New Ambassador to Myanmar Will Ensure Indonesian Aid Reaches Rohingya
Jakarta. The new Indonesian ambassador to Myanmar on Tuesday (06/03) received directives from Chief Security Minister Wiranto to focus on increasing bilateral cooperation and making sure that humanitarian aid from Indonesia reaches its destination.
"As the new ambassador, I am expected to increase cooperation and ensure that our humanitarian aid will be received by communities in need in Myanmar," the ambassador, Iza Fadri, told reporters after a meeting with Wiranto in Jakarta.
"We discussed the issue of humanitarian aid, as both countries belong to Asean [the Association of Southeast Asian Nations], and how to continue our support," he said.
Indonesia has been active in addressing the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar's troubled Rakhine State, where a military crackdown in August drove nearly 690,000 Rohingya, half the population of Rakhine State, into neighboring Bangladesh, sparking a refugee crisis.
Indonesia was one of the first countries allowed to enter Myanmar with the International Committee of the Red Cross. It also initiated meetings between Myanmar and Bangladeshi leaders to address the issue.
In February, foreign ministers of Asean countries called for a durable solution to the crisis, which has been described by United Nations human rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein as "ethnic cleansing."
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