India refuses to be part of declaration of an international meet over Rohingya issue

NEW DELHI: A delegation of Indian MPs, led by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, to the World Parliamentary Forum in Indonesia has disassociated itself from the adoption of the Bali Declaration as it referred to the violence in the Rakhine state of Myanmar and emphasised that any mention of country-specific issues was not appropriate.

The Indian Parliamentary Delegat ion to the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development maintained that the Bali Declaration was not in line with the agreed principles of sustainable development.

The Indian delegation stated that while India continues to support achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Forum’s mandate was to discuss global issues and the overarching principles relating to SDGs. “Never before have ‘country-specific’ issues been included in the declaration as these dilute the objective of these Forums which require unity and focused efforts of all the countries,” an official said.

ET View: Right Decision
India is right to abstain from the Bali Declaration, given the specific mention of violence in the Rakhine state of Myanmar.

The inclusion of the reference to a country specific issue is a departure from convention for the world parliamentary forum. The interests of the Rohingyas is best served by India nudging the Myanmar government to work out a political solution.

Already, the PM has made it clear that India will help with such an effort. It forecloses an opportunity for Beijing to present itself as ally to Yangon.

India’s position balances humanitarian concerns for the Rohingyas, security concerns arising from increased radicalisation of vulnerable populations, and India’s strategic interests in the region.