Persecution must stop

International pressure on Myanmar soared yesterday as US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called the violence against Rohingya minorities "unacceptable".

And the European Parliament urged European Union to make it clear that the 28-nation block was prepared to consider sanctions on Myanmar if it did not halt human rights abuses.

"We need to support Aung San Suu Kyi and her leadership but also be very clear and unequivocal to the military power sharing in that government that this is unacceptable," Rex Tillerson said of Myanmar's first civilian leader in decades.

"This violence must stop. This persecution must stop. It has been characterised by many as ethnic cleansing. That must stop," he said during a visit to London, speaking alongside British counterpart Boris Johnson.

Johnson also called on Myanmar's de facto leader to use her "moral capital" to highlight the plight of the Rohingyas, reported AFP.

The EP, which had its session in Strasbourg, France, passed a resolution urging Suu Kyi to “condemn unequivocally” all incitement to racial and religious hatred and to combat discrimination and hostilities against Rohingya minority.

It demanded the Myanmar military and security forces to end its crackdown on the Rohingyas in the country's Rakhine.

The parliamentary resolution also called upon the military "to immediately cease the killings, harassment and rape of the Rohingya people, and the burning of their homes."

The EP has called on the vice-president of European Commission and high representatives of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the EU Member States to “significantly” increase their pressure on the Myanmar government and security forces.

This is to push the Myanmar rulers to stop violence, fully cooperate with UN investigators and international humanitarian agencies and ensure accountability for grave violations of international law.

The parliament also called on the EU and its member states, “to take an active role in supporting immediate action at UN level and making clear that the EU stands ready to consider targeted punitive sanctions against individuals and entities”.

The resolution called on the EU to make it clear that the “EU stands ready to consider targeted punitive sanctions against individuals and entities, and to consider consequences in the context of the trade preferences Myanmar enjoys, should grave violations in international law continue with impunity.”

The members of the European Parliament (MEPs) reminded Suu Kyi that she was the recipient of the European Parliament's Sakharov Prize, awarded to those "who defend human rights, safeguard the rights of minorities and respect international law."

The lawmakers questioned if the Sakharov Prize could be revoked in cases where laureates violate those criteria after the prize has been awarded.

The resolution acknowledged the efforts by Bangladesh in the face of this humanitarian catastrophe. The resolution called on the EC and the member states to increase financial and material support for these refugees.

The European Parliament urged China and other international and regional actors to use all channels to demand an end to the atrocities and bring about a peaceful resolution.

Also yesterday, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker condemned the crisis in Myanmar as a “shocking catastrophe.”