UN rights chief urges states to refer Myanmar situation to ICC

Ayeyarwaddy Times September 8 United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk urged member states on Monday to refer the dire human rights situation in Myanmar to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to address it. Speaking at the 63rd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, he made this demand, pointing out that years of international efforts have yielded no results. He called for an immediate halt to the export of weapons, ammunition, aviation fuel, and key consumables to Myanmar that could be used to violate international human rights and humanitarian laws. It has been confirmed that at least 1,200 civilians have died during the reporting period, and according to other sources, the number of deaths could exceed 3,000. He stated that the main cause of civilian deaths is airstrikes. Türk pointed out that the situation of the Rohingya in Rakhine State is extremely dire, with them facing arbitrary arrests, torture, sexual violence, and forced conscription. He also warned against attempts to normalize relations with the Myanmar military junta without evidence of compliance with international law. He stated that all engagement must be based on the conditions of stopping violence, gaining access for humanitarian assistance, and releasing arbitrarily detained individuals. He warned that it is not yet possible to repatriate Rohingya and other refugees due to the unstable situation, and forced repatriation would be a blatant violation of international law. Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), stated that grave international crimes are being committed in Myanmar. Investigators have identified those involved in airstrikes and have also documented operations that further attack rescuers. The IIMM has already collected evidence from over 1,600 sources and 1,750 witnesses to identify perpetrators. Nicholas Koumjian said that the IIMM has provided key evidence for the genocide case against Myanmar at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in recent months. Reference – Anadolu