STOP THE HATE CAMPAIGN AGAINST THE ETHNIC ROHINGYA IN
MALAYSIA. THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS ESPECIALLY TIK TOK AND FACEBOOK MUST BE
MADE ACCOUNTABLE.
Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human
Rights Organization in Malaysia (MERHROM) is deeply concerned on the ongoing xenophobia
and hate campaign against the Rohingya refugees in Malaysia following the false
accusations against me, Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani, President of MERHROM on 21st April
2020.
Though the hate campaign slowed
down 2 years later, it started again in January 2023 resulting in the
harassment, threats and hate crime against the Rohingya refugees. MERHROM have
received reports of hate crime from the Rohingya refugees here including hit
and run and physical attacks. Many Rohingya refugees contacted MERHROM as they
are living in fear due to harassment from locals. This prevents them from
going to work resulting in them facing difficulties to feed their families.
In the holy month of Ramadan, we
call each and everyone to stop the hate campaign and respect each other. We
understand there are some issues that need to be addressed in regards to the
Rohingya refugees here but this is not the best way to resolve it as it led to
more abuses and harassment towards the Rohingya.
The false accusations against me
in 2020, that I demanded Malaysian citizenship and equal rights for the
Rohingya in Malaysia was spread again massively in the social media platforms
especially on Tik Tok and Facebook. This has provoked people and increased
the anger of Malaysians. This is fake news and most people are still believing
this resulting in the Rohingya refugees facing continuous harassment and hatred
crime.
The impact of the hate campaign
is very dangerous especially to the affected community. We must play our part
to prevent the hate campaign. Refugees are not threats, we are victims of war, genocide
and conflict who fled our countries to seek refuge and protection. We do not
come here to steal locals’ jobs or to take over the county. We are here to seek
protection temporarily until UNHCR finds a durable solution for us.
The false narrative against the
Rohingya refugees must be corrected. If not, it will be cancerous in society
which will not be beneficial to anyone. It will destroy the country’s
reputation as Malaysia is known as a multi-ethnic society that lives with high
tolerance.
The authorities, civil society
organizations, media, social media platforms and the public must do their part
to combat xenophobia and hate speech. The xenophobia against the Rohingya
refugees only strengthens Islamophobia. Slanders, fake news, hatred and insults
are not allowed by Islam and all religions in the world. Therefore, we must
fight xenophobia as much as we fight Islamophobia.
We understand that there are a
number of issues that have resulted in the dissatisfaction of Malaysians
related to the Rohingya refugees. We hope the Malaysian government, UNHCR,
SUHAKAM, civil society organizations and the Rohingya representatives will sit
together to address these issues collectively without delay for the benefit of
all parties.
The Rohingya were made stateless
by the Myanmar government for long decades. We were denied basic rights to live
including education. Therefore, the comprehensive policy is crucial to manage refugees
and asylum seekers in the country including to educate them on the country's
laws and culture. This will reduce the tension between local and refugee
communities.
Rohingya refugees who have been sent
to a third country by the UNHCR are able to adapt and comply with the country's
laws as a result of the comprehensive law and policy on refugees of that
particular country. They are able to access education and become successful
citizens. They became good citizens and productive workers of that country.
Xenophobia, Islamophobia and hate
speech only put people's lives at risk. Immediate measures and long-term
strategies must be drafted to stop abuses and human rights violations. As the
most persecuted ethnic group in the world, we call upon United Nations
including USA, CANADA, EU, ASEAN, OIC, Australia, New Zealand, human rights
agencies, civil society organizations, media and the international community to
take necessary and practical actions against the military junta to stop
genocide and atrocities in Myanmar. The people of Myanmar are suffering from
time to time. They will be forced to leave the country continuously if we fail
to stop the genocide and atrocity in Myanmar.
Finally, we call upon the
resettlement countries to increase quota for the resettlement for the Rohingya
as many of us are still waiting for the resettlement for the past 2
decades.
Yours sincerely,
Zafar Ahmad Abdul Ghani
President
Myanmar Ethnic Rohingya Human Rights Organization in
Malaysia (MERHROM)
Tel No: +6016-6827 287
Blog: www.merhrom.wordpress.com
Email: rights4rohingya@yahoo.co.uk,
rights4rohingyas@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/zafar.ahmad.
https://twitter.com/merhromZafar
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