November 27, 2024
Media Release From Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK
Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK) warmly welcomes the application for an arrest warrant for Senior General Min Aung Hlaing in relation to the genocidal military offensive against Rohingya in Rakhine State in 2017.
BROUK has been cooperating with the International Criminal Court (ICC) to provide evidence of the crimes committed by the Burmese military.
The crime of deportation is a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and as hundreds of thousands of Rohingya were forced to flee to Bangladesh, an ICC member, the ICC ruled that it has jurisdiction over crimes against humanity relating to the deportation. It has not accepted it has jurisdiction over other violations of international law committed by the Burmese military.
This is the second application this year for an arrest warrant for Min Aung Hlaing. In Argentina BROUK has brought a case of genocide before the court under the principle of universal jurisdiction, and the prosecutor there has also asked a judge for arrest warrants for Min Aung Hlaing and others involved in the Rohingya genocide.
“This is a day of celebration not just for Rohingya, but for everyone from Burma,” said Tun Khin, President of Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK. “This is not only about seeking justice and accountability, but also an acknowledgement of the crimes committed against us, which were ignored for so long. We must never forget that this was a preventable genocide, with ample warnings given, which the international community chose to let happen for the sake of a so-called reform process which was always a sham.”
The timing of the arrest warrant application should also serve as a warning to leaders of the Arakan Army, which has pushed the Burmese military out of large areas of Rakhine State, where most Rohingya remaining in Burma still live.
As the Arakan Army has taken over areas where many Rohingya live, it has been committing many of the same kind of human rights violations against Rohingya as the Burmese military did, including forcing hundreds of thousands of Rohingya from their homes, some of whom have fled to Bangladesh. More than 8,000 Rohingya have been illegally detained by the Arakan Army.
“Twan Mrat Naing and other Arakan Army leaders must understand that they too could face the prospect of international arrest warrants if they continue to commit violations of international law against the Rohingya,” said Tun Khin.
BROUK recognises that the prospect of a trial and jail cell for Min Aung Hlaing is still a long way off, with many challenges ahead. However, beginning a process of justice and accountability is essential for the long-term prospect of reducing and then ending violations of international law in Burma. If this process had begun in the early 1990s, when the UN first started documenting violations of international law in Burma, then the crimes Min Aung Hlaing is being charged with today may never have happened.
For more information contact Tun Khin on +44 7888 714866
