Arakan News Agency
Stafford MP Jeremy Lefroy has welcomed the response of the new Secretary of State for International Development, Penny Mordaunt MP, to the Rohingya crisis. After a visit to Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh to meet Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi government officials, she set out how this issue is now one of her top priorities.
The Rohingya people have faced persecution, discrimination and aggression in Arakan State, being forced from their homes by intimidation, violence and hunger. The Secretary of State has called this a clear case of ethnic cleansing.
Whilst in Bangladesh the Secretary of State announced an extra £12 million for the Rohingya crisis to provide urgently needed food now and ensure that more lives are not put at risk when international funding starts to run out in February 2018. This brings the UK’s total support to £59 million since 25 August 2017. This includes £5m in matched funding for public donations to the Disasters Emergencies Committee appeal, which through the extraordinary generosity of the British public has now raised £21 million.
The UK has also pressed the Burmese authorities repeatedly at the highest levels and has proposed and secured unanimous agreement for a Presidential Statement at the UN Security Council, calling for the military to end violence and to guarantee unrestricted humanitarian access.
During her visit, the Secretary of State met representatives of the Bangladeshi government. She commended them for their generosity and humanity shown in providing refuge and support for many refugees, but also pressed them on the importance of ensuring that the returns process, currently being discussed with the Government of Burma, is voluntary, safe, and in line with humanitarian principles. She also noted that those conditions are not yet being met.
The UK has led the international response in terms of scale and speed, and remains committed to supporting in the long term. The UK continues to lobby others to both provide more and to disburse their commitments quickly, also working with the UN and agencies on the ground in Bangladesh to improve coordination and to enhance protection, in particular for vulnerable and traumatized women and girls.
Commenting Jeremy said:
“It has been heart-breaking to see the intimidation and violence directed at the Rohingya people in the last few months. We must always seek to advocate for the voiceless and therefore I fully support the actions of the new Secretary of State in maintaining the longstanding commitment of DFID and the UK government to building peace and championing the rights of refugees in Burma.”
