Chiang Mai, Thailand and Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh (29 November 2024) – Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR) welcomes and supports the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) application for an arrest warrant against Min Aung Hlaing, Senior General of the armed forces of Myanmar, or Tatmadaw and leader of Myanmar’s military junta. This development timely comes a day after AJAR representatives and Rohingya women refugees met with ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan, in one of the Kutupalong refugee camps, Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
The ICC Prosecutor stated that there are reasonable grounds to believe that Min Aung Hlaing “bears criminal responsibility for crimes against humanity, specifically the deportation and persecution of the Rohingya,” during the 2016 and 2017 violence “in Myanmar and, in part, in Bangladesh.” The Prosecutor further stated that more applications for arrest warrants will follow. This was a significant announcement, given that four years on from February 2021, Min Aung Hlaing continues to lead a coup in Myanmar and remains head of the State Administration Council.
This marks the first time a high-ranking official from the military junta has been formally accused of these serious offenses, and it opens avenues to seek accountability for atrocities committed, and opportunities to break the impunity that fuels the military’s ongoing abuses.
In response to the news, Tin Mar Oo, Rohingya Inclusion Coordinator at AJAR, emphasised its crucial role in the pursuit of justice for the atrocities committed against the Rohingya. This step, she said, sends a powerful message against impunity and offers hope to the community. “Such accountability initiatives must extend to all actors involved in violations, including the Myanmar military and armed groups like the Arakan Army, whose actions contribute to the great suffering of Rohingya at the moment. It is a reminder that impunity emboldens violence, and sustained efforts are essential to deter ongoing crimes. The international community and local stakeholders must work together to ensure that justice is not only pursued retrospectively but also actively prevents future crimes against the Rohingya.”
AJAR facilitated dialogues between the Prosecutor and Rohingya women refugees during his team’s visits in July 2023 and over this past week. These visits provided valuable opportunities for the ICC Prosecutor to engage directly with survivors who shared their stories and documentation gathered by them since 2019. AJAR continued to advocate for the Rohingya issue in various regional and international fora, highlighting the urgent need for a coordinated international response to the ongoing crisis in Myanmar. AJAR has also drawn attention to the disappointing lack of progress on the ASEAN Five-Point Consensus in South-East Asia, particularly in the Myanmar context, which has failed to deliver meaningful results in the impacted region from 2021.
“The international community must recognise the gravity of the situation in Myanmar and take decisive action to end the military’s reign of terror,” urged Francis, Country Manager of AJAR in Myanmar. “Decades of impunity have emboldened the junta to commit numerous war crimes and crimes against humanity, and this cycle of violence must be broken.”
In addition, AJAR acknowledges the important contributions of the UN-backed Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), with whom AJAR in Myanmar has been in close correspondence. The IIMM has been diligently collecting evidence and building case files for the criminal prosecution of individuals responsible for serious crimes in Myanmar. In July 2024, the IIMM reported it had “accumulated and analysed a diverse range of evidence of serious international crimes committed in Myanmar, including evidence bearing on the criminal responsibility of specific individuals.”
This evidence has been shared with the ICC, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and authorities in other countries, demonstrating a growing international commitment to pursuing justice for Myanmar and the Rohingya people. This includes a case filed in Argentina under the principle of universal jurisdiction by the British Rohingya Organization UK (BROUK), AJAR’s coalition partner in the Asia Justice Coalition.
“We urge the global community to support all efforts to hold perpetrators accountable,” added both. “This pursuit of justice at the ICC is a critical component of a broader strategy to ensure justice and accountability for the victims and survivors in Myanmar, including the Rohingya people.” This strategy, he added, should act as a deterrent for the military junta to stop committing crimes and end all forms of impunity in Myanmar.
While acknowledging the long road ahead, AJAR believes that initiating this process of justice and accountability is vital for reducing and ultimately ending violations of international law in Myanmar. AJAR remains committed to supporting the Rohingya people’s pursuit of justice and their right to return to their homeland in Rakhine State, Myanmar, and to the thousands of other Burmese victims of mass crimes.