Hassan Cheruppa Saudi Gazette JEDDAH – The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will soon send fact-finding missions to Myanmar and Palestine to take stock of the human rights situations there. A decision in this regard was taken by the 3rd Session of the OIC Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC), concluded at the OIC headquarters here on Thursday. The five-day session was presided over by its new chairperson Ambassador Mohammad Kawu Ibrahim of Nigeria. The commission decided to a send fact-finding mission to Myanmar in mid-November to have a field assessment of the situation of the minority Rohingya Muslims, who are reeling under oppression by the majority Buddhist community. The meeting welcomed the recommendations made by the OIC Contact Group on Myanmar in this regard and hoped that the first visit by the group will contribute substantially in restoring the rights of the Rohingya people, sources at the OIC told Saudi Gazette. The commission also considered organizing a seminar/workshop on interfaith dialogue with the participation of both the Buddhist and Muslim religious leaders. The commission strongly condemned the continuing gross human rights violations perpetrated by the Israeli occupying forces in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories. It voiced deep concern over Israel's policy of settlements and attempts to stifle international efforts to achieve durable peace in the Middle East. The commission decided to make appropriate recommendations on safeguarding human rights of Palestinians to the Council of OIC Foreign Ministers in accordance with the findings of the OIC delegation to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The session also decided to set up four working groups: on Palestine; human rights of women and children; Islamophobia and Muslims minorities; and on the right to development.
