There is a value in coordinating regional advocacy on Rohingya displacement and participants would welcome continuing to exchange within the group. There was recognition of the complementary roles that partners involved in advocacy can play and for the strength that work as a coalition brings in terms of risk mitigation.
Future advocacy approaches should be informed by lessons learned in the region. An incremental approach that promotes the exchange of good practice, small-scale (pilot) models, quiet diplomacy and one that builds on relationships that many national NGOs have established already at country level is likely to have greater impact. Participants concluded that conditionality has not been successful in advocacy in thisregion and that proposals for new or large-scale frameworks or the establishment of new mechanisms/forum are less likely to bear fruit. The group agreed that future advocacy at the regional level should include work with existing multi-country and inter-governmental forums or processes.
Experience has shown that within Government, the positions of different entities and individuals are not monolithic. These varying interests are being mapped and should inform our approach to identifying advocacy targets and advocacy partners. Advocacy is also stronger when informed by evidence and the relevance of research institutions and think tanks was underlined.
Engagement with ASEAN has also shown that due to political sensitivities, advocacy is more effective when Rohingya displacement is incorporated in existing thematic discussions. In particular, those that are tabled on the formal agenda of the regional entity’s work plan. An example is the work with the Commission on Women and Children to address civil registration.
Refugee-led organizations and initiatives were poorly represented at the meeting. The importance of Rohingya involvement in advocacy initiatives was underscored by the group and a commitment made to address this gap.
There are many entry points for advocacy at the regional level and it would be helpful to routinely share information about upcoming opportunities. These include Indonesia’s chairmanship of ASEAN in 2023; the OIC conference on education taking place in Kuala Lumpur; and the 20th anniversary of the Bali Process. Besides inter-governmental processes, participants also agreed that we can target key influential States, among them some of the key donors to the Rohingya response, but also development partners, the private sector, and faith-based organizations and explore ways in which we can work with these partners on advocacy.
Coordinated regional advocacy can also target global initiatives and processes. Participants were interested in exploring how the Global Refugee Forum in 2023 might be leveraged in work on protection and solutions for the Rohingya.
Participants identified a number of cross-cutting themes for the region that would benefit from coordinated regional-level advocacy. Public discourse on Rohingya is one of these, particularly given the potential for upcoming elections in several host countries to further aggravate negative rhetoric. Other cross-cutting topics for advocacy include strengthening resilience of Rohingya in host countries (livelihoods, education), family unity, statelessness, monitoring of ongoing human rights violations.
The group also reflected on the importance of managing donor expectations, in particular when it comes to meaningful engagement with ASEAN, which may not be formalized, large-scale or immediate in impact. Some also highlighted that multi-year programming and funding is needed to better support advocacy on Rohingya displacement.