have expressed our deep concern over these alleged acts of violence … It's a man-made humanitarian disaster and something that should not happen nowadays," said Balakrishnan, referring to the meeting of the 10-member association. nations of Southeast Asia, which includes Myanmar.
"The foreign ministers urged the Myanmar government that an" independent investigation commission "be given a full mandate to investigate and hold all responsible accountable."
Myanmar has set up an investigative commission to investigate allegations of human rights violations in Rakhine in July, which includes two local members and two international members from Japan and from Japan. Philippines.
ASEAN, created more than half a century ago, has always struggled to meet the challenges facing the region because it only works by consensus and is reluctant to engage in issues that are considered internal. to one of its members.
His recent joint statements on Rakhine highlighted the importance of repatriating internally displaced persons in Myanmar and reconciling communities.
But in the midst of international condemnation, it seems that Rakhine is firmer.
Balakrishnan said that if it were allowed to "invade", the situation in Rakhine could lead to the spread of terrorism that would threaten "Southeast Asia and beyond".
"They (the government of Myanmar) must do what is right … for all vulnerable, helpless and innocent victims," said Balakrishnan.
"It is also a salutary warning to all of us in South East Asia: race, language and religion are real problems and can still be exploited for short-term political gains, but an inequitable share of the burden and injury is borne by helpless people. "
Singapore is chairing ASEAN this year and its leaders will meet next month in the city.
Report by John Geddie; Edited by Nick Macfie
