Burma Task Force strongly condemns the actions of the Canadian Ambassador to Indonesia for an ill-informed tweet on New Year’s Day
For Immediate release: January 3rd, 2018
Ambassador Peter MacArthur sent the unfortunate tweet describing how much he was enjoying his New Year’s Day in Myanmar. Without a word on the atrocities taking place.
“This is not appropriate coming from a Canadian diplomat…” said Ahmed Ramadan, Executive Director of Burma Task Force Canada. “We are disappointed that someone representing Canada internationally can be so insensitive that he would display affection for the landscape of a country engaged in genocide while children are starving and women are being raped. Villages are being burned to the ground, and hundreds of thousands have fled persecution and horror”.
While the tweet has since been deleted, it is not enough to rectify the situation. Burma Task Force Canada is calling on Ambassador Peter MacArthur to issue a statement apologizing for ignoring the reality of a country engaged in genocide. In addition, he should visit Rakhine State and the Bangladeshi Refugee Camps. This will give him a clearer picture of the true scenery in Burma.
Furthermore, Burma Task Force Canada continues to call on the Canadian government, Minister Freeland and Prime Minister Trudeau to support Rohingya’s population by leading the international community in an aggressive stance against Myanmar’s leadership and the establishment of an international peacekeeping force that will ensure the security of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority.
Canada must acknowledge the genocide taking place in Myanmar. Minister Freeland has referred to the atrocities in Myanmar as ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. In this context, the world must not stand by while this horror unfolds. No representative of Canada should display a disregard for a humanitarian crisis taking place before the world. It would not have been acceptable in Bosnia, or in Rwanda, and it is not acceptable in Burma.
Burma Task Force is a coalition of 19 American and Canadian organizations working to end the genocide in Burma. They are accredited by the UN.
Ambassador Peter MacArthur sent the unfortunate tweet describing how much he was enjoying his New Year’s Day in Myanmar. Without a word on the atrocities taking place.
“This is not appropriate coming from a Canadian diplomat…” said Ahmed Ramadan, Executive Director of Burma Task Force Canada. “We are disappointed that someone representing Canada internationally can be so insensitive that he would display affection for the landscape of a country engaged in genocide while children are starving and women are being raped. Villages are being burned to the ground, and hundreds of thousands have fled persecution and horror”.
While the tweet has since been deleted, it is not enough to rectify the situation. Burma Task Force Canada is calling on Ambassador Peter MacArthur to issue a statement apologizing for ignoring the reality of a country engaged in genocide. In addition, he should visit Rakhine State and the Bangladeshi Refugee Camps. This will give him a clearer picture of the true scenery in Burma.
Furthermore, Burma Task Force Canada continues to call on the Canadian government, Minister Freeland and Prime Minister Trudeau to support Rohingya’s population by leading the international community in an aggressive stance against Myanmar’s leadership and the establishment of an international peacekeeping force that will ensure the security of Myanmar’s Rohingya minority.
Canada must acknowledge the genocide taking place in Myanmar. Minister Freeland has referred to the atrocities in Myanmar as ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity. In this context, the world must not stand by while this horror unfolds. No representative of Canada should display a disregard for a humanitarian crisis taking place before the world. It would not have been acceptable in Bosnia, or in Rwanda, and it is not acceptable in Burma.
Burma Task Force is a coalition of 19 American and Canadian organizations working to end the genocide in Burma. They are accredited by the UN.