Rohingya refugees go missing as boat topples in Myanmar river

“Please do something. The UN do something”.

Speaking at the rally, Razak said, “it is a proud day for all Muslims in the country that we all stood up for a humanitarian cause which affected our brothers and sisters in Myanmar”.

On Sunday, Razak told rally participants – including thousands of Rohingya, many of them refugees – that the gathering at Titiwangsa Stadium was aimed at telling Suu Kyi – a Nobel Peace laureate – “that enough is enough”.

Ms Suu Kyi, a Nobel Laureate who endured years of house arrest under Myanmar’s military junta, has faced worldwide criticism for failing to help the Rohingya.

Several videos which are in the public domain however, tell a story different from Suu Kyi’s assurances. “I will not. We must defend them (Rohingyas), not just because they are of the same faith, but they are humans, their lives have value”, he said to the largely Muslim crowd.

The European Union has commented on the recent developments in Myanmar where Rohingya refugees from the country’s northwestern Rakhine state are flooding across the border into Bangladesh, fleeing violence, rape and torture.

The ERC said that Myanmar security forces started collective punishment of Rohingya in response to an attack on border guard outpost by unknown assailants on Oct 9.

Myanmar’s 1.1 million Rohingya make up most of the population in the region of Rakhine.

A law passed in Myanmar in 1982 denied Rohingya – many of whom have lived in Myanmar for generations – citizenship, making them stateless.

There have been repeated reports Myanmar’s military has gang-raped women, murdered civilians and set ablaze Rohingya villages, pushing thousands of desperate people into neighboring Bangladesh. Global observers, journalists and aid agencies face severe restrictions of movement while trying to verify the claims in the area.

When asked whether he agreed with recent comments in which Suu Kyi accused the worldwide community of stoking resentment between Buddhists and Muslims in Rakhine, Annan responded that Myanmar needs more cooperation from the global community.

Former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan says he would not describe the violence being committed against Myanmar’s Rohingya minority as “genocide”.

“ASEAN countries should respect the actions of Myanmar on the Rakhine State issue”, he said.

He also called on Indonesia and its President Joko Widodo to stand with Malaysia against Myanmar on the issue.

Protesters held placards with photos of Mr Najib and the words “Condemnation of Malaysia Prime Minister, Don’t Pressure Myanmar Government”.

Reporters at the event on Tuesday questioned former United Nations secretary Annan about whether Burmese security forces were committing genocide against the self-identifying Rohingya population in Arakan State’s Maungdaw Township, as some global coverage of the region’s crisis has suggested.

During Annan’s visit to the state, Rakhine community leaders and political party officials refused to meet him, saying that his use of the word “Rohingya” showed that he was biased.