Thailand faculty at international conference on Rohingya Crisis
September 04, 2018
Webster University Thailand’s faculty members, Kenneth Houston and Ramcharan, along with scholars from around the world, attended “The Rohingya Crisis: A Multidimensional Tragedy” International Conference in Bangkok on Aug. 24.
The Conference marked the one-year anniversary of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) attacks on military outposts in Rakhine state, which triggered a brutal military crackdown by the Myanmar military authorities.
The experts at the conference evaluated the crisis from the perspectives of regional politics, humanitarian responses, human rights, transitional governance and democratic reform. In addition to researchers from around the world, the conference featured several short documentaries by activists in the field.
Houston presented an analysis of the official discourse of Myanmar’s government during the crisis, as demonstrated through its public statements and speeches delivered by its key role holders.
Ramcharan presented his analysis of the role that ASEAN has (or has not) played in the crisis, and identified the residual, problematic institutional principle of ‘non-interference’ as a significant drawback in permitting more decisive and urgent acts.