Canada's parliament unanimously voted to strip Myanmar's leader of her honorary citizenship
- Canada's parliament on Thursday voted to strip Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary Canadian citizenship as part of the country's crackdown of global human-rights violators.
- Suu Kyi had been granted the symbolic citizenship in 2007 in recognition for the way she addressed the mistreatment of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar, which led to some 700,000 people fleeing the country's Rakhine state.
- She has since fallen out of favor with the international community, due in part to her most recent public statements about two Reuters journalists jailed in Myanmar. Earlier this month, Suu Kyi admitted that she could have done better Rohingya crisis could have been dealt with "better."
- Canada has gotten serious about holding human-rights abusers to account across the world. In August, the country called out Saudi Arabia for arresting several prominent human rights activists.
Canada's parliament on Thursday unanimously voted to strip Myanmar's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary Canadian citizenship as part of the country's crackdown of global human-rights violators.
Suu Kyi's symbolic citizenship was granted in 2007. The parliament's move must now be approved by the country's Senate.
The motion was originally proposed by opposition member Gabriel Ste Marie, who told reporters it was a "great symbol" toward addressing human-rights issues around the world.
Suu Kyi has been criticized for her handling of the Myanmar government's crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, which led to some 700,000 people fleeing the country's Rakhine state. In August, a United Nations fact-finding mission found the Myanmar military committed genocide against the minority population, and Suu Kyi had failed to prevent violent escalation.
Several Canadian politicians had previously called on Ottawa to retract Suu Kyi's honor. Last week, the Canadian House of Commons voted unanimously to call the mass murder of Rohingya Muslims a genocide and called for prosecution of those responsible.
A spokesman for Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said the significant move was in response to Suu Kyi's "continued failure to speak out against the genocide of the Rohingya, a crime being committed by the military with which she shares power."
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Wednesday that Parliament could consider revoking her citizenship but it would do little to end the humanitarian crisis in Myanmar.
Earlier this month, Suu Kyi admitted that her handling of the Rohingya crisis could have been dealt with "better."
Canada has been doubling down on its criticism of human rights abuses across the world. In August, Canada called out Saudi Arabia for arresting several prominent human rights activists, which subsequently led to a meltdown of diplomatic relations between the two nations.
Trudeau has pledged that Canada will "continue to stand up strongly for human rights, minority rights, and our shared universal values, even as we look to have constructive relations, positive relations with countries around the world."