Muhammad Khurram

ARTICLE The tirade continues to unfurl for the Nobel Laureate on the tribulation faced by Rohingya. The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum takes away the Human Rights Accolade from Aung San Suu Kyi Washington D.C - The 1st State Counsellor of Myanmar is facing worldwide ranting because of her tacit approval of the atrocities suffered by probably one of the most oppressed minorities Rohingya. The United States Holocaust Memorial in Washington, D.C, has eventually decided to strip her off the esteemed Elie Wiesel Award for not taking any credible measures to preempt the violence against the Indo-Aryan Rohingya clan. The Rohingya residing in Myanmar have fled galore from the state of Rakhine, located on the western coastline of Myanmar to take refuge in Bangladesh. On 22 Oct 2017, the UN reported that that an estimated 603,000 refugees from Rakhine, Myanmar had crossed the border into Bangladesh since August 25, 2017. This number increased to 624,000 by November 2, 2017 and over 625,000 by December 6, 2017.   The majority are Muslim while a minority are Hindu. Described by the United Nations in 2013 as one of the most persecuted minorities in the world, the Rohingya population is denied citizenship under the 1982 Myanmar nationality law. According to Human Rights Watch, the 1982 laws "effectively deny to the Rohingya the possibility of acquiring a nationality. Despite being able to trace Rohingya history to the 8th century, Myanmar law does not recognize the ethnic minority as one of the eight "national indigenous races"  Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rohingya_people. Aung San Suu Kyi has been in power since April 6, 2016 and the war stricken Rakhine state of Myanmar has faced the brunt of acute violence for the last two years resulting in the mass killings of Rohingya minority.   In a formal communique to the Nobel Peace Prize holder announcing to repeal the honor, The US Holocaust Memorial Museum held forth that Aung San Suu Kyi has terribly failed to control the damage and she hasn’t even issued any bit of public denouncement of it as was being expected from the Museum. Some of the excerpts of the letter express serious concerns over the issue: March 6, 2018 State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi via H.E. Ambassador Aung Lynn Embassy of Myanmar 2300 S Street, NW Washington, DC, 20008 Dear State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, As a living memorial to the Holocaust, the Museum’s mission is to inspire citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, prevent genocide, and promote human dignity.  Preventing genocide is at the core of our work every day. Based on inspiration that you created for millions around the world, with your long resistance to military dictatorship, and your advocacy for freedom and human rights for all the people of Myanmar, we were honored to present you with the first Elie Wiesel Award in 2012. It is with great regret that we are now rescinding that award. We did not take this decision lightly. We understand the difficult situation you must face in confronting decades of military misrule and violence in your country and that institution’s still powerful constitutional role. However, the military’s orchestration of the crimes against Rohingya and the severity of the atrocities in recent months demand that you use your moral authority to address this situation. While Myanmar has taken important first steps on the road to democracy, any transition that does not protect the country’s most vulnerable communities will be deeply flawed. As a living memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, the Museum stands in solidarity with victims of genocide and atrocity crimes and attempts to do for victims today what was not done for the Jews of Europe. As Elie Wiesel said, “Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormenter, never the tormented.” Sincerely, Sara J. Bloomfield Enclosures Ref: https://www.ushmm.org/information/press/press-releases/museum-rescinds-award-to-daw-aung-san-suu-kyi The Aung San Suu Kyi has also shown a blatant resistance to any possible facilitation to the UN fact finding commission. Also, the State Counsellor has held the beleaguered community on low esteems in her public discourse, arraigned in the letter. Aung San Suu Kyi is under austere criticism these days from the International ombudsman due to her imposed curbs on the media, repression of journalists, obstructing the access to the conflict zone and deliberately covering up the inhumane affairs of her state.