The Republic of the Union of Myanmar, as represented by the National Unity Government, welcomes the interactive dialogue with the Head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, Mr. Nicholas Koumjian, as well as the Mechanism’s latest report to the Human Rights Council.

Confirming another year of “increasingly frequent and brutal war crimes and crimes against humanity” in Myanmar, Mr. Koumjian told the Council that “civilians are not just collateral damage but rather the target of attacks, which appear intended to create terror.”

As the IIMM reports, this terror is evident in the military junta’s widespread airstrikes against civilians in Chin, Kachin, Karenni, Kayin and Shan States, and its torture of detainees, including through beatings, electric shocks, strangulations, the pulling out of fingernails with pliers, and violent sexual and gender-based crimes.

In his presentation, Mr. Koumjian also addressed the situation in Rakhine State and reports of killings, torture, rape and the burning of villages. To Mr. Koumjian, while all ethnicities in Rakhine State have suffered, the Rohingya population remains “in a particularly precarious situation”.

The situation in Rakhine State and across Myanmar is one that Mr. Koumjian attributes to “decades of impunity”. Myanmar, as represented by the National Unity Government, supports the Mechanism’s commitment to accountability and its acceleration of contributions to ongoing proceedings at the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Court and in Argentina.

We will also continue to partner with the Mechanism by identifying witnesses who can provide testimony in safe and secure ways, and by exploring the Mechanism’s access to Myanmar.

In closing, Myanmar repeats its gratitude to Mr. Koumjian and to the full Mechanism team for their dedicated efforts to secure justice for the people of Myanmar.

Ministry of Human Rights
National Unity Government