Condemning the situation in Rakhine State, Burma/Myanmar, the European Parliament hinted on Thursday 14 September that it could withdraw the Sakharov Prize from its 1990 winner Aung San Suu Kyi if she did not do more to defend the rights of the Rohingya minority.
"The prize is awarded to those who, among other criteria, defend human rights, protect minority rights and respect international law", the Parliament states in a joint resolution from the Greens/EFA, S&D, GUE, ECR, ALDE and EPP Groups that it adopted, underlining the "need to assess if the Sakharov Prize could be revoked in cases of violation of its criteria after the prize has been awarded".
"We supported her battles for a long time, but here Aung San Suu Kyi is turning her head away. If she continues, the Parliament will have to start the process of withdrawing the Sakharov Prize from her", the chair of the European Parliament's sub-committee on human rights, Pier Antonio Panzeri (S&D, Italy) said during the debate that preceded the vote on the resolution. In the view of Younous Omarjee (GUE, France), Aung San Suu Kyi has "today become unworthy of the prize we have given her".
In their resolution, the MEPs ask the Burmese government, "and especially Aung San Suu Kyi", to strongly condemn any incitement to racial or religious hatred and to fight against social discrimination and hostility against the Rohingya minority. They state that the authorities have the obligation to protect, without discrimination, all civilians against abuses, to carry out investigations into serious human rights cases and to prosecute those responsible.
During the debate, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini said that "the responsibility of the country's leaders, be it civilians or the army, is today enormous because they – and particularly Aung San Suu Kyi – have been a source of inspiration for the whole world". "They must show that the democracy for which they fought so hard can work for all the people of Burma, beyond ethnic, social and religious boundaries", she added.
With hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence, MEPs call for humanitarian aid organisations to be able to have access to all conflict zones and all displaced people, without discrimination. The MEPs call on the European Commission and member states to step up their material and financial support for the refugees.
The MEPs also call on the EU and its member states to increase their pressure significantly on the Burmese government and security forces, and to play an active role for "immediate action at the level of the UN". In the MEPs' view, the EU and its member states should show clearly that the EU is ready to plan for targeted punitive sanctions against people and companies, and to examine the consequences as part of the trade preferences given to Burma, if the serious violations of international law continue with impunity.
During the debate, several MEPs also called for the cancellation of next week's visit to Burma of a delegation from the European Parliament's international trade committee. The EPP Group has already announced that none of its members will take part in the delegation. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)