Asean MPs welcome ICC jurisdiction over crimes against Rohingya

M Humayun Kabir: Asean Parliamen-tarians for Human Rights (APHR) yesterday welcomed the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) which ruled that it could exercise jurisdiction over the alleged crime of deportation of the Rohingya population, despite Myanmar not being a party to the Rome Statute.
“This is a milestone decision and a step forward towards accountability for the alleged atrocity crimes against the Rohingya population,” said Charles Santiago, Chair of APHR, also a member of the Malaysian Parliament.
Santiago said this ruling, however, is for now just on the jurisdiction to investigate around the alleged crime of deportation and we must be cautious in our optimism.
In a statement, UNB received from Jakarta, Santiago said, “This doesn’t mean the international community can take our collective foot off the pedal.”
The ICC, on Thursday, found that, while the underlying “coercive acts” under the alleged crime against humanity of deportation of Rohingya took place in a State not party to the Rome Statute, the Court nevertheless could assert jurisdiction as an element of the crime had also occurred on the territory of a State party to the Statute -in this case, Bangladesh.
APHR Board Member Eva KusumaSundari, a member of the House of Representatives of Indonesia, said, “The ICC now has the opportunity to initiate a full investigation. This means bringing those responsible for the alleged human rights violations to account and possibly putting an end to the longstanding discrimination and injustices this community has faced in Myanmar.”
Sundari said this will undoubtedly bring some much-needed hope and optimism for the more than one million Rohingya who have suffered under decades of brutal tyranny in Myanmar.
“We look forward to the recommendations of the preliminary examination concerning the crimes allegedly committed against the Rohingya people and hope for a full investigation and trial of those accountable for all alleged crimes under the jurisdiction of the ICC,” Sundari said.
In August, the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar found patterns of gross human rights violations committed in Rakhine, Kachin, and Shan States, and called for the investigation and prosecution of Myanmar’s top military generals.
It is due to deliver its full report to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on September 18.