Australia PM meets Myanmar leader Suu Kyi, to raise human rights concerns

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Australia PM meets Myanmar leader Suu Kyi, to raise human rights concerns

 

Australia's Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull shakes hands with Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia, March 19, 2018. AAP/Mick Tsikas/via REUTERS

 

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi arrived in Canberra on Monday to be met by a military honour guard and Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who has said he will raise human rights issues during her visit.

 

Suu Kyi has been in Australia since Friday, attending a special summit of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders in Sydney, where her presence drew street protests and a lawsuit accusing her of crimes against humanity.

 

Australia's Attorney General has said he would not allow the lawsuit, lodged by activist lawyers in Melbourne on behalf of Australia's Rohingya community, to proceed because Suu Kyi had diplomatic immunity.

 

Since coming to power in 2016, Suu Kyi, who won the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize for her struggle for democracy in Myanmar, has faced growing criticism for failing to condemn or stop military attacks on her country's minority Rohingya Muslims.

 

U.N. officials say nearly 700,000 Muslim Rohingya have fled Buddhist-majority Myanmar to Bangladesh after militant attacks on Aug. 25 last year sparked a crackdown, led by security forces, in Rakhine state that the United Nations and United States have said constitutes ethnic cleansing.

 

The U.N. independent investigator on human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, said in Geneva this month she saw growing evidence to suspect genocide had been committed.

 

Myanmar denies the charges and has asked for "clear evidence" of abuses by security forces.

 

Neither Suu Kyi nor Turnbull made public remarks before their meeting, but the Australian leader said on Sunday that Suu Kyi spoke "at considerable length" during the ASEAN meeting about Rakhine State, appealing to her Southeast Asian neighbours for humanitarian help.

 

(Reporting by Tom Westbrook. Editing by Jane Wardell and Lincoln Feast)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-03-19

[lanista]

Australia will  raise 'concerns'  about the 'challenges' facing Myanamar and thats about it.

Even though Turnbull is a spineless Sydneysider there is not much he can do about these hopelessly corrupt ASEAN countries except shake hands and get his pic in the  world papers....if it happens.

[Ron19]

A troll post and a reply to it have been removed.

 

9) You will not post inflammatory messages on the forum, or attempt to disrupt discussions to upset its participants, or trolling. Trolling can be defined as the act of purposefully antagonizing other people on the internet by posting controversial, inflammatory, irrelevant or off-topic messages with the primary intent of provoking other users into an emotional response or to generally disrupt normal on-topic discussion.

[CharlesSwann]

Suu Kyi does stand for human rights - for the rights of the Burmese whose land has been encroached by an opportunistic, invasive population (just look at the map, and then consider how you would feel if the same thing happened to your country). Criticising Burma for its brutality is too easy. Perhaps Australia (and other nations) should have long ago offered their help (and money) in peaceably repatriating the encroachers.

[trainman34014]

Waste of breath and only for show.   She is not running the country and makes no serious decisions, she is merely a Puppet of the Junta being used while it suits them.

[RichardColeman]

Kyi : But we don't want them.

Turnbull : Yes, we don't want them either, let's send them to NZ !

[Dap]

7 hours ago, trainman34014 said:

Waste of breath and only for show.   She is not running the country and makes no serious decisions, she is merely a Puppet of the Junta being used while it suits them.

Exactly! While there didn't seem to be any "humanRights" issues to take up with Thailand during their recent discussions either.

[simple1]

19 hours ago, CharlesSwann said:

peaceably repatriating the encroachers.

Again using the language of the far right and 'liked' by at least one member who 'liked' a post expressing disappointment that 2 million asylum seekers haven't drowned at sea.

 

To where? Bangladesh doesn't want the Rohingya. Bangladeshi government has held the previous wave of Rohingya refugees for more than 20 years in appalling conditions. Malaysia is swamped by 2 million plus Indo illegal workers etc.

 

IMO the best way forward would be to hold a truth and reconciliation commission for all Burmese ethnic groups who have been subjected to brutal oppression and War Crimes for decades. Grant Rohingya citizenship and human rights to reduce tension and in order that they can legally seek safe havens. Be brave and ban Group 969 for hate speech and breaching all principles of Buddhism.

 

Yesterday, In Sydney, Suu Kyi pulled out of a speech to the Lowry Institute, an act of moral cowardice which is shocking. 

Edited March 19, 2018 by simple1

[CharlesSwann]

3 hours ago, simple1 said:

Again using the language of the far right and 'liked' by at least one member who 'liked' a post expressing disappointment that 2 million asylum seekers haven't drowned at sea.

 

To where? Bangladesh doesn't want the Rohingya. Bangladeshi government has held the previous wave of Rohingya refugees for more than 20 years in appalling conditions. Malaysia is swamped by 2 million plus Indo illegal workers etc.

 

IMO the best way forward would be to hold a truth and reconciliation commission for all Burmese ethnic groups who have been subjected to brutal oppression and War Crimes for decades. Grant Rohingya citizenship and human rights to reduce tension and in order that they can legally seek safe havens. Be brave and ban Group 969 for hate speech and breaching all principles of Buddhism.

 

Yesterday, In Sydney, Suu Kyi pulled out of a speech to the Lowry Institute, an act of moral cowardice which is shocking. 

As you want to make this a moral issue, then the immorality lies with the Rohingya themselves who didn't scruple to encroach on another country's territory despite being unwelcome - but of course, migrants never scruple, they are only in it for themselves and do not care about the feelings of their host country. That's the basic morality of this question which I have never seen addressed. I think it's about time that someone pointed this out and migrants at least have a word with themselves.

 

Moreover, we could assign the greater immorality to Bangladesh for not wanting the repatriate their own people. Why not? Land pressure? - in which case how could Bangladesh allow their population grow beyond the ability of their land to support it? A country should not be absolved of all responsibility to maintain and contain its own population. Or could it be that the Rohingya have such low socio-economic status that even their own country looks down on them? And now Burma has to treat them as equal-status citizens?

 

Your solution piles all the blame on Burma and rewards the Rohingya's encroachment strategy by unconditionally giving them everything they want. Nice of you to give Burma's land away.

Now that so many of them are back in Bangladesh, the solution is to provide economic assistance and help them organise themselves in situ. Turnbull should be meeting with Bangladesh to offer help with this.

 

Btw, I take it the 'far right' characterisation is an appeal to the sorcery of political correctness. It is ineffective. I am far left on some issues, and rational on everything.

Edited March 20, 2018 by CharlesSwann

[lanista]

22 hours ago, CharlesSwann said:

Suu Kyi does stand for human rights - for the rights of the Burmese whose land has been encroached by an opportunistic, invasive population (just look at the map, and then consider how you would feel if the same thing happened to your country). Criticising Burma for its brutality is too easy. Perhaps Australia (and other nations) should have long ago offered their help (and money) in peaceably repatriating the encroachers.

 

Australia is reminded time and again that its a small country of 25 million and  has limited influence in world affairs. However, every time there is a refugee crisis or military conflict somewhere in the world Australia is ALWAYS one of the first countries that the USA or UN calls upon for assistance.  Why us ?? Its because we are white and rich.  Australians are fed up with boat people and other groups hiring law firms to sue our government' for compensation.

 

Its probably not entirely Burma's fault that they have their own  refugee crisis but why dont they just foot the bill and get rid of them instead of abusing them. Send them home in trucks. No,they will wait for us to pay.  Thats how it works in Asia, wait for the white guy to foot the bill.

[simple1]

1 hour ago, CharlesSwann said:

As you want to make this a moral issue, then the immorality lies with the Rohingya themselves who didn't scruple to encroach on another country's territory despite being unwelcome - but of course, migrants never scruple, they are only in it for themselves and do not care about the feelings of their host country. That's the basic morality of this question which I have never seen addressed. I think it's about time that someone pointed this out and migrants at least have a word with themselves.

 

Moreover, we could assign the greater immorality to Bangladesh for not wanting the repatriate their own people. Why not? Land pressure? - in which case how could Bangladesh allow their population grow beyond the ability of their land to support it? A country should not be absolved of all responsibility to maintain and contain its own population. Or could it be that the Rohingya have such low socio-economic status that even their own country looks down on them? And now Burma has to treat them as equal-status citizens?

 

Your solution piles all the blame on Burma and rewards the Rohingya's encroachment strategy by unconditionally giving them everything they want. Nice of you to give Burma's land away.

Now that so many of them are back in Bangladesh, the solution is to provide economic assistance and help them organise themselves in situ. Turnbull should be meeting with Bangladesh to offer help with this.

 

Btw, I take it the 'far right' characterisation is an appeal to the sorcery of political correctness. It is ineffective. I am far left on some issues, and rational on everything.

Rohingya were a recognised ethnic group at time of independence in 1948. 1982 Rohingya were made Stateless by way of collective punishment, which in and of itself is a crime against humanity. To enter reconciliation talks and justice for War Crimes is a matter of justice. I note you and others ignore the known facts of Burman nationalists track record of War Crimes over decades against other ethnic groups in your admiration of murder, rape and ethnic cleansing of Muslims.

 

"encroachers' is well known language of those supporting evil.

Edited March 20, 2018 by simple1