Najib: Bangladesh is not alone in Rohingya issue

Malaysia will not allow the Bangladeshi Government to tackle the issue of Rohingya refugees on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border alone, says Datuk Seri Najib Razak.

The prime minister said Malaysia would do all it could to provide them with humanitarian aid.

"According to the Bangladeshi High Commissioner to Malaysia, about 350,000 Rohingya refugees have escaped to Bangladesh.

"The scale of the catastrophe is very big as there are already 500,000 Rohingya who have escaped there earlier," he told reporters after flagging off the humanitarian mission, 'My Nation Is Concerned' at the Subang Air Force Base here today.

The 12 tonnes of food aid and other necessities were sent to Chittagong, Bangladesh using two A400M TUDM aircraft.

Najib said a reconnaisance team would also be sent to Dhaka, Bangladesh on Monday to discuss with the Bangladeshi Government on the follow-up action that could be taken to help the ethnic Rohingya refugees.

He said 35 iM4U volunteers would also be sent in the humanitarian mission.

"We thank the Bangladeshi Government for giving very good co-operation to Malaysia to implement this humanitarian mission," he added.

Najib said Malaysia was compelled to carry out the humanitarian mission as the catastrophe befalling the Rohingyas had reached a very frightening proportion.

"We cannot treat it lightly because according to the report we have received, they are being mercilessly persecuted with actions that are totally inhumane.

“It was perpetrated as planned that they are abused and tortured, killed, raped and (subjected to) every frightening acts,” he said.

Najib said he would also raise the humanitarian crisis in his meeting with United States President, Donald Trump on Tuesday.

“I will raise this issue for his consideration but he (Trump) also has many other challenges on his plate, including tension with North Korea,” he said.

Asked if the Nobel Peace Award given to Myanmar’s First State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi should be withdrawn, Najib said: "This is a separate issue, but the response by the Myanmar Government is rather disappointing," he said.

-- BERNAMA