Rohingya Issue: Canada revokes Aung San Suu Kyi’s honorary citizenship

Canada Parliament have unanimously voted to revoke the honorary citizenship of Nobel laureate and Myanmar leader Aung San Suu kyi. The motion comes after Myanmar leader failed to stop continuous persecution of the Rohingya minority in her country.

Notably, Aung San Suu Kyi received the Nobel Peace Prize in the year 1991 for bringing democracy in Myanmar at a time when the country was ruled by Military.

According to the United Nations report, at least 700,000 Rohingyas have fled due to violence in the country in the past 12 months. The report stressed, Suu Kyi must be investigated for genocide against Rohingyas.

The voting situation came after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that parliament was reconsidering whether Myanmar leader Suu Kyi still deserved the honour of Canadian citizenship. Trudeau further said, it would not end the plight of thousands of Rohingya people, a Muslim minority people who are stateless in Buddhist majority Myanmar.

Suu Kyi’s popularity around the world has phenomenally nosedived after refusing to take actions against atrocities by Myanmar’s military against Rohingya Muslim, which was declared a genocide by Ottawa.

In 2007, Ms Suu Kyi was granted Canadian honorary citizenship — she was among six to be recognised. The honorary citizenship was conferred in Canada by a joint resolution of both the houses of Parliament. A Canadian official told Reuters, “it must be formally removed the same way.”

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Member of Parliament Salma Zahid called Aung San Suu Kyi’s “unwillingness to take any moral leadership … inexcusable, and deeply disappointing”.

Parliament just unanimously agreed to revoke the honorary Canadian citizenship of Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi. Her unwillingness to take any moral leadership for the genocide of the Rohingya in her country is inexcusable, and deeply disappointing.

— Salma Zahid (@SalmaZahid15) September 27, 2018

“Today, the House unanimously passed a motion to remove this status,” said Adam Austen, spokesman for Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, Thursday.

While, Myanmar military has denied all persecution and justified it as a legitimate means of rooting out Rohingya militants. But after a fact-finding mission, the United Nations on Thursday set up a panel to prepare indictments against Myanmar’s army chief and five other top military commanders for crime against humanity.

“We will continue to support the Rohingya by providing humanitarian assistance, imposing sanctions against Myanmar generals and demanding that those responsible be held accountable before a competent international body,” Chrystia Freeland told international news agency AFP.

Myanmar leader Ms Suu Kyi apart, the Canadian honorary citizenship has been granted to five other distinguished people including the Dalai Lama, girls’ education advocate Malala Yousafzai and Nelson Mandela.

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