Persecuted Rohingyas

The recent plight of Rohingya asylum seekers seems too familiar.

May 27, 2015

By Anne Nguyen
The recent plight of Rohingya asylum seekers seems too familiar. It is similar to the exodus of more than one million Vietnamese asylum seekers who fled their home to neighbouring countries such as Thailand, the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysia, following the end of the Vietnam War. Over 8,000 Rohingya asylum seekers from Burma (Myanmar) and Bangladesh, fleeing from persecution, are stranded in boats off the coasts of Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia and are at risk of dying.

In contrast to 30 years ago, instead of a world that accepts refugees and abides by their international obligations, they are now faced with an increasingly xenophobic and fearful world. Nations who are signatories to the United Nations Refugee Convention are required by international law to assess asylum seekers but instead, they are “turning back the boats” and refusing to resettle any “boat people” — fearful that accepting them will open the floodgates and believing that this method will combat human trafficking.

Europeans are pushing back boats to the civil and political turmoil of Libya, the Australian government is towing back boats to Indonesian waters, Malaysia is stating “the Rohingya is not our problem” while the Prime Minister of Australia, Tony Abbott, is chanting “Nope, nope, nope” when asked whether Australia will resettle the Rohingya.

The consequences of these actions are finally coming to fruition at the cost of the most persecuted ethnic group in the world. The fact that the United Nations has given the Rohingya this description does not seem to strike a cord with some nations. Although just recently, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Indonesia have agreed to provide humanitarian aid and temporary refuge, while the US as well as Gambia have agreed to consider requests to resettle the Rohingya, some nations are still turning a blind eye using words such as “people smuggling” or “human trafficking” to defend their actions.

Nations stating that the Rohingya are not their problem are violating international law, especially if they are signatories to the United Nations Refugee Convention. Those who are not signatories, however, still have a legal obligation under customary international law to prevent the return of people at risk of serious rights abuses. Saying “no” to asylum seekers does nothing to address the dangers that force people to flee; saying “no” demeans the power of international law.

As long as persecution continues, people will continue to seek asylum. The real crisis is not people smuggling or human trafficking. What we actually have now is a humanitarian crisis, and as various nations continue to violate their international obligations, or refuse to co-operate for domestic political gains, more will continue to die at sea.

Of course, the root problem is state-sanctioned persecution and discrimination in Burma. The Rohingya are part of a distinct Muslim ethnic minority group in Burma. They are not afforded any basic rights or citizenship status. This needs to be addressed in order to prevent the Rohingya from leaving, although this is a long-term strategy.

The short-term strategy is for nations to step up and provide humanitarian aid and temporary refuge to the Rohingya asylum seekers while their cases are being processed, very much like what Malaysia did when my parents ventured on their harrowing journey to a better life before being granted asylum in Australia.

Human lives should not be dependent on political motives but on humanity. It is time for nations to realize this.

--Anna Nguyen is an Australian born human rights lawyer. She is now based in Manila, Philippines, and is the Legal Counsel for VOICE.

Source: ucanews.com

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