Britain’s former main opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn has said that Rohingya refugees are being ignored and the causes of them seeking a place of safety are also being ignored.
The British Labour Party MP made the remarks while appearing in an episode of Al Jazeera’s #AJOpinion on November 9.
He said: “When Aung San Suu Kyi was under house arrest, many people around the world marched and demonstrated in her support. We called for her release.”
“We called for free and fair elections in her country which had been abused by the army. She was released. There were elections and she was elected.”
“Sadly, she has not spoken out about the abuse of Muslim people, about the abuse of the Rohingya and indeed has been hauled before the international judicial processes because of her army’s abuse of them,” added Corbyn, noted human rights advocate.
He said: “Solidarity around the world for the people who are victims of political or human rights abuse should not know any boundaries.”
“And those of us who spoke up for her [Suu Kyi] will also speak up for the Rohingya people.”
“There are around a million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. There are people who have been driven out of their homes in Rakhine State in Myanmar.”
“And I think it’s one of the biggest refugee crises in the world at the present time,” he said.
“My concern is with the world’s attention focused on so much of what is happening in the Middle East, the Rohingya refugees are being ignored and the causes of them seeking a place of safety are also being ignored, and those are the crucial issues that I believe have to be addressed.”
“Which is why I’m raising the issue in the British Parliament to ask the British government to do all it can to support them. But above all, to get a message to the wider world,” Corbyn added.
He said: “And whilst there are concerns in Bangladesh about the fencing [of refugee camps] arrangements and the lack of ability of the Rohingya people to move, I think one should also have some respect for Bangladesh because they are hosting a million refugees in their country.”
“No other country in the world at present time hosts so many refugees in such a short space of time. So, I do think we need to give more economic support to the Rohingya refugees in the camps.”
“But we also have to turn our attention to the politics of why they’ve [Rohingyas] sought refuge in the first place.”
“And that is the systematic abuse of their rights, abuse of their language, and abuse of their faith in Myanmar,” the British MP added.
