OIC asked Myanmar to accept accept UN monitors for investigation of the Rohingya community persecution
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned the ‘systematic brutal acts’ of Myanmar government against the Rohingya Muslims and asked it to accept international monitors.
The 57-member OIC, meeting in Astana showed grave concern over the ongoing persecution under the state armed forces against the Rohingya Muslims.
The OIC members took a stance at a meeting held exclusively on the sidelines of the first OIC Summit on science and technology in Astana, Kazakhastan on Sunday.
Islamic Cooperation urged Myanmar to accept UN monitors to carry out “a thorough and independent investigation of all established violations of international human rights and bring those responsible to justice”.
The OIC asked the Myanmar government to eliminate root cause including the denial of citizenship based on the 1982 Citizenship Act which led to statelessness and deprival of rights to Rohingyas.
The report indicated that the OIC members also urged the Myanmar government to take urgent measures for a sustainable return of Rohingya refugees and internally or externally displaced population to their homeland, Rakhine State.
Pakistan president Mamnoon Hussain and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan met on the sidelines of the OIC summit at Astana and discussed the issue of Rohingya Muslims being persecuted in Myanmar.
The current OIC chief is Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been one of the loudest critics of Myanmar’s policies against the Rohingya.
The United Nations says nearly 300,000 Rohingya refugees have arrived in Bangladesh since attacks by Rohingya militants on Myanmar security forces in the violence-wracked Rakhine state on August 25 sparked a major military backlash.
The Rohingya problem is several decades old. A 1982 Myanmar law stripped the Rohingya of access to full citizenship. Since then members of the Rohingya community have been driven out of Myanmar. Many have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh and from there to other countries.
It is very difficult to determine how many Rohingya have migrated but currently there are about 400,000 of them in Saudi Arabia and about 200,000 in Pakistan and most are supposed to have fled via Bangladesh.