MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on Myanmar, notably the situation of Rohingyas

5.7.2016 - (2016/2809(RSP))

with request for inclusion in the agenda for a debate on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law
pursuant to Rule 135 of the Rules of Procedure

Pier Antonio Panzeri, Victor Boştinaru, Knut Fleckenstein, Richard Howitt, Clara Eugenia Aguilera García, Eric Andrieu, Nikos Androulakis, Francisco Assis, Zigmantas Balčytis, Hugues Bayet, Brando Benifei, José Blanco López, Vilija Blinkevičiūtė, Simona Bonafè, Biljana Borzan, Soledad Cabezón Ruiz, Nicola Caputo, Andi Cristea, Miriam Dalli, Nicola Danti, Isabella De Monte, Jonás Fernández, Monika Flašíková Beňová, Doru-Claudian Frunzulică, Eider Gardiazabal Rubial, Enrico Gasbarra, Lidia Joanna Geringer de Oedenberg, Neena Gill, Sylvie Guillaume, Sergio Gutiérrez Prieto, Anna Hedh, Cătălin Sorin Ivan, Liisa Jaakonsaari, Agnes Jongerius, Eva Kaili, Afzal Khan, Jeppe Kofod, Javi López, Krystyna Łybacka, Louis-Joseph Manscour, Costas Mavrides, Marlene Mizzi, Sorin Moisă, Alessia Maria Mosca, Victor Negrescu, Momchil Nekov, Vincent Peillon, Pina Picierno, Tonino Picula, Kati Piri, Miroslav Poche, Liliana Rodrigues, Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández, Daciana Octavia Sârbu, Tibor Szanyi, Paul Tang, Claudia Țapardel, Marc Tarabella, Marita Ulvskog, Elena Valenciano, Julie Ward, Flavio Zanonato, Damiano Zoffoli on behalf of the S&D Group

See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B8-0910/2016

B8‑0915/2016

European Parliament resolution on Myanmar, notably the situation of Rohingyas

(2016/2809(RSP))

The European Parliament,

-  having regard to its previous resolutions on Burma/Myanmar and the Rohingya, in particular those of 20 April 2012 , 13 September 2012 , 22 November 2012, 13 June 2013 , 21 May 2015 and to its resolution of 23 May 2013 on reinstatement of Myanmar/Burma’s access to generalised tariff preferences

 

- having regard to the Council conclusions on EU strategy with Myanmar/Burma, 20 June 2016

 

-  having regard to the Elements for an EU strategy vis-à-vis Myanmar/Burma: A Special Partnership for Democracy, Peace and Prosperity, 1 June 2016

 

-  having regard to the Resolution adopted by the Human Rights Council on 24 March 2016 on the Situation of human rights in Myanmar and on 3 July 2015 on the situation of human rights of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar

 

-  having regard to the Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights: Situation of human rights of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar, 29 June 2016

 

- having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948,

 

- having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights of 1966,

 

- having regard to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights of 1966,

 

- having regard to the 1951 UN Convention on the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereto,

 

-  having regard to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Human Rights Declaration, notably paragraphs 13, 15, 16 and 18 thereof,

 

-  having regard to the "The Rohingya Crisis and the Risk of Atrocities in Myanmar: An ASEAN Challenge and Call to Action" report by ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights of April 2015,

 

-  having regard to Rule 123 (2) of its Rules of Procedure,

 

A. whereas human rights abuses against Rohingya communities and refugees constitute a threat to regional security in Southeast Asia; whereas a lasting solution to their extremely vulnerable situation can only be found in a regional framework with the participation of all countries concerned;

 

B. whereas Rohingyas continue to suffer from persecution, arbitrary detention, torture, forced displacement, abuse, and severe legal, economic, social and religious discrimination in Burma/Myanmar; whereas they continue to be arbitrarily deprived of their citizenship and remain therefore stateless; whereas impunity continues to prevail in the cases of crimes and atrocities against them;

 

C. whereas, according to ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights, some 150,000 Rohingyas remain in more than 80 internal displacement camps in Rakhine State, with limited access to humanitarian aid, while more than 100,000 others have fled by sea or land, often at the hands of human traffickers, to other countries over the past years; whereas many Rohingya refugees lost their lives in sinking boats or by being pushed back into the sea; whereas several thousands of Rohingyas are reportedly trapped in crowded wooden boats in inhuman conditions and urgent need of assistance in the region;

 

D. whereas over one million Rohingyas live as refugees or migrants outside Burma/Myanmar; whereas Bangladesh, India, Malaysia, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Thailand are the countries to which the largest numbers of Rohingyas have fled; whereas many of them are not recognised and protected as refugees, live and work illegally with no documentation, and are victims of violence, exploitation, exclusion, marginalisation, and extreme poverty;

 

E. whereas many Rohingya refugees, lacking documentation and being therefore unable to move freely outside Burma/Myanmar, seek the assistance of human traffickers; whereas many of them are forced into bounded labour, or become victims of other forms of exploitation by these traffickers;

 

H. whereas Rohingya migrants continue to be deported in the region, by local authorities in contradiction with the principle of non-refoulement and the right to seek asylum; whereas many of them are reportedly held in inhuman conditions in immigration detention centres;

 

I. whereas Burma/Myanmar is in a political transition but it is still, in practice, a stronghold of the military with some Ministries, Court Judges and parliamentary seats being reserved to military appointees; whereas corruption within the authorities is still being perceived as very high;

 

L. whereas there have been many reports regarding the working conditions in the garment industry with the use of cheap labour, very little safety and health protection and limited possibility to associate in a union;

 

1. Reiterates its deepest concern about the plight of Rohingya refugees in Southeast Asia and calls for regional and international mobilisation to provide them urgent assistance in their extremely vulnerable situation; expresses its condolences to the families of the victims of human traffickers, violence, and the lack of protection by official authorities in the countries of destination;

 

2. Calls on the government of Burma/Myanmar to put an immediate end, through concrete steps, to all forms of persecution, arbitrary detention, torture, forced displacement, abuse and discrimination against the Rohingyas, to fulfil its responsibility to protect them against violent attacks, intimidation and harassment, and to solve the problem of their legal citizenship status in cooperation and in agreement with them; insists that this should be a priority for the new government in transition;

 

3. Expresses its concern about the continued communal tensions, including anti-Muslim rhetoric and violence, in Rakhine State and in other parts of Burma/Myanmar; welcomes the draft ceasefire agreement signed by the government and ethnic armed groups on 31 March 2015, and urges all parties to continue on the path of political dialogue; reminds the government and other parties of their responsibility to resolve the underlying issues behind communal tensions and violence in the country;

 

4. Condemns strongly all forms of violence, torture, abuse and exploitation of Rohingya refugees in Southeast Asia; urges all countries concerned to work together to address their extremely vulnerable situation and often inhuman conditions; encourages the European Union and the international community to play an active role in this field and to provide support and incentives to the countries concerned;

 

5. Stresses the importance of regional cooperation also in the field of fighting human trafficking in Southeast Asia; underlines the important role ASEAN can play in this regard;

 

7. expresses, however, its concern about reports of refoulement of Rohingya asylum seekers and the turning back at sea of potential refugees in the region; urges the government and the relevant authorities of all countries in the region to fully comply with the principle of non-refoulement and to protect Rohingya refugees in line with their international obligations and international human rights standards;

 

8. Urges the High Representative/Vice-President to put and keep the situation of Rohingya communities and refugees in Southeast Asia high on the agenda of the EU's political dialogue with Burma/Myanmar, ASEAN and its member countries;

 

9. Urges the EU Delegation to investigate the issue of working conditions in the garment industry, especially those factories that trade with EU companies;

 

10. Invites the Government of Burma/Myanmar to ratify without delay the 5 out of 8 core ILO conventions that have not been ratified and to adopt new labour laws in line with these conventions;

 

9. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy/Vice President of the Commission, the parliaments and governments of Member States, the parliament and government of Burma/Myanmar, and the parliaments and governments of ASEAN member countries.