Asean, UN urged to face Myanmar and resolve migrant issue

PETALING JAYA: Asean and the United Nations must face the Myanmar government to resolve the influx of Rohingya migrants and asylum seekers from Myanmar and Bangladeshis into Southeast Asian waters at this very critical time.
In making the call, Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organisation Malaysia (MERHROM) president Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani said if they fail to do so, the world will continue to see Rohingya boat people risking their lives to seek refuge in other countries.
He said in a statement that MERHROM is frustrated with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) as they have been very quiet during this critical moment.
MERHROM also urged Asean governments to rescue the boat people and give them treatment.
"Asean and the UN must continuously pressure the Myanmar government to stop presecutions on ethnic Rohingya and recognised them as citizens under the 1982 Citizenship Law,” he said.
MERHROM also called on the UNHCR to hold a meeting with the governments of Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia on the documentation process for these boat people.
The statement said from January to March, 25,000 ethnic Rohingya and Bangladeshis had became boat people.
He said the UN must play a vital role to stop this genocide and economic and political sanctions placed on Myanmar to compel it to put a stop to the problem.