REUTERS - Malaysian Prime
Minister Najib Razak's stern rebuke to Myanmar for a military-led crackdown on
Muslim Rohingyas was a rarity among Southeast Asian
nations, who adhere to a
policy of non-interference in each other's domestic affairs.
Critics saw the
beleaguered Najib reaching for the moral high ground with his criticism over
the weekend of Myanmar in order to pander to Malay Muslim voters after a series
of protests calling for him to resign over a corruption scandal.
Najib is eyeing
elections in the second half of 2017, nearly a year ahead of the 2018 deadline,
a government source told Reuters.
At a rally on
Sunday, Najib called for foreign intervention to stop the “genocide” of
Rohingya Muslims and lashed out at Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi for her
inaction.
The persecution of
the Rohingyas in Rakhine state, however, has been going on for years. It has
forced hundreds of thousands to board flimsy boats and flee to neighboring
countries including Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia - which along with Myanmar
are all members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
More than 100,000
Rohingya live in poverty and face harassment as illegal migrants in Malaysia.
Many others fell into the hands of human traffickers on their perilous journeys
from Myanmar.
MYANMAR INCENSED
The Myanmar government
was incensed by Najib's criticism.
Presidential
spokesman Zaw Htay said Myanmar was considering lodging an official complaint
with ASEAN, the bloc of 10 Southeast Asian nations that agree on economic
cooperation but pledge non-interference in each other's domestic issues.
"He (Najib)
could have tried to handle this issue diplomatically through the ambassadors,”
Zaw Htay was quoted telling the local media in Myanmar. He accused Najib of
looking to win popular support among his Muslim voters.
Myanmar said this
week it was halting workers going to Malaysia in response to the comments.
But Najib in his
rally speech suggested that ASEAN must set aside its principle of
non-interference to tackle regional issues like the Rohingya repressions and
migrations, especially when they pose questions about universal values.
"We want to
remind Myanmar’s government that the ASEAN charter also upholds basic human
rights," the premier said in his speech.
INVISIBLE MIGRANTS
Rohingyas in
Malaysia applauded Najib's intervention.
"Rohingya
people are hoping something may change in Myanmar - and also in Malaysia where
many of us live," said Faisal Islam Muhammad Kassim of the Rohingya
Society in Malaysia.
Many of them live in
squalor in Kuala Lumpur's suburbs, working illegally in restaurants and
construction sites, where they are routinely underpaid. Families and single men
live in matchbox apartments with over half a dozen cramped into one room.
"We are
harassed everyday ... by the cops and by everyone," said a Rohingya
migrant living illegally, who did not want to be identified. "We have no
dignity here."
Malaysia is not a
signatory to the 1951 UN Convention on the status of refugees, which means all
refugees, including Rohingya, are viewed as illegal migrants awaiting
resettlement in a third country.
The United Nations
High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative in Malaysia, Richard
Towle, said Rohingyas in Malaysia are in the "invisible bottom 30 percent
of society, and very much at risk of exploitation and abuse".
"Although it's
proper to highlight the situation in Myanmar itself, it's also very important
to look at the situation of the Rohingya in Bangladesh and here in Malaysia,
where there is a lot we can still do to make their lives more secure and
safer," Towle said.
PRESSURE OF SCANDAL
Najib's popularity
dropped after he was linked to a multi-billion dollar graft scandal at state
fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Tens of thousands marched on the
streets in capital Kuala Lumpur last month, demanding he step down and face
corruption charges.
Najib has denied
wrongdoing and has used powerful security laws to block dissenters and his
opponents.
Najib needs the
support of the powerful Islamist party PAS, to secure a convincing win in the
next elections. The premier has put his weight behind an Islamic law, hudud,
that sets out punishments such as amputation and stoning.
The law may be
tabled in parliament next year.
"Quite clearly,
there is a major domestic political dimension to this, as Najib positions
himself as the champion of downtrodden Muslims in the region, which he and UMNO
obviously believe will be popular in the Malay Muslim heartland," said
Phil Robertson, deputy director for the Asia Division of Human Rights Watch.
"And of course,
talking about the Rohingya is a good way to change the subject from the 1MDB
scandal," he added.
Najib's office did
not respond to requests for comment.
REUTERS
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