45th Regular Session of the UN Human Rights Council
Item 2: Enhanced Interactive Dialogue on the High Commissioner’s report on the situation of human rights of Rohingya and other ethnic minorities in Myanmar
Oral Statement Delivered by Ahmed Adam On behalf of the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
Monday, 14 September 2020
Madam President, FORUM-ASIA welcomes the report of the High Commissioner on the situation of human rights of Rohingya and other minorities in Myanmar. More than three years after the Myanmar military’s genocidal clearance operations in Rakhine state, nearly a million Rohingya remain in refugee camps in Bangladesh. While Myanmar has failed to guarantee essential conditions for their voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return, it has also escalated the war in Rakhine state making their return untenable and displacing the remaining Rohingya. Myanmar continues to use discriminatory laws and policies to deny Rohingya identity and right to citizenship, propagate hate speech and incitement to violence and prevent their freedom of movement. Exclusion of Rohingya in the upcoming national elections is yet another manifestation of the systematic discrimination against and persecution of Rohingya.
Accountability is paramount to ensure safety, dignity and human rights of Rohingya and other minorities. The government has not only failed to hold the military accountable, it has actively shielded military personnel from accountability while persecuting those who advocate for international accountability in Myanmar. It is imperative that the international community pursues criminal accountability for genocide against Rohingya, and crimes against humanity and war crimes against other ethnic minorities by referring Myanmar to the International Criminal Court (ICC) or establishing an ad-hoc tribunal.
We call on Myanmar to repeal or review all discriminatory laws and policies in line with international standards, and to guarantee full citizenship regardless of ethnicity or religion. Finally, for the upcoming national elections to be credible, Myanmar should allow all ethnic minorities including Rohingya refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs)to take part in the elections. Thank you.
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For a pdf version of this statement please click here.
