Myanmar activist does not find the arrest request of the ICC Prosecutor's Office sufficient for Rohingya Muslims

AA
Selman Aksünger |
Amsterdam
29.11.2024 

 Myanmar human rights activist and genocide expert Maung Zarni said that the ICC Prosecutor's Office's arrest request for the leader of the Myanmar military administration is positive but insufficient for the return of Rohingya Muslims to their lands. 

Myanmar human rights activist and genocide expert Maung Zarni stated that the arrest warrant of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor's Office for Min Aung Hlaing, the leader of the Myanmar military administration, is a positive step.

Zarni emphasized that an arrest warrant for a single general is not enough to ensure the safe return of more than a million Rohingya Muslims to their ancestral lands and rebuilding their societies.

Three basic conditions of true justice

Stating that he thinks that real justice for the Rohingya Muslims cannot be achieved with just an arrest request, Zarni said, "If we are looking for real justice for the victims of the genocide, it is not enough to try one, two or even half a dozen military leaders with command responsibility. Justice for the Rohingya Muslims is only imprisoning a few high-ranking commanders who organized the genocide." not." he said.

Zarni listed the three basic conditions of justice for Rohingya Muslims and said, "First of all, the safe return to Northern Rakhine, the land of their ancestors, then the opportunity to take back their lands and then rebuild their communities, lives, schools, hospitals, businesses and mosques in safety. These three basics element will enable them to rebuild their economies, societies and other cultural and intellectual institutions.” he said.

Pointing out that the genocide was committed by the state, Zarni said, "Crimes against humanity and genocides are generally committed by political states and regimes using the army, paramilitary groups, militia groups, law enforcement forces and even the legal system. The situation of the Rohingya Muslims is a textbook example of genocide." he said.

Zarni explained the role of General Min Aung Hlaing, the leader of the Myanmar military administration, for whom the ICC requested arrest, and said, "He is Myanmar's Milosevic, Myanmar's Netanyahu. In 2017, his army carried out all the killings, gang rapes and massacres in Rakhine state." and in the midst of their devastation, in his famous speech to the military units and the public, he said that the existence of the Rohingya Muslims, their lives and presence on Myanmar soil was an 'unfinished business' from the Second World War. "Genocide was the tool of this. General Min should be seen as evil, racist, violent and genocidal as Netanyahu." made his assessment. 

"Genocide has been continuing since the 1970s"

Drawing attention to the institutional dimension of the genocide rather than the individual accountability of those with command responsibility, Zarni said:

"The mass deportation of one million Rohingya Muslims within 6 months to 2 years is a mass crime, but the institutional persecution of Rohingya Muslims dates back to the 1970s. That is why we call it 'gradual genocide'. What the ICC prosecutor has done is positive and I sincerely support it, but "We should not confuse law with justice."

Zarni stated that genocidal crimes were generally committed by states with the support of the racist society and said, "The Nazi regime's genocide against Jews and other minorities took place with the support of the German people. Myanmar Buddhist society also entered the field of genocidal racism. Even the so-called democratic revolutionaries began to accept the Rohingya Muslims as the people of Myanmar." "I haven't seen any internal change that they are ready." he said.

Zarni, who also criticized the ICC's approach, said, "It is worrying that the court waited 5 years to request the arrest of a single Myanmar general. It is positive that an arrest warrant was issued for Netanyahu and Gallant 6 days ago. I appreciate the court and prosecutors for these brave steps. The Myanmar general also "I support their trial, but justice for the Rohingya must go beyond what the court can provide." he said. 

"Social prejudices continue"

Zarni explained the two main obstacles to the return of Rohingya Muslims as follows:

"The first obstacle is Myanmar society. Different ethnic groups, different religions, mainstream Buddhists and even some Myanmar Muslims were made to believe that Rohingya Muslims do not belong there. It was propagated that they came as seasonal agricultural workers during the British period and stayed in the country after the British left. This propaganda produced by the Myanmar army "He was accepted by political parties and leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, priests and other ethnic minorities."

Explaining that some groups that want democracy, federal autonomy and human rights are not ready to accept that Rohingya Muslims are subject to the same rights, Zarni said: "In order to change this internal obstacle, all Myanmar opinion leaders, journalists, educators and revolution leaders must come together and say 'Readmit Rohingya Muslims. 'We do, they are part of our society, they are our brothers.' "They need to say, but this is not happening," he said.

Zarni said that the second obstacle to the return of Rohingya Muslims to their homeland is that the international community does not take an active role and said, "The necessary protection was not provided in neighboring countries, including Bangladesh, to one million Rohingya Muslims who were forcibly removed from their country since 2016-2017. Bangladesh 'forced them from Myanmar' "No, they are victims of genocide and Rohingya refugees within the scope of the refugee convention." he said. 

"Arakan Army is also racist"

Explaining that the Arakan state is under the control of the Arakan Army, one of the armed rebel groups that is in conflict with the army in Myanmar, Zarni said, "The lands of the Rohingya Muslims are currently under the control of the armed militia called 'Arakan Army'. The Arakan Army is equally racist, genocidal and violent against the Arakanese Muslims." He showed it over and over." he said.

Zarni stated that as a solution proposal, refugee status should be given to Rohingya Muslims and then an interstate conference should be held where Turkey, China, India and other countries in the region come together and said, “The sole focus of the conference should be the voluntary return of Rohingya Muslims to their homes. "This should happen accompanied by the international protection force formed by Bangladesh, India, China, Thailand and other ASEAN countries," he said.

Stating that the military and administrative situation in Myanmar is suitable for international intervention, Zarni said, "The intervention of only a few neighboring countries that are important for the Myanmar army, not all 198 member states of the UN, is sufficient. Especially India, China, Thailand and Bangladesh should come together. Bangladesh, "It currently carries the biggest burden with one million Rohingya Muslim refugees on its territory." made his assessment.

Link : Here

ICC prosecutor seeks arrest warrant for Myanmar junta chief

The Guardian
Rebecca Ratcliffe South-east Asia correspondent
Wed 27 Nov 2024 

Min Aung Hlaing accused of crimes against humanity over deportation and persecution of Rohingya minority

 The chief prosecutor of the international criminal court (ICC) is seeking an arrest warrant for Myanmar’s military leader, Min Aung Hlaing, for crimes against humanity over the deadly crackdowns against the country’s Rohingya minority that drove hundreds of thousands to flee to Bangladesh.

Karim Khan said that “after an extensive, independent and impartial investigation” his office had concluded there were reasonable grounds to believe that the Myanmar junta chief “bears criminal responsibility for the crimes against humanity of deportation and persecution of the Rohingya committed in Myanmar and in part in Bangladesh”.

A panel of three ICC judges must now rule on the prosecutor’s request. More applications for arrest warrants will follow, the prosecutor’s office said.

Tun Khin, a prominent Rohingya activist and the president of the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK, welcomed the news as “huge step forward in the quest for justice”.

In 2017, more than 700,000 Rohingya were forced to flee their homes in Rakhine state and cross over the border to Bangladesh after an operation by the Myanmar military that UN investigators said was carried out with “genocidal intent”.

Rohingya who fled across the border gave harrowing testimonies of mass rape, murder, and of torched homes. The events shocked the world, and for the past five years the ICC prosecutor’s office has been investigating the waves of violence that occurred during 2016 and 2017. Myanmar has denied accusations of genocide.

At the time of the killings, the western-backed politician Aung San Suu Kyi was Myanmar’s democratically elected de facto leader. She was accused by rights groups of standing by while the army committed massacres. Her supporters claimed, however, that Myanmar’s most famous politician was unable to stand up to the military.

Aung San Suu Kyi later defended her country against allegations of genocide at the UN’s top court. In 2021, she was arrested when the military took power in a coup.

Tun Khin said the news brought “a rare day of celebration for the Rohingya”. He said: “For decades the international community allowed the Myanmar military to violate international law against ethnic and religious minorities, without taking any action. This encouraged the Myanmar military to scale up abuses, including the genocide of the Rohingya. Today we have finally taken another step towards justice and accountability.”

Almost 1 million Rohingya remain in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, in one of the world’s biggest and most densely populated refugee camps, which is plagued by insecurity. Rohingya who live in Myanmar continue to face persecution and violence, not only from the Myanmar military but also, activists say, from the Arakan Army, which is fighting against the military for control of Rakhine state.

Nay San Lwin, a Rohingya political activist, said the prosecutor’s application was long overdue. “We warmly welcome this move,” he said, adding that he hoped an arrest warrant would be issued promptly. “We deserve justice, we want justice, only the international court can deliver justice for us,” he said.

There is no set timeframe for the judge’s decision but it generally takes about three months to rule on issuing an arrest warrant.

Matthew Smith, a co-founder and the chief executive of Fortify Rights, a human rights group, described Min Aung Hlaing as “one of the world’s most notorious criminals”.

“He’s not only responsible for crimes against humanity against Rohingya but also for genocide and war crimes in Myanmar. He orchestrated the coup d’etat in 2021 and the subsequent mass murder, imprisonment and other atrocities against people throughout the country,” he said. “Min Aung Hlaing’s victims span Myanmar’s many ethnic groups and number in the tens of millions. He must be stopped and brought to justice.”

Link : Here