{"id":49728,"date":"2014-11-17T12:00:50","date_gmt":"2014-11-17T12:00:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=49728"},"modified":"2015-05-05T21:29:31","modified_gmt":"2015-05-05T20:29:31","slug":"un-secretary-general-calls-for-greater-rohingya-rights-protections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2014\/11\/un-secretary-general-calls-for-greater-rohingya-rights-protections\/","title":{"rendered":"UN Secretary-General Calls for Greater Rohingya Rights Protections"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Ban<\/a>

Ban Ki-moon addressing the 6th Asean-UN Summit in Naypyidaw on 12 Nov 2014. (Photo: Kyaw Hsu Mon \/ The Irrawaddy)<\/p><\/div>\n

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has used a press conference in Naypyidaw on Wednesday [12 Nov 2014] to call for greater protections for ethnic minorities in Burma.<\/p>\n

While his earlier address to the 6th Asean-UN Summit praised the steps taken by the Burmese government to foster a democratic transition in the country, the UN chief told journalists that he had raised human rights issues in a meeting with \u00a0senior government leaders.<\/p>\n

\u201cI encouraged Myanmar leaders to uphold human rights, take a strong stance against incitement, and ensure humanitarian access to Rohingya living in vulnerable conditions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Ban says he will reiterate this message when he meets with President Thein Sein Thursday [13 Nov 2014] morning.<\/p>\n

Reiterating concerns expressed by Ban in an earlier report to the UN General Assembly\u2019s Third Committee, the Secretary-General said that the plight of stateless Rohingya in Arakan State was of the utmost concern, adding that concerns remains over the government\u2019s unilateral efforts to offer conditional citizenship to some members of the Muslim minority<\/p>\n

\u201cMyanmar authorities are carrying out a verification exercise in Rakhine [Arakan] to process the granting of citizenship to people in Rakhine. While the process is being carried out in accordance with national law, it should also be in line with international standards and guidelines,he said.<\/p>\n

Ban also said the UN would stick to using the term Rohingya, despite objections by the Burmese government and Arakanese Buddhist community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe affected population\u2014referred to as Bengalis by the government of Myanmar but known as Rohingya in the United Nations and in much of the international community\u2014the United Nations uses that word based on the rights of minorities. I also urge the authorities to avoid measures that could entrench the current segregation between communities\u2026 Efforts must be made to foster interfaith dialogue and harmony to bring communities closer together,\u201d\u00a0he said.<\/p>\n

Asked about the case of shot journalist Par Gyi, Ban said that he would make representations to the Burmese government about the necessity of protecting freedom of expression during the country\u2019s transition period.<\/p>\n

\u201cMyanmar is making progress in strengthening its democratic institutions and achieving rapid economic development and national reconciliation,\u201d he said. \u201cIn the course of that, when they have a political reform process, I have been asking leaders to fully guarantee freedom of expression and freedom of assembly.\u201d<\/p>\n

The United Nations cautiously welcomed the adoption of a human rights declaration by member countries in the aftermath of the 21st Asean Summit in Phnom Penh in 2012.<\/p>\n

Navi Pillay, the then-High Commissioner for Human Rights, has expressed concern that the declaration fell short of international standards.<\/p>\n

Addressing the opening of the 6th Asean-UN Summit in Naypyidaw earlier on Wednesday, the Secretary-General praised the Burmese government\u2019s reform efforts while restating the UN\u2019s call for regional partners in protecting human rights.<\/p>\n

\u201cI congratulate Myanmar on its achievements, including ambitious reforms aimed at improving the lives of its people,\u201d he said. \u201cAs the country prepares for a general election in 2015, it will face a critical benchmark. The government and people of Myanmar can count on the support of the United Nations as they continue the process of democratisation, development, and national reconciliation.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cDiscrimination against minorities and vulnerable groups and violence against women are serious challenges in the region\u2026 We rely on the support of member states and regional organisations to enact this ambitious agenda,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 irrawaddy.org<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI encouraged Myanmar leaders to uphold human rights, take a strong stance against incitement, and ensure humanitarian access to Rohingya living in vulnerable conditions,\u201d he said. Ban says he will reiterate this message when he meets with President Thein Sein Thursday [13 Nov 2014] morning.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49728","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia-pacific"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49728"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49728\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}