Rohingya crisis pushes ASEAN to uncharted waters

Would the end-2015 launch of the ASEAN Community be meaningless if ASEAN does not rise up to the challenge posed by the Rohingya “boat people” crisis? The crisis has pushed Southeast Asia into uncharted diplomatic and political waters, given expectations that ASEAN would take the lead to cobble together a long-term solution to a problem that has come to its shores. Experts say that what is needed is a much larger approach that puts a stop to the large number of Rohingyas leaving Myanmar, stamps out the human smuggling networks that profit from their dangerous sea journeys, and puts an end to the deaths at sea and displacement of these people.

Read this two-part series on ASEAN and the Rohingya crisis on Rappler.