US reaffirms support for Rohingya genocide survivors

The United States (US) has reaffirmed its commitment to supporting survivors of the Rohingya genocide, as Washington marked the anniversary of the atrocities committed by Myanmar in 2017.

“The United States stands with the survivors of the Rohingya genocide and is committed to providing life-saving assistance to affected members of Rohingya communities and those affected by the crisis in Burma (Myanmar), Bangladesh, and the region,” said US Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken in a statement marking the Rohingya Genocide Remembrance Day.

He said the ongoing humanitarian crisis and human rights abuses in Burma exacerbate difficulties faced by members of many of Myanamr’s ethnic and religious minority groups and Rohingya in particular.

Over the past seven years, he said the US has contributed nearly $2.4 billion to humanitarian assistance while it conducted extensive documentation of the atrocities and abuses committed against Rohingya and all civilians.

“Our support for the people of Burma (Myanmar) in their aspirations for a democratic, inclusive, and peaceful future is unwavering, as are our calls on all parties to protect civilians from harm,” Blinkin said in the statement.

Since August 25 in 2017, Bangladesh has been hosting over million forcefully displaced Rohingyas in Cox’s Bazar district and most of them arrived there after a military crackdown by Myanmar, which the UN called a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing” and other rights groups dubbed it as “genocide”.

In the last seven years, not a single Rohingya went back home.

Myanmar agreed to take them back, but repatriation attempts failed twice due to trust deficit among the Rohingyas about their safety and security in Rakhine state.