The leaders of the ten ASEAN countries will hold an online meeting tomorrow (Friday, June 26) to exchange views and develop plans concerning the pressing issues of the region. According to the Society for Threatened Peoples (STP), it is a serious mistake to not even put the biggest humanitarian crisis of our time on the agenda: the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya people who were driven away from their homeland Myanmar and were thus forced to flee to neighboring countries. The ASEAN countries have made peace and stability in their region one of their priorities. From the viewpoint of the STP, however, it will be impossible to get close to this goal as long as the massive human rights violations against the Rohingya continue.

"For several weeks now, more and more boats with refugees have been landing in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Bangladesh," said Jasna Causevic, STP expert on genocide prevention and the Responsibility to Protect. "For fear of the coronavirus, many dehydrated and starving people are sent straight back out to sea. These pushbacks are part of the genocide." Further, she stated that it is a serious mistake to simply ignore the by far most serious crisis in the region – which was even caused by an ASEAN member. "The ASEAN countries must finally face up to the situation. They have to recognize that a lasting solution can only be found in and with Myanmar," Causevic explained. "It is in the very own interest of all ASEAN states to exert pressure on the government in Naypyidaw. The government must finally accept the Muslim population of the Rohingya and grant them their human and civil rights. Bangladesh – in particular, as it is now home to most of the refugees – needs support from its neighboring countries and a long-term solution to the conflict.

The United Nations and numerous human rights organizations consider the situation in the Myanmar state of Rakhine to be intolerable, and the STP shares the opinion that a return of the displaced Rohingya is not possible under the given circumstances. "Myanmar's government is promoting violence, discrimination, and hate propaganda against the Rohingya. The government must change its practice, guarantee their protection, and punish crimes committed by its own army," Causevic emphasized. Without protection and rights, the Rohingya cannot live in their homeland in safety – which is why the international community should urge Myanmar to recognize the Rohingya and to renounce violence. "It is a sign of weakness, political short-sightedness, and helplessness, that the crisis is not even mentioned – out of diplomatic considerations," Causevic criticized. "The ASEAN countries are doing themselves, the region, and, ultimately, Myanmar a disservice by simply not addressing the suffering of the Rohingya and the serious crimes of the state of Myanmar.