Republic of the Union of Myanmar
National Unity Government
Ministry of Human Rights
UNITED NATIONS HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL
57th session
ITEM2-Interactive dialogue on the report of the
Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar
MYANMAR
10 September 2024
The Republic of the Union of Myanmar, as represented by the National Unity Government,
welcomes the interactive dialogue with the Head of the Independent Investigative
Mechanism for Myanmar,Mr. Nicholas Koumjian, as well as the Mechanism’s latest report
to the Human Rights Council.
Confirming another year of “increasingly frequent and brutal war crimes and crimes against
humanity” in Myanmar, Mr. Koumjian told the Council that “civilians are not just collateral
damage but rather the target of attacks, which appear intended to create terror.”
As the IIMM reports, this terror is evident in the military junta’s widespread airstrikes
against civilians in Chin, Kachin, Karenni, Kayin and Shan States, and its torture of
detainees, including through beatings, electric shocks, strangulations, the pulling out of
fingernails with pliers, and violent sexual and gender-based crimes.
In his presentation, Mr. Koumjian also addressed the situation in Rakhine State and reports
of killings,torture, rape and the burning of villages. To Mr. Koumjian, while all ethnicities in
Rakhine State have suffered, the Rohingya population remains “in a particularly precarious
situation”.
The situation in Rakhine State and across Myanmar is one that Mr. Koumjian attributes to
“decades of impunity”. Myanmar, as represented by the National Unity Government,
supports the Mechanism’s commitment to accountability and its acceleration of
contributions to ongoing proceedings at the International Court of Justice, the International
Criminal Court and in Argentina.
We will also continue to partner with the Mechanism by identifying witnesses who can
provide testimony in safe and secure ways, and by exploring the Mechanism’s access to
Myanmar.
In closing, Myanmar repeats its gratitude to Mr. Koumjian and to the full Mechanism team
for their dedicated efforts to secure justice for the people of Myanmar.
Ministry of Human Rights
National Unity Government
