TORONTO (December 6, 2017) - CTV News correspondent Peter Akman joined FSWC for a veryspecial program about the Rohingya refugee crisis yesterday. Akman, who recentlytravelled to Bangladesh to report on the crisis, returned to Canada motivatedto speak out specifically because of the children who touched his life.
Akman photographed children who had been rendered silent dueto the horrific circumstances they had endured – watching their family membersbeing raped, hung and shot; homes burned; helicopter gunships strafingcommunities; among many other unimaginable horrors.
“A lot of [the kids], when they arrived at the camps, didn’tspeak,” said Akman. “They’d seen their parents murdered in front of them…They’d seen things that children who are of any age, in fact adults of any age,should never have to experience.”
These children gave their testimony through their drawings,depicting their harrowing survival and escape to Bangladesh.
“With UN officials now stating that Myanmar should beinvestigated for crimes against humanity and genocide by security forces, it ismore important than ever to shed light on this serious crisis where a minoritygroup has been the target of horrific violence and hatred,” said FSWC Presidentand CEO Avi Benlolo.
Since August, hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas have fledtheir homes in Myanmar due to what the UN is calling a “textbook example ofethnic cleansing.” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called the crisis the world’s“fastest developing refugee emergency and a humanitarian and human rightsnightmare.”
Akman’splea: do something. He reminded everyone that “just because youdon’t see this on the news, doesn’t mean it has stopped. It’s stillhappening.”