US diplomat Bill Richardson resigned early today from an Aung San Suu Kyi-appointed panel set up to ease communal tensions in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, and hit out at the Nobel laureate for an “absence of moral leadership” over the crisis. 

In a statement that pulled few punches, the former US governor and one-time Suu Kyi ally said he could not, in “good conscience”, serve on the committee that would likely serve only to “whitewash” the causes behind the Rohingya exodus.

Richardson also accused Suu Kyi of a “furious response” to his calls to help free two Reuters journalists arrested while reporting on the Rakhine crisis.

Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27, were arrested last month and face up to 14 years in jail under the Official Secrets Act over the alleged possession of classified documents, purportedly relating to the army campaign in Rakhine that sparked the exodus.

The resignation deals an embarrassing public blow to Suu Kyi as her civilian government grapples with a crisis that has sent hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees fleeing into Bangladesh since August last year – and eviscerated her reputation as a defender of the downtrodden in the process.

The US State Department noted that Richardson, a retired senior official, had joined the Myanmar board as a private citizen, but added that the Washington administration shared many of his concerns.

“Governor Richardson’s decision to resign from the Rakhine Advisory Board, and the reasons he gave for doing so, are cause for concern,” said spokesman Heather Nauert.

Nauert said the board that Richardson joined was supposed to oversee the implementation of recommendations made by a commission led by former United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan.

“The recommendations address critical actions needed to address long-standing, serious challenges in Rakhine state, including the underlying sources of recent violence and displacement.

“Ultimately, the Burmese government and military have the authority to determine whether the board will succeed in its mission.”

Richardson’s resignation also came after Myanmar and Bangladesh failed to meet a January 23 deadline to begin the complex and contested repatriation of refugees.

Nearly 690,000 Rohingya have fled a Myanmar army crackdown and crossed over to Bangladesh, and many do not want to go back to Rakhine.

The UN and US have both accused the army and hard-line militant Buddhist mobs of ethnic cleansing against the Muslim minority.

Inside Myanmar, the Rohingya are widely regarded as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, even though many have lived there for generations.

“It is with great disappointment that I announce my resignation from the Rakhine Advisory Board,” a statement released by Richardson’s office said after three days of talks in Myanmar.

“It appears that the board is likely to become a cheerleading squad for government policy, as opposed to proposing genuine policy changes that are desperately needed to assure peace, stability and development in Rakhine state.”

He said he was “taken aback” by the disparagement of the media, the UN, human rights groups and the international community, and alarmed by the “lack of sincerity” with which the issue of Rohingya citizenship was discussed.

The Rohingya have been denied citizenship for decades in a discriminatory system that heavily restricts their rights and movement within Myanmar.

Richardson admitted that the military still wielded significant power, but added that “the absence of Daw Suu’s moral leadership on this critical issue is of great concern”. – AFP, January 25, 2018.