At the beginning of his Kharij (an advanced course in jurisprudence) class this morning (Tuesday), Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei pointed to the tragic developments in Myanmar and strongly criticized the silence and inaction of global communities and so-called advocates of human rights vis-à-vis the crimes [against Rohingya Muslims]. To settle the issue, he stressed, Muslim countries should adopt practical measures and exert political and economic pressure on the ruthless government of Myanmar, reiterating, “The Islamic Republic [of Iran] must openly and bravely take a stand against oppression in whatever place in the world.”

Ayatollah Khamenei said it will not be appropriate to downgrade the Myanmar tragedy to a religious conflict between Muslims and Buddhists, and added, “Of course, religious bias might play a role in this incident, but the issue is a political matter because the government of Myanmar is behind it, and the government is led by a brutal woman who has won the Nobel peace prize; these developments, in fact, sounded the death knell for the Nobel peace prize.” 

He added, “These crimes are being committed by the cruel government of Myanmar before the eyes of Muslim governments and countries, global organizations and mendacious and hypocritical governments claiming to be supporters of human rights.”

Ayatollah Khamenei criticized the secretary general of the United Nations for simply condemning the crimes in Myanmar [without taking any further action,] and added, “Those claiming to be advocates of human rights, who sometimes kick up a fuss over the punishment of a convict in a country, are not showing any reaction to the massacre and displacement of tens of thousands of people in Myanmar.”

Ayatollah Khamenei stressed the need for Islamic governments to get involved and take practical action, saying, “Of course, practical measures do not mean military deployment, but mean they should step up their political, economic and trade pressure on the government of Myanmar and speak up against these crimes in international circles.”

He said it is necessary that the Organization of Islamic Cooperation hold a conference over the atrocities in Myanmar and reiterated, “Today’s world is one of oppression, and the Islamic Republic should keep for itself the honor of declaring its clear and courageous stance anywhere in the world, be it in the territories occupied by the Zionists or in Yemen, Bahrain or Myanmar.”