To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment his Department has made of the potential for the treatment of the Rohingya people by the Burmese military being repeated in relation to other minority ethnic groups in Burma; and whether his Department has developed contingency plans to meet that case.
Answered on
19 December 2017
The Burmese state recognises 135 ethnic groups as indigenous. This does not include the Rohingya who have historically been treated differently. The UK Government recognises that this lack of official recognition is a factor in the persecution they face.
Our Embassy in Rangoon stays in contact with representatives from other ethnic groups and our Ambassador and officials regularly raise our concerns about the discrimination that affects them with the relevant Burmese authorities. The UK carefully monitors the situation in Burma's minority ethnic areas and provides political and programme support to the peace process, which seeks to resolve the conflicts that have affected Burma for decades.