JRJN Statement on Genocide Prevention Day

December 9, 2022 | PRESS RELEASES

Jewish Rohingya Justice Network Statement on Genocide Prevention Day

In advance of Genocide Prevention Day on December 9, the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network released the following statement:

As Jewish organizations representing all five major denominations of American Jewry, we know all too well the enduring pain that genocide leaves – a loss inflicted on a scale that can never be fully comprehended. That is why we, as a community, are committed to saying “Never Again.” Never again must the world be silent in the face of genocide.

On December 9, 1948, the United Nations adopted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide following the horrors of the Holocaust. The following day the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the UN General Assembly, which still remains a guiding vision of the world as it should be. The Jewish Rohingya Justice Network remembers these commitments today, 74 years later, as we call upon leaders in the United States and the international community to support the Rohingya people as they continue to face the ongoing effects of genocide and decades of persecution and human rights violations at the hands of the Burmese military and regime.

We stand in solidarity with the Rohingya people, today and every day, and join them in their calls for justice.

We urge the U.S. government to:

• Increase pressure on the military junta by targeting the oil and gas sectors, their biggest source of income.

• Create more access to durable solutions for Rohingya refugees that include resettlement opportunities, both here in the U.S. and in other third countries. The U.S. must push refugee hosting countries, including Bangladesh, to substantially improve conditions for Rohingya refugees including allowing freedom of movement, protection and access to livelihoods and education.

• Ensure that the Rohingya people have an equal seat at the table in the development of any new strategies and policies that impact their future. The principle of “nothing about us, without us” should guide all decision-making going forward.

The rabbis of the Talmud teach that to end a life is to end an entire world. To our partners in the Rohingya community: we know the worlds you have lost, and may their memories be a blessing.

About the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network

The Jewish Rohingya Justice Network is a prominent consortium of Jewish NGOs advocating for the rights of the persecuted Rohingya people of Burma. JRJN’s membership includes 34 organizations and all five major branches of American Judaism that together encompass the support of millions of American Jews —all standing together against genocide.

Inspired by the Jewish commitment to justice, the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network (JRJN) works to promote a robust U.S. and international response to the Rohingya genocide through education of our communities and advocacy in Washington, DC.

To reach the Jewish Rohingya Justice Network for comment, email jewishrohingyajusticenetwork@gmail.com. To see all of our previous statements, click here.