December 19, 2017 / LAST MODIFIED: 03:37 AM, December 19, 2017
Persecution Against Rohingyas: UN official warns of genocide trial
Myanmar team in Dhaka to talk repatriation
Diplomatic Correspondent
The top UN human rights official has expressed determination to see that the perpetrators of the horrors committed against the Rohingyas in Myanmar face justice.
Speaking to the BBC, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, has not ruled out the possibility that Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the head of the armed forces Gen Aung Min Hlaing could find themselves in the dock on genocide charges sometime in the future.
He, however, did not say which court could prosecute suspected atrocities, according to excerpts of his interview provided in advance by the BBC, reports Reuters.
Myanmar is not a member of the International Criminal Court, so referral to that court could be done only by the UN Security Council. But Myanmar's ally China could veto such a referral.
Zeid said the attacks on the Rohingyas had been “well thought out and planned”, and he had asked Suu Kyi to do more to stop the military action.
He previously described the deaths and displacement of the Rohingyas as “a text book example of ethnic cleansing,” and asked rhetorically if anyone could rule out “elements of genocide”.
His latest remarks put the case plainly, toughening his stance.
“The elements suggest you cannot rule out the possibility that acts of genocide have been committed,” he said.
“It's very hard to establish because the thresholds are high,” he said. “But it wouldn't surprise me in the future if the court were to make such a finding on the basis of what we see.”
Myanmar denies committing atrocities against the Rohingyas and has rejected UN criticism for its “politicisation and partiality”. The Myanmar military says the crackdown is a legitimate counter-insurgency operation.
Zeid said Myanmar's “flippant” response to the serious concerns of the international community made him fear the current crisis “could just be the opening phases of something much worse”.
The UN defines genocide as acts meant to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group in whole or in part. Such a designation is rare under international law, but has been used in contexts including Bosnia, Sudan and an Islamic State campaign against the Yazidi communities in Iraq and Syria.
Around 10 lakh Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh, including about 660,000 who arrived in the country after August 25, when the Myanmar military launched a brutal crackdown in Rakhine.
UN investigators have heard Rohingya testimony of a “consistent, methodical pattern of killings, torture, rape and arson”.
Zeid said he had phoned Suu Kyi in January, asking her in vain to stop the military operation.
Nobel peace laureate Suu Kyi's less than two-year old civilian government has faced heavy international criticism for its response to the crisis, though it has no control over the generals it has to share power with under Myanmar's transition after decades of military rule.
Persecution Against Rohingyas: UN official warns of genocide trial
Myanmar team in Dhaka to talk repatriation
Diplomatic Correspondent
The top UN human rights official has expressed determination to see that the perpetrators of the horrors committed against the Rohingyas in Myanmar face justice.
Speaking to the BBC, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, has not ruled out the possibility that Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and the head of the armed forces Gen Aung Min Hlaing could find themselves in the dock on genocide charges sometime in the future.
He, however, did not say which court could prosecute suspected atrocities, according to excerpts of his interview provided in advance by the BBC, reports Reuters.
Myanmar is not a member of the International Criminal Court, so referral to that court could be done only by the UN Security Council. But Myanmar's ally China could veto such a referral.
Zeid said the attacks on the Rohingyas had been “well thought out and planned”, and he had asked Suu Kyi to do more to stop the military action.
He previously described the deaths and displacement of the Rohingyas as “a text book example of ethnic cleansing,” and asked rhetorically if anyone could rule out “elements of genocide”.
His latest remarks put the case plainly, toughening his stance.
“The elements suggest you cannot rule out the possibility that acts of genocide have been committed,” he said.
“It's very hard to establish because the thresholds are high,” he said. “But it wouldn't surprise me in the future if the court were to make such a finding on the basis of what we see.”
Myanmar denies committing atrocities against the Rohingyas and has rejected UN criticism for its “politicisation and partiality”. The Myanmar military says the crackdown is a legitimate counter-insurgency operation.
Zeid said Myanmar's “flippant” response to the serious concerns of the international community made him fear the current crisis “could just be the opening phases of something much worse”.
The UN defines genocide as acts meant to destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group in whole or in part. Such a designation is rare under international law, but has been used in contexts including Bosnia, Sudan and an Islamic State campaign against the Yazidi communities in Iraq and Syria.
Around 10 lakh Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh, including about 660,000 who arrived in the country after August 25, when the Myanmar military launched a brutal crackdown in Rakhine.
UN investigators have heard Rohingya testimony of a “consistent, methodical pattern of killings, torture, rape and arson”.
Zeid said he had phoned Suu Kyi in January, asking her in vain to stop the military operation.
Nobel peace laureate Suu Kyi's less than two-year old civilian government has faced heavy international criticism for its response to the crisis, though it has no control over the generals it has to share power with under Myanmar's transition after decades of military rule.
