Myanmar activist finds ICC Prosecutor’s arrest request insufficient for Rohingya Muslims
By Selman Aksünger
Myanmar human rights activist and genocide expert Maung Zarni said the ICC Prosecutor’s request for the arrest of the leader of the Myanmar military government was positive but insufficient for the return of Rohingya Muslims to their homeland.
Myanmar human rights activist and genocide expert Maung Zarni said the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for Myanmar military leader Min Aung Hlaing was a positive step.
Zarni said the arrest warrant for a single general was not enough to ensure the safe return of more than one million Rohingya Muslims to their ancestral lands and the rebuilding of their society.
Three basic conditions of true justice
Zarni, who stated that he does not think that real justice for the Rohingya Muslims will be achieved with just an arrest request, said, “If we are looking for real justice for the victims of genocide, it is not enough to try one, two or even half a dozen military leaders who have command responsibilities. Justice for the Rohingya Muslims is not just about imprisoning a few high-ranking commanders who carried out the genocide.”
Zarni listed three basic conditions for justice for the Rohingya Muslims, saying, “First, the safe return to their ancestral lands in Northern Arakan, then the opportunity to reclaim their lands and then rebuild their communities, lives, schools, hospitals, businesses and mosques in safety. These three basic elements will enable them to rebuild their economies, societies and other cultural and intellectual institutions.”
Zarni, who drew attention to the fact that genocide was carried out by the state, said, “Crimes against humanity and genocides are usually committed by political states and regimes using the army, paramilitary groups, militia groups, law enforcement forces and even the legal system. The situation of the Rohingya Muslims is a situation that could be a textbook example of genocide.”
Zarni assessed the role of the leader of the Myanmar military government, General Min Aung Hlaing, whose arrest request was made by the ICC, saying, “He is the Milosevic of Myanmar, the Netanyahu of Myanmar. In 2017, in the midst of all the killings, mass rapes, massacres and destructions of his army in Rakhine State, he famously addressed the military and the people in his speech saying that the existence of the Rohingya Muslims, their lives and their presence on Myanmar soil was ‘unfinished business’ from World War II. Thus, he clearly gave the signal to finish this unfinished business. The genocide was the means to do this. General Min should be seen as evil, racist, violent and genocidal as Netanyahu.”
“The genocide has been going on since the 1970s”
Drawing attention to the institutional dimension of the genocide rather than the individual accountability of those with command responsibility, Zarni noted the following:
“The mass deportation of one million Rohingya Muslims in six months to two years is a mass crime, but the institutional oppression of Rohingya Muslims dates back to the 1970s. That’s why we call it ‘gradual genocide.’ What the ICC prosecutor did is positive and I sincerely support it, but we should not confuse law with justice.”
Zarni said that genocide crimes are usually committed by states with the support of racist societies, adding, “The Nazi regime’s genocide against Jews and other minorities was carried out with the support of the German people. Myanmar Buddhist society has also entered the realm of genocidal racism. I have not seen any sincere change, even from the so-called democratic revolutionaries, that they are ready to accept Rohingya Muslims as people of Myanmar.”
Zarni, who also criticized the ICC’s approach, said: “It is worrying that the court waited 5 years to request the arrest of a single Myanmar general. It is positive that an arrest warrant was issued for Netanyahu and Gallant 6 days ago. I commend the court and prosecutors for this bold step. I support them trying the Myanmar general as well, but justice for the Rohingya Muslims must go beyond what the court can provide.”
“Social prejudices continue”
Zarni explained the two main obstacles to Rohingya Muslims’ return:
“The first obstacle is Myanmar society. Different ethnic groups, different religions, mainstream Buddhists and even some Myanmar Muslims have been led to believe that Rohingya Muslims do not belong there. They were propagandized that they came as seasonal agricultural workers during the British period and stayed in the country after the British left. This propaganda, produced by the Myanmar military, was accepted by political parties and leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi, priests and other ethnic minorities.”
Zarni said that some groups that want democracy, federal autonomy and human rights are not ready to accept that Rohingya Muslims are subject to the same rights. He added, “In order for this internal obstacle to change, all Myanmar opinion leaders, journalists, educators and revolutionary leaders need to come together and say, ‘We accept Rohingya Muslims back, they are part of our society, they are our brothers.’ But this is not happening.”
Zarni said that the second obstacle to the Rohingya Muslims returning to their homeland is the lack of an active role by the international community, adding, “Since 2016-2017, one million Rohingya Muslims who were forcibly removed from their country have not been provided with the necessary protection in neighboring countries, including Bangladesh. Bangladesh describes them as ‘forcibly displaced persons from Myanmar’. No, they are victims of genocide and Rohingya refugees under the refugee convention.”
“The Arakan Army is also racist”
Zarni, who explained that the state of Rakhine is under the control of the Arakan Army, one of the armed rebel groups fighting with the army in Myanmar, said, “The lands of the Rohingya Muslims are currently under the control of the armed militia called the ‘Arakan Army’. The Arakan Army has repeatedly shown that it is equally racist, genocidal and violent towards the Rohingya Muslims.”
Zarni stated that as a solution proposal, the Rohingya Muslims should be given refugee status and then an inter-state conference should be held where Turkey, China, India and other regional countries come together. He said, “The sole focus of the conference should be the voluntary return of the Rohingya Muslims to their homes. This should happen with the international protection force to be formed by Bangladesh, India, China, Thailand and other ASEAN countries.”
Stating that the military and administrative situation in Myanmar is suitable for international intervention, Zarni said, “The intervention of not all 198 UN member states but only a few neighboring countries that are important for the Myanmar army is sufficient. India, China, Thailand and Bangladesh in particular should come together. Bangladesh currently carries the biggest burden with one million Rohingya Muslim refugees on its soil.”
Selman is a PhD candidate at Maastricht University. His research concerns the impact of sea-level rise on a displaced nation’s sovereignty rights over natural resources.
29 November 2024