ASEAN Lawmakers Call for High-Level Summit to Address Rohingya Crisis

Photo: GOB / Facebook

Arakan Now | 3 September 2025

The ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR), a coalition of current and former lawmakers from Southeast Asia, has proposed holding an international conference involving Bangladesh, China, and ASEAN countries to resolve the protracted Rohingya crisis.

The proposal came on Wednesday during a meeting between an APHR delegation and Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka.

“Two things should be done on a priority basis. One is an ASEAN-led effort to raise funds for Rohingyas. The other is a high-level ASEAN-Bangladesh-China political summit to resolve the Rohingya issues,” said Charles Santiago, Co-Chairperson of APHR and a former member of Malaysia’s House of Representatives.

Chief Adviser Yunus reiterated Bangladesh’s longstanding call to become a sectoral dialogue partner of ASEAN, stressing that Bangladesh’s absence from the regional bloc has hindered its ability to push the Rohingya issue forward.

“We want to be a sectoral dialogue partner of ASEAN. Since we are not part of ASEAN, we cannot bring the issue to ASEAN. It is important for us because the issue needs to be addressed,” Yunus said.

The Chief Adviser also encouraged APHR to establish a formal ASEAN parliamentary platform on the Rohingya issue and include Bangladesh as an invitee, citing the “burden” the crisis places on the country.

“Create a platform within ASEAN that does not yet exist. ASEAN should tell the rest of the world about the crisis we are facing,” he added.

APHR leaders said the group has long advocated for international action on the Rohingya crisis, including a 2018 visit to refugee camps in Bangladesh.

“We are always trying to flag the Rohingya issue as an ASEAN issue,” Santiago noted. “But I must confess, for the last two-three years we had been quiet because we were focusing on restoring democracy in Myanmar.”

The APHR delegation included Malaysian lawmaker Wong Chen, former Philippine congressman Raoul Manuel, and APHR Program Director Chonlathan Supphaiboonlerd.

Source: Chief Adviser GOB Facebook