Guterres: Engaging with Arakan Army is crucial to uphold Rohingya rights

Amnesty International has also condemned the actions of the Myanmar security forces and called the response disproportionate, compounding the "dehumanising" conditions of Rohingya.

United Nations: Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said that it was “important to engage” with the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) to fully respect the rights of Rohingyas while finding a solution to the refugee crisis.

“The Arakan army is an entity with which, I believe, a necessary dialogue must take place”, he said at a joint news conference with Bangladesh interim leader Muhammad Yunus in Dhaka on Saturday.

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ARSA carried out a massacre of Hindus in Rakhine State in Myanmar in August 2017 and abducted others — incidents documented by Amnesty International.

“We know that in the past, the relations between the Rakhine and the Rohingya communities were not easy, and so, I think it’s important to engage the Arakan army for the full respect of the rights of the Rohingya population in Rakhine”, Guterres said according to the UN transcript of the media encounter.

ARSA is led by Ataullah Abu Ammar Jununi, a Pakistan-born ethnic Rohingya.

Amnesty International has documented the massacre of about 100 Hindus by ARSA at Ah Nauk Kha Maung Seik in Rakhine State in August 2017.

It said that there were other killings of Hindus and abductions of Hindu women whose lives were spared when they agreed to convert to Islam.

The massacre of Hindus took place on August 17 before ARSA launched a coordinated attack on several Myanmar security posts on August 25, setting off retaliatory attacks by Myanmar forces on Rohingya.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas fled Rakhine State and took refuge in Bangladesh as the Myanmar security forces carried out an indiscriminate massive attack on them.

Amnesty International has also condemned the actions of the Myanmar security forces and called the response disproportionate, compounding the “dehumanising” conditions of Rohingya.

There are now over 1 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Guterres visited a refugee camp in Cox’s Bazaar on Friday for an Iftar event with about 60,000 of them.

At his news conference, Guterres praised Bangladesh’s generosity in providing them refuge.

“By offering Rohingya refugees sanctuary, Bangladesh has demonstrated solidarity and human dignity, often at significant social, environmental and economic cost”, he said.

He said, “The United Nations is fully committed to working with Bangladesh and others in finding a lasting solution to the Rohingya crisis that enables their safe, voluntary, dignified, and sustainable return to Myanmar”.

Warning that the situation in the country continues to deteriorate, he called on “all parties in Myanmar to exercise maximum restraint, prioritize the protection of civilians in accordance with international humanitarian law, and prevent further incitement of communal tension and violence”.

Bangladesh itself experienced a political crisis last year when mass protests forced out the elected prime minister, Sheikh Hasina. The country is now ruled by an interim group headed by Yunus.

“I am particularly pleased to be in Bangladesh at this important moment in your national journey”, Guterres said.

At this “pivotal moment for Bangladesh”, he said, “the international community must play its part in supporting your efforts towards a just, inclusive, and prosperous future”.