Robin Augustin
| December 6, 2016
An ex-diplomat says Malaysia must opt for constructive engagement and gentle persuasion in trying to stop violence against Rohingyas.
PETALING JAYA: A former diplomat has warned Putrajaya against pushing Myanmar too hard on the Rohingya issue, saying it might tempt it to go back to the days when it isolated itself from the rest of the world.
Speaking to FMT, Fauziah Mohd Taib, who served in the foreign service for 35 years, recalled that Asean worked hard to bring Myanmar out of its decades of isolation and finally succeeded in 1997.
“In fact,” she said, “Malaysia was the first country to accept Myanmar as a member of Asean.”
In recent weeks, Myanmar has drawn international condemnation over violence allegedly carried out by the country’s security forces against the minority Rohingyas. According to reports, hundreds have been killed and raped and tens of thousands displaced.
Malaysia has taken a strong stance against the Myanmar government, with prime minister Najib Razak taking part in a rally in support of the Rohingyas. There have been calls for Malaysia to cut diplomatic ties with Myanmar.
“We must be very careful with how we deal with Myanmar,” said Fauziah. “We don’t want them to go back into isolation.”
Fauziah is a former ambassador to the Netherlands and once served as Malaysia’s permanent representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at the Hague.
In dealing with Myanmar, she said, Malaysia must not abandon the “Asean way” of constructive engagement and gentle persuasion in favour of a confrontational approach.
She also said it would not be possible for Malaysia to take the Rohingya issue to the International Court of Justice because that would require Myanmar’s agreement to participate in the deliberations.
“If you look at the Pulau Batu Puteh territorial dispute, both Malaysia and Singapore agreed to take it to the ICJ,” she said. “I don’t think Myanmar would want to go to the ICJ on this.”
Recently, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah Malaysia head Yusri Mohamad called on the ICJ to take action against Myanmar over the violence.
Fauziah, who currently resides in Britain, warned that taking a less than diplomatic route would have big implications for both Malaysia and Myanmar.
“We have a big presence in Myanmar,” she said. “For years, we have been investing there and drawing investments into the country, especially in the tourism, oil and gas, food and beverage, healthcare and manufacturing sectors.
“We are one of Myanmar’s largest trading partners and under the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP), we have trained more than 3,000 Myanmar nationals in various fields.”
The MTCP is a programme under the Foreign Affairs Ministry which sees Malaysia sharing its expertise in various fields by training people from other countries.
Fauziah also said Malaysia must not allow itself to be seen as selective in condemning ethnic cleansing. She noted that Putrajaya was largely silent in the past in the face of allegations of ethnic cleansing in Sudan and Rwanda.
She added that although many Malaysians were angry with what was happening in Myanmar, they must refrain from taking it out on Myanmar nationals here and the authorities must ensure the safety of the Myanmar nationals.
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2016/12/06/dont-push-myanmar-too-hard-ex-diplomat-tells-putrajaya/
| December 6, 2016
An ex-diplomat says Malaysia must opt for constructive engagement and gentle persuasion in trying to stop violence against Rohingyas.
PETALING JAYA: A former diplomat has warned Putrajaya against pushing Myanmar too hard on the Rohingya issue, saying it might tempt it to go back to the days when it isolated itself from the rest of the world.
Speaking to FMT, Fauziah Mohd Taib, who served in the foreign service for 35 years, recalled that Asean worked hard to bring Myanmar out of its decades of isolation and finally succeeded in 1997.
“In fact,” she said, “Malaysia was the first country to accept Myanmar as a member of Asean.”
In recent weeks, Myanmar has drawn international condemnation over violence allegedly carried out by the country’s security forces against the minority Rohingyas. According to reports, hundreds have been killed and raped and tens of thousands displaced.
Malaysia has taken a strong stance against the Myanmar government, with prime minister Najib Razak taking part in a rally in support of the Rohingyas. There have been calls for Malaysia to cut diplomatic ties with Myanmar.
“We must be very careful with how we deal with Myanmar,” said Fauziah. “We don’t want them to go back into isolation.”
Fauziah is a former ambassador to the Netherlands and once served as Malaysia’s permanent representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons at the Hague.
In dealing with Myanmar, she said, Malaysia must not abandon the “Asean way” of constructive engagement and gentle persuasion in favour of a confrontational approach.
She also said it would not be possible for Malaysia to take the Rohingya issue to the International Court of Justice because that would require Myanmar’s agreement to participate in the deliberations.
“If you look at the Pulau Batu Puteh territorial dispute, both Malaysia and Singapore agreed to take it to the ICJ,” she said. “I don’t think Myanmar would want to go to the ICJ on this.”
Recently, Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi and Yayasan Dakwah Islamiah Malaysia head Yusri Mohamad called on the ICJ to take action against Myanmar over the violence.
Fauziah, who currently resides in Britain, warned that taking a less than diplomatic route would have big implications for both Malaysia and Myanmar.
“We have a big presence in Myanmar,” she said. “For years, we have been investing there and drawing investments into the country, especially in the tourism, oil and gas, food and beverage, healthcare and manufacturing sectors.
“We are one of Myanmar’s largest trading partners and under the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP), we have trained more than 3,000 Myanmar nationals in various fields.”
The MTCP is a programme under the Foreign Affairs Ministry which sees Malaysia sharing its expertise in various fields by training people from other countries.
Fauziah also said Malaysia must not allow itself to be seen as selective in condemning ethnic cleansing. She noted that Putrajaya was largely silent in the past in the face of allegations of ethnic cleansing in Sudan and Rwanda.
She added that although many Malaysians were angry with what was happening in Myanmar, they must refrain from taking it out on Myanmar nationals here and the authorities must ensure the safety of the Myanmar nationals.
http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2016/12/06/dont-push-myanmar-too-hard-ex-diplomat-tells-putrajaya/
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