KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia’s strong stand on the issue of the Rohingya in Myanmar is purely to uphold their community’s dignity, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak.
He said Malaysia had no intention of interfering with the sovereignty of Myanmar when it spoke up on the issue.
“This is about upholding the universal values of the people, protecting human rights; not about politics,” he told a press conference at the Putra World Trade Centre here today.
Najib said Asean should be the epitome of good values and freedom and the persecution of Rohingya Muslims goes against this.
He said Malaysia has taken an early step to speak out against the persecution to avoid an even bigger crisis, such as the mass migration of the Rohingya from their land.
However, he said, Malaysia does not intend to suspend nor sever diplomatic ties with Myanmar as this is not tantamount to a political intervention.