Malaysia asks ASEAN to help resolve Rohingya crisis

Malaysia on Monday said the plight of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar was a regional concern and called for the ASEAN to coordinate humanitarian aid and investigate alleged atrocities committed against them.

Malaysia on Monday said the plight of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar was a regional concern and called for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to coordinate humanitarian aid and investigate alleged atrocities committed against them.

Indonesia’s foreign minister Retno Marsudi (L) and Myanmar state counsellor and foreign minister Aung San Suu Kyi (C) attend the ASEAN meeting in Yangon on Monday. (AFP photo)

Malaysian foreign minister Anifah Aman said progress in improving the human rights of the Rohingya people in Rakhine state had been “rather slow” and reports of arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings and rape by soldiers were continuing.

“We believe that the situation is now of a regional concern and should be resolved together,” Anifah told a meeting with his ASEAN counterparts in Yangon, according to a transcript of his speech provided by the Malaysian ministry of foreign affairs.