Rohingya: In need of creative diplomacy

The Rohingya muslims in Myanmar's Rakhine state are persecuted at home, rejected or barely tolerated in Bangladesh and elsewhere, and are sacrificed at the altar of strategic calculations by powerful neighbours. Moreover, the refugee crisis in Europe has overshadowed their plight.

Both institutionally discriminated and denied basic human rights in a legally-sanctioned manner as well as removed from the mainstream, over a million Rohingyas homeless.

They are not recognised by the Myanmar government as an official ethnic group and are therefore denied citizenship in accordance with 1982 Citizenship Law promulgated by the erstwhile military junta.

The false claim is that the Rohingyas were never present in Myanmar until the British engineered their migration in 1823 from East Benga

Even those who arrived in Burma post-1823 could not go back to Bangladesh now given that they have no citizenship claims there. This effectively makes them a stateless people.

Recent events

The state-induced mass exodus has been taking place ever since nine police officers were killed by alleged Rohingya militants in October 2016. The result has been that hundreds of people have been killed at the hands of the military, many more hundreds have disappeared, scores of women sexually assaulted, villages razed to the ground, and tens of thousands have fled the country.

Myanmar, however, denies that its military has committed any wrong as also a government-appointed inquiry committee recently concluded that "there were no cases of genocide and religious persecution in the region".

Change, but no change

What makes the anti-Rohingya violence in Myanmar even more distressing is that all of this is now happening under the stewardship of Aung San Suu Kyi, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her courageous and inspiring "non-violent struggle for democracy and human rights".

Ms. Suu Kyi's precarious political position makes it hard for her to respond to the crisis as effectively as she could have. Despite the return of democracy in 2015, the military continues to have a strong hold over the civilian government in Myanmar, especially on key issues such as defence, border affairs and home affairs. The country's constitution also reserves one-fourth of the seats in Parliament for the military.

And yet, Ms. Suu Kyi's response to the Rohingya crisis has been both inadequate and half-hearted. For example, she has not fully acknowledged the extent of violence the Rohingyas are systematically subjected to by the government she leads. In August last year, Ms. Suu Kyi formed an advisory commission on Rakhine State under the chairmanship of Kofi Annan, former Secretary General of the United Nations, seems to be an advisory body for development and reconciliation rather than one that can objectively investigate violence committed against the Rohingya community.

Geostrategic considerations

The predicament of the Rohingyas is also a result of contemporary geopolitical realities and strategic calculations by key stakeholders in the region and elsewhere.

The Western world is busy with the unfolding of events in Syria and the resultant refugee crisis. Hence they would not want to get bogged down with the Rohingyas, whose plight has no direct bearing on the West's interests.

Having steadfastly invested in the pro-democracy movement led by Ms. Suu Kyi, and by recently lifting the 20-year-long sanctions against Myanmar, the U.S. finds itself in no position to bargain or put pressure on the country.

In May 2015, when the UN Security Council held a closed-door briefing on the human rights situation in Myanmar, China made it clear that it was an internal matter of Myanmar. For Beijing, its relationship with Myanmar's Generals is important to gain access to the country's natural resources, and recruiting Myanmar for China's larger economic goals which include opening a land corridor to the Bay of Bengal.

India's calculations

India, a traditional home for Myanmar's pro-democracy activists, has been reluctant to either speak out about the violence against the Rohingyas or accommodate them in significant numbers.

Beijing's closeness to Myanmar clearly worries New Delhi.

Its reluctance also comes from the fact that Myanmar's assistance is seen as significant in dealing with the insurgency in the Northeast.

Moreover, should we expect China, or for that matter India, to speak out against Myanmar's human rights violations when both have enough human rights skeletons in the cupboard?

In any case, the Rohingyas are of no strategic value to anyone. Compare this to how both India and China rushed in with aid during the earthquake in Nepal nearly two years ago.

New Delhi's record of accommodating the Rohingyas is manifestly better than that of Beijing as it has accepted thousands of Rohingyas over the past many years. Yet, this policy may already be undergoing some changes, slowly but steadily. Today, many Rohingyas are either turned away while trying to enter the country or sent to jail for illegal entry. Recall that India has not signed the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol which require countries to accept refugees.

The new bill, the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016, proposes that Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis and Christians entering India from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan not be considered as "illegal immigrants". While the proposed amendment is technically 'pro-minority', it certainly is anti-Muslim.

Need for imaginative diplomacy

Although New Delhi's reluctance to speak out publicly about the violations against the Rohingyas is understandable, it can ill afford to ignore the crisis in Myanmar.

Even if human rights considerations are the least of New Delhi's worries, it is clearly in its interest to ensure that stability and peace return to the Rakhine state. For one, as and when peace returns to Myanmar, India can ask the latter to rehabilitate the Rohingyas (like it did vis-a-vis East Pakistan refugees after the 1971 war).

Second, a stable and democratic Myanmar will naturally gravitate towards New Delhi. Third, and perhaps most importantly, the Rohingya crisis, if it remains unsettled, can become a path toward radicalisation and pose a greater security threat for India. There are reports of increasing radicalisation among sections of the Rohingya community.

New Delhi should use creative diplomacy to persuade Myanmar to resolve the Rohingya crisis. It should perhaps consider appointing a special envoy for this purpose who should hold discreet negotiations with Myanmar's military, Ms. Suu Kyi, Dhaka and Beijing in order to bring an end to the crisis.