UN urges action on Rohingya Muslim refugees

The United Nation’s assistant secretary general for humanitarian affairs urged the international community to pay attention to the plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim population, the majority of whom are now living as refugees in Bangladesh.

The United Nation’s assistant secretary general for humanitarian affairs urged the international community to pay attention to the plight of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim population, the majority of whom are now living as refugees in Bangladesh.

Speaking at a high-level event on the issue of Rohingya at the UN Friday, Ursula Mueller said the Myanmar government “must take real steps forward, clearly demonstrating a commitment to immediate change on the ground”.

Last year more than 725,000 ethnic Rohingya fled to the Bangladesh from neighboring Myanmar following the outbreak a state orchestrated campaign of ethnic cleansing launched in August 2017. The “mega camp” near Cox’s Bazaar in southern Bangladesh is now the world’s largest refugee settlement.

She said the world is witnessing “newest chapter of what has been a long and tragic history for the Rohingya people”.

“As humanitarians, and as members of a global humanity, we cannot turn away from the reality that the Rohingya people have been subjected to extreme, unthinkable violence in the context of decades of discrimination and persecution,” she added.

Ms Mueller, who visited Myanmar in April, was able to witness firsthand the plight of the Rohingya and looked to relay her experience meeting the affected communities, humanitarian rights activists and political leaders to the world stage.