22 February 2018•Update: 22 February 2018
By Yusuf Hatip
BRUSSELS
It is obvious that what is happening in Rohingya is an ethnic cleansing and Rohingya blood is not cheaper than European blood, said the member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the United Kingdom.
Wajid Khan, speaking to Anadolu Agency on his return from visiting the refugee camps in southeastern Bangladeshi district of Cox's Bazar, said the number of Rohingya refugees who had fled Myanmar now exceeded a million.
"There are 27,000 children without both their parents. Sixty-thousand women are pregnant there. They are not living there, they are merely surviving. As a citizen of the world, as a fellow human being, it breaks my heart and hurts my feelings to see Rohingya people being subjected to torture," he said.
Khan noted that Turkish aid organizations were very active and among the first to respond by coming to the region to help the refugees.
‘What happens in Arakan is ethnic cleansing’
Wajid Khan said it was clear that Myanmar was committing a genocide.
"The UN has also said it is a textbook example of ethnic cleansing and it is harrowing to see a country persecuting its own people," he said.
He stressed that the Rohingya Muslims had been leaving Myanmar for a long time because they were dehumanized just because they were not Buddhists.
"Myanmar’s de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi is claimed to be a human rights defender and supporter but she has ignored this biggest human catastrophe since Rwanda in 1995," Khan said, adding: "Rohingya blood is not cheaper than European blood. It is important as well. They have rights. They are not asking for charity. They want rights. We as individuals and international communities should all stand up and support them against these oppressions."
More than 688,000 refugees, mostly children and women, have fled Myanmar since Aug. 25, 2017 when Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community, according to the UN.
At least 9,000 Rohingya were killed in Rakhine state from Aug. 25 to Sept. 24, according to Doctors Without Borders.
In a report published on Dec. 12, 2017, the global humanitarian organization said the deaths of 71.7 percent or 6,700 Rohingya were caused by violence. They include 730 children below the age of 5.
The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.
The UN has documented mass gang rapes, killings -- including of infants and young children -- brutal beatings and disappearances committed by security personnel. In a report, UN investigators said such violations may have constituted crimes against humanity.
* Faruk Zorlu contributed to this story from Ankara.
