KUCHING, Apr 30: Malaysia’s rejection of Rohingya refugees in the time of the Covid-19 threat should not be criticised by western media especially when the US is closing its border to foreigners.
This is the view held by Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Dr James Jemut Masing.
“CNN or other western media shouldn’t just take Malaysia accountable for rejecting Rohingya refugees to its shores especially in time of Covid-19 health crisis. Even the mighty USA closes its border to foreigners,” Masing told DayakDaily.
Masing said Malaysian health must be placed on first priority during Covid-19 pandemic threat. The government needs to focus on the fight against the spread of the disease and also to take steps to revive the shrinking economy instead of importing problems of other countries.
“It has always been easier to criticise than to implement. The one criticising impose their high moral standard and demand others to meet that standard. After that they just sit back and do nothing while those who have been criticised will have to pay a high price for succumbing to their standard,” said Masing.
Citing the case of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, he said that was a typical case of “it is always easy to be a critic than an implementor”.
“She was once the champion of human rights. Now she is part of the Myanmar government and she allows persecution against the Rohingyas.
“All these perhaps showed that she has never been what she portrayed to be and that she is nothing but a product of western media manipulation,” said Masing.
Masing thus called on those criticising Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin to discern between the role of a critic and an implementor.
“Aung San Suu Kyi’s failure to walk the talk while in the Myanmar government is a classical example that it is easy to be a critic than to be the implementor!
“I hope critics of Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin’s administration understand the difference between being a critic and an implementor,” said Masing.
On Apr 16, it was reported the Malaysian government had turned away a boat of Rohingya refugees who came from Cox’s Bazar, a district with more than one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
The Malaysian government was criticised for doing that by international human rights community.
Malaysia has been the Southeast Asia destination for Rohingya refugees until recently.
As of February 2020, close to 180,000 refugees have been registered through the United Nations’ refugee agency UNHCR with the Rohingyas making up more than half of the refugee population.—DayakDaily
