Arakan News Agency
With reforms ground to a halt and the continuation of appalling human rights abuses, David Burrowes MP calls for the UK to join in the chorus of disapproval.
Ten years ago a few months before the general election a constituent told me about the appalling human rights abuse in Burma. I pledged that if elected, I would speak out. After nine years in Parliament I have done so, and last month I had the privilege of visiting Burma for the first time, courtesy of the human rights advocacy organization Christian Solidarity Worldwide.
During our visit, everyone – without exception – expressed concerns that the reforms, which began three years ago and have been widely heralded in the international community, have ground to a halt. In some respects, there have been steps backwards, particularly with recent arrests of activists and protestors, a rise in religious intolerance and continuing ethnic conflict.
Two weeks ago, Burma’s democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi echoed these concerns, claiming reforms have stalled. President Obama, in Burma last week, said the same. Britain needs to join the chorus of disapproval.
Yet we should view such positive changes as merely a beginning, not a conclusion. We need to be careful they are not a false dawn.
In tonight’s debate, I will highlight the plight of Burma’s Rohingya Muslim people, among the most persecuted in the world. A new Rakhine State Action Plan, which according to leaked drafts involves forcing Rohingyas into temporary camps while their claims to citizenship are assessed, has been described by Human Rights Watch as “a blueprint for permanent segregation and statelessness”. Britain must make it clear that such a plan is unacceptable.
source: Central Lobby
