Rohingya activist says it’s unfair to send refugees back to Myanmar
Yangon, Myanmar –
asserted
it → say → Myanmar
When Malaysia invited Myanmar’s coup leader-turned-president Min Aung Hlaing for a visit in September, it insisted the trip did not amount to recognition.
asserted
trip → invite → recognition
The purpose, an official said, was to address the “longstanding issue” of refugees and migrants from Myanmar in Malaysia.
asserted
official → say → Malaysia
But when Min Aung Hlaing arrived in Kuala Lumpur last week, the former general – whose power grab in 2021 triggered a devastating civil war – received a red carpet welcome, complete with an honour guard.
asserted
grab → arrive → guard
Recommended Stories
list of 4 items- list 1 of 4US lifts sanctions on daughter of military-linked Myanmar businessman
- list 2 of 4Why is the US sanctioning the International Criminal Court?
- list 3 of 4Nearly 1,500 migrants arrive in Myanmar from Malaysia despite UN warnings
- list 4 of
asserted
migrants → lift → warnings
4Malaysia PM says will work on Myanmar’s ASEAN reintegration
After an official luncheon on Thursday, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Myanmar was prepared to take its nationals back at its own cost, a message with appeal in a country where anti-refugee sentiment is growing.
asserted
sentiment → say → country
Malaysia hosts about 193,000 Myanmar nationals, most of them from the persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.
asserted
Malaysia → host → minority
“Because the weather is favourable, I will dispatch Navy ships to repatriate them,” Min Aung Hlaing said.
asserted
Hlaing → dispatch → them
For his part, Anwar pledged to help reintegrate Myanmar into the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the 11-member regional bloc that has barred Min Aung Hlaing from its high-level meetings for refusing to carry out its peace plan.
asserted
that → pledge → plan
Malaysia was a vocal supporter of the plan, which is known as the Five Point Consensus and calls for an end to violence and “constructive dialogue” between the warring parties.
asserted
which → know → parties
The civil war in Myanmar is now in its fifth year and has killed as many as 100,000 people and displaced at least 3.5 million, according to monitoring groups.
uncertain
war → kill → groups
“Malaysia will do whatever is possible to make sure that we … ultimately, take Myanmar as part of our community of nations, without prejudice, and particularly in the context of ASEAN,” Anwar told reporters.
asserted
Anwar → do → reporters
Malaysia is the fifth ASEAN nation to host Min Aung Hlaing since he became president in April, after an election held in December and January, which major opposition parties were barred from participating in.
asserted
parties → host → which
In recent months, he has visited Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.
asserted
he → visit → Thailand
Following his return from Malaysia, his spokesperson said Indonesia and Brunei could be next.
uncertain
Indonesia → follow → Malaysia
“Malaysia’s reversal on Min Aung Hlaing has broken a dam of opposition to the junta,” said Bridget Welsh, an honorary research associate at the University of Nottingham’s Asia Research Institute in Kuala Lumpur.
asserted
Welsh → break → Lumpur
She said regional leaders who have welcomed Min Aung Hlaing, despite accusations that he has committed crimes against humanity, were putting pragmatism ahead of human rights.
asserted
he → say → rights
“It is a step back for ASEAN as an organisation, and for Myanmar,” she said.
asserted
she → say → Myanmar
“It does not offer any concrete path to the resolution of the Myanmar crisis, and in fact, arguably worsens it by giving the military legitimacy internationally, a legitimacy it does not have in Myanmar itself.”
asserted
it → offer → Myanmar
‘Convenience plays a part’
Min Aung Hlaing’s rehabilitation extends beyond Southeast Asia.
asserted
rehabilitation → play → Asia
Since April, the former general has also visited India, China, Russia and Belarus.
asserted
general → visit → India
At each stop, he has tried to present his government as stable and “on the path to democracy”, while pitching trade and infrastructure deals.
asserted
he → try → deals
Even the United States appears to have opened the door.
asserted
States → appear → door
Washington has begun direct talks with Min Aung Hlaing’s government, the Reuters news agency reported last week, despite sanctions on him over human rights abuses.
asserted
agency → begin → abuses
These include the 2017 crackdown on the Rohingya, which sent more than 700,000 people fleeing into Bangladesh and which the US has called a genocide.
asserted
US → include → which
Reuters said the latest talks have focused on shutting down scam centres operating from Myanmar that have defrauded Americans of billions of dollars.
asserted
that → say → dollars
Khin Zaw Win, director of the Tampadipa Institute in Yangon, said Min Aung Hlaing’s quest for international legitimacy has been aided by a coordinated push from China, India and Thailand, all of which share borders with Myanmar.
asserted
all → say → Myanmar
The three neighbours have experienced spillover from the war, such as fighting near their borders, disrupted trade and influxes of refugees.
asserted
neighbours → experience → refugees
Khin Zaw Win said the three countries “have the biggest stakes in how Myanmar pans out” and want the military-installed government recognised.
asserted
government → say → stakes
“Convenience plays a part for all of them,” he said.
asserted
he → play → them
The growing diplomatic recognition, however, has done little to resolve the conflict.
asserted
recognition → grow → conflict
While Min Aung Hlaing has invited all armed groups to peace talks, fighting continues to rage across much of the country.
asserted
fighting → invite → country
His forces have launched offensives to retake territory lost to opposition armed rebels and ethnic armed groups in Rakhine, Chin, Kachin and Karen states and the Sagaing region.
asserted
forces → launch → states
They have been aided by an intensified air campaign and a recruitment drive that has added tens of thousands to their ranks.
asserted
that → aid → ranks
China, too, has helped by brokering ceasefires between the military and powerful ethnic armed groups on its border.
asserted
China → help → border
Still, Laetitia van den Assum, a former Dutch diplomat, said the military is unlikely to regain control of the whole country.
asserted
military → say → country
“That would require a huge occupation army and not – as now – a garrison army that controls a particular location,” she said.
asserted
she → require → location
“That is why Min Aung Hlaing… bets on an increasing number of temporary ceasefires in some parts of the country so that troops can be directed to areas where he wants to continue fighting”.
asserted
he → bet → areas
Van den Assum said she found it “quite surprising” that ASEAN nations are seeking Rohingya repatriation from the very man accused of orchestrating crimes against them.
asserted
nations → say → them
Myanmar has long denied the Rohingya citizenship, so it is unclear whether it would accept them as nationals.
uncertain
it → deny → nationals
…and 15 more, not listed.
The Aporia
