Pakistani delegation to attend ‘extraordinary session’ of OIC on Rohingya Muslims

Foreign Affairs  Adviser Sartaj Aziz will lead a delegation on Thursday to the Extraordinary Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of OIC being held in Kuala Lumpur to discuss the situation of Rohingya Muslims Community in Myanmar and measures for the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Rakhine State, according to Radio Pakistan.

The session has been convened at the request of the Government of Malaysia, which  is also expected to emphasize addressing the root causes of violence and taking steps for the return of displaced Rohingya population.

Pakistan has long raised the issue of Rohingya Muslims at various international forums, urging the OIC to take necessary steps to alleviate the sufferings of Rohingya Muslims.

The Extraordinary Session of the Foreign Ministers is expected to adopt a Final Communiqué and a Resolution on the situation of the Rohingya Muslim Minority in Myanmar which will be presented for discussion during the meeting. 

Refugees, residents and human rights groups say Myanmar soldiers have committed summary executions, raped Rohingya women and burned homes since military operations started in the north of Rakhine State.

The government of predominantly Buddhist Myanmar, led by Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi, has denied the accusations, saying many of the reports are fabricated, and it insists the strife in Rakhine State, where many Rohingya live, is an internal matter.

Malaysia, which is Southeast Asia's third-largest economy, broke the tradition of non-intervention by members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) by speaking out on the conflict, calling on the 10-member bloc to coordinate humanitarian aid and investigate alleged atrocities committed against the ethnic group. Web Desk-Reuters