Background:
- In 2017, government troops led a crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine State in response to attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) on Myanmar police posts and a military base.
- Some 7,00,000 Rohingya fled the crackdown and most are now living in refugee camps in neighbouring Bangladesh and other countries.
- Subsequently, a UN panel was set up, which interviewed victims and witnesses in Bangladesh and other countries, and analysed documents and videos.
Report by United Nations: Summary
- Findings:
- Myanmar’s military carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with ‘genocidal intent’.
- Aung San Suu Kyi – country’s de facto civilian leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner –failed to use her” moral authority” to protect civilians.
- The report also criticised Facebook for allowing the world’s biggest social media network to be used to incite violence and hatred.
- Recommendations:
- The Commander-in-Chief and five generals should be prosecuted for the gravest crimes under international law.
- The UN Security Council (UNSC) should set up an ad hoc tribunal to try suspects or refer them to the International Criminal Court in the Hague.
- UNSC should also impose an arms embargo on Myanmar and targeted sanctions against individuals most responsible for crimes.
