Bill Richardson quits Rohingya panel set by Myanmar leader

Veteran US diplomat Bill Richardson has quit an international panel set up by Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi to advise on the Rohingya refugee crisis, calling it a "cheerleading squad for government policy" that fails to address the problem

In a scathing statement released on Thursday, former US ambassador to the UN Richardson claimed the panel was a "whitewash" and accused Myanmar's state counsellor Suu Kyi of lacking "moral leadership" on the issue, CNN reported.

The advisory board on Rakhine state was created in 2017 to help the government implement the recommendations of a fact-finding commission helmed by former UN Secretary-Genera Kofi Annan.

"It appears that the board is likely to become a cheerleading squad for government policy as opposed to proposing genuine policy changes that are desperately needed to assure peace, stability and development in Rakhine state," Richardson said.