Hindus and Christians are ‘teaching inhumane ASEAN Muslims leaders to treat their fellow Muslims according to Islamic teachings they ignored’

Hindus and Christians are ‘teaching inhumane ASEAN Muslims leaders

to treat their fellow Muslims according to Islamic teachings they ignored’

New Delhi (Mizzima) – Navanethem Pillay, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, on Thursday called on Burma’s neighboring countries to treat Rohingya, members of Burma’s minority Muslim community, according to international standards.

 

Ms. Pillay, speaking at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, said she is dismayed by the harrowing accounts of Rohingya who had taken to the sea to flee Burma.

Calling for a thorough investigation into reports that indicate the ill-treatment meted out to Rohingya, Ms. Pillay said, “I urge all neighboring countries to ensure their appropriate reception, processing and protection, in line with international standards.”

In recent months, Rohingya boatpeople have grabbed public attention in the wake of the Royal Thai Navy reportedly arresting more than 1,200 boatpeople and allegedly sending them back out to sea with little food and water and no engines for their boats.

Reports said that as a result of the Thai Navy’s actions, hundreds of Rohingya boatpeople are believed to be missing and presumed dead.

Thailand’s Prime Minister, Abhisit Vejjajiva, who denies Thailand’s ill-treatment of the Rohingya, did however admit it an interview with CNN that the Army might have pushed back Rohingya boatpeople as they attempted to illegally enter the country.  

The ten-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which includes Burma and Thailand, during last month’s summit discussed the problem of Rohingya boatpeople and agreed that it is a regional issue that would be discussed further as part of the Bali process, an international agreement aimed at combating human trafficking.  

During the summit, Burmese Foreign Minister Nyan Win said Burma does not have a Rohingya minority, but said his country agreed to accept the boatpeople if they identify themselves as “Bengalis” born in Burma.

by Mizzima News