An honour bestowed on Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi by the city of Oxford has been withdrawn as a reaction to her perceived inadequate response to the plight of Rohingya Muslims in the country.
The ‘Freedom of Oxford’ had been granted to the de facto leader of Myanmar in 1997 for her “long struggle for democracy” by the Oxford City Council.
A cross-party motion was unanimously passed by the council on Monday which said it was “no longer appropriate” for her to hold the honour.
Oxford City Council leader Bob Price supported the motion to remove er honour and confirmed it was an “unprecedented step” for the local authority.
The city council will hold a special meeting to confirm that the honour is removed on November 27.
Suu Kyi, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, has close links to the city of Oxford, having lived in Park Town with her family and earlier attended St Hugh’s College from 1964 until 1967.
The city council’s move comes days after her alma mater, St Hugh’s, removed her portrait from the main college entrance.
While the exact reasons for the portrait’s removal were attributed to a new replacement, there is a wider view that the allegations of ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya Muslims fleeing their homes to Bangladesh is likely to be behind the move.
Nearly 500,000 people belonging to Myanmar’s Rohingya minority have been displaced after violence allegedly instigated by the country’s military, causing a major humanitarian crisis.
Over 10,000 Rohingya at border as exodus swells again: Myanmar media
Yangon: More than 10,000 Rohingya have massed near a crossing point with Bangladesh, Myanmar media said on Tuesday, as an exodus continues to swell with food supplies low and hostility towards them surging.
The ongoing flight, that has already seen over 500,000 Rohingya enter Bangladesh since last month, casts doubt on the practicality of a Myanmar proposal aired on Monday to begin repatriation of the Muslim minority.
Bangladesh rescues 20 Rohingya held by refugee racket gang
Cox’s Bazar: Bangladesh police have rescued 20 Rohingya after busting a gang which ferried the refugees from Myanmar but demanded thousands of dollars for the boat ride, an official said on Tuesday. The Rapid Action Battalion raided a village near the border with Myanmar late Monday to free the Rohingya Muslims who had been held there for a day, said Major Ruhul Amin.
The RAB chief who led the operation at Sabrung near Cox’s Bazar said the 20 included seven women, five men and eight children.