International Coordination Division The work of the Commission, as a national human rights institution (NHRI), would not be thorough without having a stake in the international dimension of human rights promotion and protection. The international human rights system – made up of a vast web of international human rights law, UN bodies and mechanisms and as well as regional instruments – plays an important part in leveraging how human rights issues are dealt with at the national level. Similarly, efforts made at the domestic front may also have implications on the advancement of human rights in other parts of the world. In this light, the Commission finds it necessary to also dedicate its energy to engage with human rights mechanisms at both regional and international levels. The year 2017 witnessed a number of significant events relevant to the Commission’s work in this regard, that are worth reflecting on. In this chapter, the Commission seeks to examine and comment on some of those events. 1. THE PLIGHT OF THE ROHINGYAS The plight of the Rohingyas continues to become a matter of serious concern for the international community and for Malaysia. The dire human rights situation facing the Rohingya community in the Rakhine State of Myanmar deteriorated dramatically in the last quarter of 2016 and further exacerbated in August and September 2017 as a result of the heavy-handed actions taken by the Myanmar authorities including the military in response to attacks by insurgents against government security posts. Such violent response, which is believed to be part of a wider and systematic state-sponsored campaign against the Rohingya population in Myanmar, has led to the displacement of more than half a million persons and egregious human rights violations against the Rohingyas including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention, rape and other forms of sexual violence, torture and discrimination. In the wake of these horrific humanitarian and human rights circumstances, the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres has called upon the Myanmar government to immediately end its military operations against the Rohingyas. 50 S UH A KA M A N N UA L R E P O R T 2 0 1 7