UN votes to prepare atrocity file
GENEVA: The UN Human Rights Council voted yesterday to set up a body to prepare evidence of human rights abuses in Myanmar, including possible genocide, for any future prosecution.
The 47member council voted by 35 votes to three, with seven abstentions, in favour of a resolution brought by the European Union and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.
China, the Philippines and Burundi voted against the move, whose backers said it was supported by more than 100 countries.
Myanmar Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun said the resolution was based on the report of a UN factfinding mission (FFM) that his government had categorically rejected, and which was unbalanced and onesided.
‘‘The draft resolution is based on serious but unverified accusations and recommendations of the FFM that could even endanger the national unity of the country,’’ he said.
He said the resolution’s intrus ive language and demands would not contribute to finding lasting resolutions to the delicate situation in Rakhine state.
The resolution sets up a body to ‘‘collect, consolidate, preserve and analyse evidence of the most serious international crimes and violations of international law committed in Myanmar since 2011, and to prepare files in order to facilitate and expedite fair and independent criminal proceedings’’.
The new agency is to work closely with any future prosecution brought by the International Criminal Court, which said this month it had jurisdiction over alleged deportations of Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar to Bangladesh.
The FFM report said Myanmar’s military had carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Rohingya with ‘‘genocidal intent’’ and called for commanderinchief Min Aung Hlaing and five named generals to be prosecuted.
In yesterday’s resolution, the council said there was enough information to warrant a competent court ‘‘to determine their liability for genocide’’.
Chinese diplomat Chen Cheng told the council Beijing opposed the resolution because it was likely to exacerbate the tensions.
‘‘This is in no one’s interest,’’ he said. China has close relations with Myanmar, and backs what Myanmar officials call a legitimate counterinsurgency operation in Rakhine.
Speaking on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York yesterday, China’s State Councillor Wang Yi said the Rakhine issue was ‘‘in essence, an issue between Myanmar and Bangladesh. China does not approve of complicating, expanding or internationalising this issue’’.
China hoped Myanmar and Bangladesh could find a resolution via talks, and was willing to continue to help.
‘‘The international community, including the United Nations, can also play a constructive role on this.’’