Myanmar’s Rohingya refugees: Bob Rae presses Canada’s efforts in precarious situation

by Andrew Caddell

The Hill Times
May 30, 2018

OTTAWA—When Bob Rae speaks, people listen.

Or so it seems. Last week’s announcement by the Trudeau government of $300-million in support over three years for the Rohingya of Myanmar does not satisfy the recommendations of the report by the prime minister’s special envoy to Myanmar, Tell Them We’re Human, but Rae admits it is a start.

After intensive travel and research from October to March, meetings with Myanmar, and international officials, he released his report in April, with recommendations under four themes:

the need to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar and Bangladesh;
the ongoing political challenges in Myanmar;
signals that crimes against humanity were committed in the forcible and often violent displacement of more than 671,000 Rohingya from Rakhine state;
the need for more effective coordination of both domestic and international efforts.