Anne Main MP has continued her campaign for the rights and protections of the Rohingya refugees in Parliament today. Mrs Main campaigned for a debate on the floor of the House of Commons to raise the refugees’ continued plight in Burma and southern Bangladesh.
Anne, alongside Rushanara Ali MP, secured the debate on the motion:
“That this House is deeply concerned by the ongoing humanitarian crisis facing Rohingya refugees; agrees with the findings of the UN fact-finding mission that genocide and war crimes have been carried out against the Rohingya by senior Myanmar military figures; calls on the Government to pursue an ICC referral for Myanmar through the UN Security Council; and further calls on the Government to put pressure on the United Nations to prevent the repatriation of the Rohingya from Bangladesh to unsafe conditions in Myanmar and to continue to provide assistance to Rohingya refugees.”
During her speech, Mrs Main highlighted the extremely horrific conditions facing Rohingya refugees in the camps, saying ‘This is a burning injustice, I have seen the vast tide of suffering endured by those people in the camps. Kutupalong, one of the camps I visited, now has a population of over 700,000. That is the same size as the city of Glasgow…..The sheer scale of the crisis is enormous.
‘Last year, we talked about ethnic cleansing, today we are talking about genocide and crimes against humanity.
‘The UN report says that this is “an ongoing genocide”, that word, ongoing, should fill us with terror. This is still happening today. NGOs report that up to 100 Rohingya crossed the border last month, yet there is talk of returns to safety now. This cannot happen until the right conditions are met by Burma.’
Mrs Main also spoke about the conditions facing young girls and pregnant women in the camps. Mrs Main said, ‘there are some estimates that up to 50% of young girls in the camps are pregnant or have recently given birth. Only 1 in 5 give birth in medical facilities with others forced to give birth in squalid conditions in the camps. This is incredibly worrying and we must do everything we can to help these young girls.’
Mrs Main called for the UK government to do everything possible to bring justice and accountability against those that have ‘committed the most horrendous crimes’ against the Rohingya. The St Albans MP also pressed for further humanitarian aid for those in the camps. The UK government has committed over £129 million in the aid effort so far.
Watch: Anne Main, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Bangladesh, talks about the Rohingya crisis and urges support for @DECappeal pic.twitter.com/FFL0lq8O0A
— DFID (@DFID_UK) October 12, 2017