- The US wants to formally classify the persecution and violence against the Rohinyga in Myanmar as genocide.
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken will make the official announcement during a speech at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, a government official said.
- Human rights groups had long ago asked the US government to describe the acts as genocide – “Burma Human Rights Network” welcomes the announcement as a “positive step”.
The US government wants to formally classify the atrocities against the Muslim minority of the Rohingya in Myanmar as genocide. The governments of US President Joe Biden and his predecessor Donald Trump have so far avoided this step. However, they have imposed a large number of sanctions on Myanmar.
Response «Burma Human Rights Network»
The human rights organization “Burma Human Rights Network” (BHRN) welcomed the announcement as a “positive step”, but complained that it was long overdue.
The military campaign against the Rohingya was marked by mass killings of civilians, sexual violence and the complete destruction of entire villages. “Further measures must follow this declaration,” said the organization’s founder and director, Kyaw Win. “A military that commits genocide and coups to overthrow a democratically elected government has no place in the civilized world.”
More than 700,000 people fled
The Rohingya Muslim minority are being persecuted in their home country of Myanmar. More than 700,000 people fled to neighboring Bangladesh in 2017, fearing attacks by the military in the predominantly Buddhist country. They now live there in overcrowded camps.
Legend:
Most Rohingya refugees fled to neighboring Bangladesh. (October 2017)
key stone
The main proceedings in The Hague are ongoing
Almost two years ago, the International Court of Justice in The Hague ordered Myanmar to immediately protect the Rohingya in an interim ruling.
At that time, the then head of government and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Aung San Suu Kyi, firmly rejected all allegations before the highest UN court. She was imprisoned after a 2021 military coup. The internationally unrecognized military leadership in Myanmar has also vehemently denied the allegations. The main proceedings in The Hague will probably drag on for years.