Rohingya ask UN ‘where is the justice’ amid Myanmar violence, aid cuts

New York – Members of the Rohingya assemblage who fled unit successful Myanmar person addressed a United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) league seeking to bring attraction to the suffering of the persecuted Muslim minority, arsenic warring continues successful Myanmar’s Rakhine state.

Maung Sawyeddollah, the laminitis of the Rohingya Student Network, addressed his chap Rohingya successful a livestreamed code successful the immense UNGA hallway successful New York City connected Tuesday, telling them: “Dear brothers and sisters, you are not forgotten. You mightiness consciousness that the satellite doesn’t spot your suffering. Rohingya spot you.”

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“Now this connection is for the satellite leaders and the United Nations: It has already been much than 8 years since the Rohingya genocide was exposed. Where is justness for the Rohingya? Where?” Sawyeddollah asked.

He past held up a photograph of the bodies of respective radical lying successful a river, who helium said had been killed successful a drone onslaught by Myanmar’s rebel Arakan Army successful August 2024.

“These are not isolated cases; they are portion of a systematic campaign,” said Sawyeddollah, a pupil who spent 7 years successful Cox’s Bazar exile camp successful southeastern Bangladesh aft fleeing Myanmar successful 2017.

“Why is determination nary prevention of these inhumane atrocities by Arakan Army?” helium asked.

Wai Wai Nu, the enforcement manager of the Women’s Peace Network-Myanmar, who besides addressed the high-level UNGA meeting, told Al Jazeera that the lawsuit was a “historic moment”, which she hoped would “draw the attraction backmost to the UN connected the contented of Rohingya”.

Wai Wai Nu utilized her code to item respective pressing priorities, including that humanitarian assistance has been blocked from flowing to Rakhine State, wherever Rohingya communities are located, an contented she said was discussed connected the sidelines of the conference.

“If we get this, the league is worthy it,” she said.

“We request to prevention Rohingya wrong Rakhine state.”

I delivered opening remarks astatine the #UN General Assembly league connected the Rohingya and different minorities successful Myanmar this morning.

I urged ending impunity, contiguous enactment to support the #Rohingya, advancing justice,& addressing basal causes for lasting solutions.#UNGA80 #Myanmar pic.twitter.com/PtSqCf2afM

— Wai Wai Nu (@waiwainu) September 30, 2025

Nu besides told Al Jazeera that “many subordinate states besides emphasised oregon highlighted addressing the basal causes, and advancing justness and accountability”, successful their speeches.

However, she added, the UN lawsuit besides illustrated that a “coherent and cohesive approach” to uncovering a solution to the Rohingya situation is “lacking enactment and coordination, including successful the ASEAN region“, a grouping of states successful Southeast Asia.

She besides told Al Jazeera that it was important for countries to instrumentality targeted sanctions connected Myanmar and “all the perpetrators, including subject and different equipped sectors, including Arakan Army”, arsenic good arsenic a “global arms embargo” to support the Rohingya.

‘Massive assistance cuts’

Speaking connected behalf of the UN secretary-general, Chef de Cabinet Earle Courtenay Rattray, told the gathering of UN subordinate states that “massive assistance cuts” person further worsened conditions for the Rohingya, including much than 1 cardinal who fled taste cleansing by the subject successful Myanmar and who person sought refuge successful neighbouring Bangladesh.

“In the past 18 months alone, 150,000 Rohingya person fled to Bangladesh, which has generously kept its borders unfastened and fixed them refuge,” Rattray said.

An aerial presumption of the immense Rohingya exile campy successful Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, connected March 13, 2025 [Mahmud Hossain Opu/AP Photo]

Yet, portion Rattray said Bangladesh has shown “remarkable hospitality and generosity”, the main advisor of Bangladesh, Muhammad Yunus, said his state is struggling to proceed assisting Rohingya refugees, 8 years into the crisis.

“Eight years since the genocide began, the plight of the Rohingya continues,” said Yunus, who jointly convened the gathering arsenic good arsenic different similar summit successful Cox’s Bazar past month, to effort to bring attraction backmost to the plight of the Rohingya successful Myanmar and Bangladesh.

“Bangladesh is simply a unfortunate of the crisis,” said Yunus.

“We are forced to carnivore immense financial, societal and biology costs,” helium said.

“As backing declines, the lone peaceful enactment is to statesman their repatriation.”

“The Rohingya person consistently pronounced their tendency to spell backmost home”, helium said, adding that “as an contiguous step, those who precocious crossed into Bangladesh escaping struggle indispensable beryllium allowed to repatriate”.

Yunus besides told the gathering that, dissimilar Thailand, Bangladesh could not connection enactment rights to Rohingya, fixed his ain country’s “developmental challenges, including unemployment and poverty”.

Charles Harder, the United States peculiar envoy for champion aboriginal generations, was among respective speakers to convey Bangladesh and Thailand for hosting Rohingya refugees.

He besides announced that the US would “provide much than $60m successful assistance for Rohingya refugees successful Bangladesh”, which helium said would beryllium tied to Bangladesh making “meaningful” changes to let entree to work.

But backing refugees successful Bangladesh was “not a load the United States volition carnivore indefinitely”, helium said.

“It is agelong past clip for different governments and actors successful the portion to make sustainable solutions for Rohingya,” Harder said.

About 50 different UN subordinate states besides addressed the gathering connected Tuesday, though fewer announced circumstantial measures they were taking, speech from the United Kingdom, which announced $36m successful assistance for Rohingya refugees.

Dawda Jallow, The Gambia’s curate of justice, besides addressed the meeting, saying that his state hopes to spot a judgement from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) “soon after” an oral proceeding scheduled for January adjacent twelvemonth connected its lawsuit accusing Myanmar of perpetrating genocide against its Rohingya population.

“We filed our lawsuit successful November 2019, astir six years ago. Now, we are preparing for the oral proceeding connected the merits successful this case, which the tribunal has scheduled for mid-January 2026,” Jallow said.

“The Gambia volition contiguous its lawsuit arsenic to wherefore Myanmar is liable for the Rohingya genocide and indispensable marque reparations to its victims,” helium added.