The US must take a stand against ethnic violence in Myanmar

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Tillerson will visit Myanmar to meet with government and military leaders for talks regarding the appalling violence against the Rohingya and the subsequent humanitarian crisis that has left them homeless and starving. While there, he is expected to assess whether the U.S. should define the Myanmar’s military attacks as what they clearly are – ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya people. 

His visit comes at a time when the Trump administration is coming under increasing pressure from Congress to press the Myanmar military to halt atrocities against the Rohingya. On the same day, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will be marking up a resolution condemning the military’s ethnic cleansing campaign, calling for an end to the attacks, and demanding immediate restoration of humanitarian access to Rakhine State in Myanmar. This comes on the heels of separate legislation introduced by bipartisan lawmakers in both chambers aimed at holding senior military officials accountable for crimes against humanity. 

{mosads}Secretary Tillerson and the Trump administration now have concrete opportunities to take swift action to pressure the Myanmar military to halt the atrocities against the Rohingya. At a time when the United States’ leadership role on the world stage is diminishing, Secretary Tillerson and President Trump have a prime opportunity to seize the mantle of global leadership to address one of the most pressing human rights crises in recent years. 

Since late August the military has pursued a scorched-earth campaign of mass shootings, rape, burnings which have forced out over 604,000 Rohingya Muslims in two months. For a sense of scale, that is comparable to the population of Washington, D.C. on the run fleeing for their lives.

We have condemned the Myanmar military’s campaign as ethnic cleansing, as has the United Nations. Our crisis response team on the ground among survivors have recorded harrowing testimonies, including the story of a young woman, S.K. 

When Myanmar soldiers swept into her village one August morning, S.K. was forced to watch in horror as the men and older boys were executed before her eyes and her village burned to the ground.

Terrifying as that was, her ordeal quickly became worse.

Forced into knee-deep water with her children, she and the other women and children were separated into groups, taken into separate houses, and attacked. Three of her children, aged between 2 and 10, were beaten to death. S.K. and the other women were then raped, and the houses they were left in set ablaze. S.K. escaped, but others did not.

S.K.’s story is one of thousands from people who are left facing deterorating conditions and reported starvation while they wait in stateless limbo. Secretary Tillerson must demand an immediate halt to the military’s atrocities against the Rohingya and other ethnic and religious minorities in Myanmar. Until the carnage stops, it is premature to return the Rohingya to what’s left of their homes. 

He must also demand that civilian authorities hold senior military officials accountable for committing atrocities against Rohingya; allow access to both humanitarian aid organizations and a UN fact-finding mission to assess the scope of the abuse; and implement reforms that will end longstanding discriminatory treatment of the Rohingya, including allowing them citizenship.

In addition, Secretary Tillerson should urge the international community to impose a comprehensive arms embargo and targeted multilateral financial sanctions against the Myanmar military commander-in-chief General Hlaing and senior military officials responsible for crimes against humanity.

Meanwhile, Congress must pass the concurrent resolution and bipartisan legislation that would require Myanmar to take the same actions that Secretary Tillerson should exhort the civilian government to take.

At this pivotal moment, U.S. leaders have a clear choice before them:  set an example for the international community by taking swift action to halt ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity; or stand by idly and watch as the Myanmar military continues to commit atrocities against the Rohingya.

Joanne Lin is National Director of Advocacy and Government Relations at Amnesty International USA.