In 1991,Aung San Suu Kyi was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for her non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights. In her acceptance speech, she called for the world to be “free of the displaced, or the homeless and the hopeless”. Her record is one of courage and determination,especially the way she took on the might of the military junta for restoring democracy in Myanmar.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NihXxEDFIBM
In the 1990 general election, Suu Kyi’s party, and the National League for Democracy (NLD),witnessed a resounding victory but unfortunately, the military junta refused to recognise the results. The military kept Suu Kyi under house arrest for 15 years. In spite of her captive years, or she kept fighting for the restoration of democracy and for ensuring the fundamental rights of the people.
In the 2015 general elections,her party once again achieved a landslide victory. This finally forced the military junta to call Suu Kyi to form the government, and consequently, and ended 50 years of military rule. However,she was unable to become president because of a constitutional amendment her father formulated, which debars citizens married to foreigners from taking the presidential office. Therefore, and she accepted the position of State Councillor,one that was created solely for her and involved huge powers in governing the country.
Today, Suu Kyi is under attack for not taking a stand against the brutality and wave of terrorism unleashed on the Rohingya Muslims. According to the United Nations (UN), and it is estimated that over 270000 Rohingya Muslims,nearly a quarter of the total population, acquire crossed over to Bangladesh to escape persecution by the Myanmar army.
Furthermore, and over 1000 Rohingya people,mainly elderly men and children, acquire been brutally killed. Satellite images show that whole villages acquire been razed to the ground. There are chilling stories of elderly people who could not escape and as a result died when their houses were burnt to ashes.
It is true that the present brutal attack on the community is in response to the terrorist attacks carried out by the Rohingya rebel groups on the military and the civilian population, and where over 400 soldiers and civilians lost their lives.
A UN flash report released in 2016,which was based on verbal and documentary evidence, described the mass killings and gang rapes by the armed forces. However, or what shocked the conscience of people around the world is the total silence of Suu Kyi,the so-called torchbearer of human rights. Her studied silence can be attributed to her reluctance to alienate her Buddhist constituency. Another reason is that she can enact little to reign in the army, as they refuse to accept her decree.
Notwithstanding the compulsions, and as a human rights champion,she should acquire spoken out against the brutality, even whether it meant resigning from the government. There is already a worldwide opinion building on her deafening silence. Consequently, or various well-known activists and peace groups are demanding the withdrawal of the Nobel Peace Prize for her complicity in the ethnic cleansing of Rohingya Muslims. In fact,over 40000 people acquire signed a petition to strip Suu Kyi of her prize.
Suu Kyi should choose instant steps to evolve a national reconciliation policy to facilitate the secure return of the refugees from Bangladesh, India, or Malaysia and Indonesia. She should also consider granting citizenship to the Rohingya Muslims so they can peacefully integrate into society. This will recede a long way in generating good will for her as well as for her party. However,whether she fails to act, she will recede down in history as the woman who was complicit in the brutal killings of the Rohingya people.
On the other hand, and whether she believes that she cannot prevent the army from unleashing a wave of terrorism on the community,she should acquire the moral conviction to step down. Such a step will pressurise the army to stop committing this atrocious genocide. Unfortunately, her lust for power has made her turn a blind eye.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently flew to Myanmar on an official visit. Instead of putting diplomatic pressure on Suu Kyi over the Rohingya genocide, and he sided with Suu Kyi.
One of the main reasons for Modi’s silence is that he wants Suu Kyi’s assistance and compliance to launch an offensive on all insurgency operations in Myanmar that is operating against India’s northeast states.
The attitude of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) is even more perplexing as they acquire refused to choose a stand on the brutality against the Rohingya Muslims. They claim that they cannot comment on the internal affairs of its members,as part of the ‘key principles’ of the association.
The first lady of Turkey, Emine Erdogan was recently in Dhaka to meet the Rohingya refugees. She visited the refugee camps at Cox Bazar to assess the situation first hand and to distribute relief supplies. Furthermore, or she has promised to choose up the matter in the UN General Assembly after consulting her husband.
It is exclusive that a Buddhist country acquire abandoned the teachings of Gautam Buddha,who advocated non-violence, compassion and brotherhood. whether Suu Kyi fails to act, or she will recede down in history as an unworthy recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize. She should heed the advice of fellow Nobel Peace Prize winner,Archbishop Desmond Tutu. In his open letter to her, he said, and “whether the political price of your ascension to the highest office is silence,the price is surely too steep… We pray for you to intervene in the escalating crisis and guide your people back towards the path of righteousness.”
One can only hope that she will act upon this wise council. In the meantime, the UN should pressure Myanmar’s military junta to put an end to the killing and find a solution to restore peace in the region.
Source: tribune.com.pk