US probing atrocities against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims
The undertaking, led by the State Department, has involved more than a thousand interviews of Rohingya men and women in refugee camps in Bangladesh, officials said
WASHINGTON/COX’S BAZAR (BANGLADESH): The US government is conducting an intensive examination of alleged atrocities against Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslims, documenting accusations of murder, rape, beatings and other possible offenses in an investigation that could be used to prosecute Myanmar’s military for crimes against humanity, US officials told Reuters.
The undertaking, led by the State Department, has involved more than a thousand interviews of Rohingya men and women in refugee camps in neighbouring Bangladesh, where almost 700,000 Rohingya have fled after a military crackdown last year in Myanmar’s northwestern Rakhine State, two US officials said.
The work is modelled on a US forensic investigation of mass atrocities in Sudan’s Darfur region in 2004, which led to a US declaration of genocide that culminated in economic sanctions against the Sudanese government. The interviews were conducted in March and April by about 20 investigators with backgrounds in international law and criminal justice, including some who worked on tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, the US officials said.
The information will be analyzed in Washington and documented in a report to be sent to the State Department’s leadership in May or early June, the officials said. It’s unclear whether the Trump administration will publicly release the findings, or whether they will be used to justify new sanctions on the Myanmar government or a recommendation for international prosecution.
“The purpose of this investigation is to contribute to justice processes, including community awareness raising, international advocacy efforts, and communitybased reconciliation efforts, as well as possible investigations, truth-seeking efforts, or other efforts for justice and accountability,” said a document used by the investigators in the sprawling refugee camps and reviewed by Reuters.
Three US officials in Washington and several people involved in the investigation on the ground in Bangladesh disclosed details of the fact-finding operation to Reuters.
A State Department official, asked to confirm the specifics of the investigation conducted in the refugee camps as reported by Reuters, said “the program details are accurate.” The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the US government was using all available information and a wide range of tools, but added: “We cannot get ahead of the deliberative, policymaking process.”
As of publication, the Myanmar government and military had not responded to questions from Reuters. Myanmar has said its operations in Rakhine were a legitimate response to attacks on security forces by Rohingya insurgents.
The interviewers in the camps asked the refugees basic demographic questions, the date the person left Myanmar, and to recount their experiences during the wave of violence unleashed against the Rohingya in Rakhine State by the Myanmar military and local Buddhist residents.
The investigators also asked refugees to describe the battalions and weaponry used by the Myanmar military in Rakhine State during operations against the Rohingya, said one person involved with the investigation in the camps, which are located in the Cox’s Bazar district in southern Bangladesh.
The investigators have received names of individual perpetrators and the identities of specific battalions allegedly involved, this person said. A second person involved in the project on the ground said 1,025 refugees have been interviewed and the assignment may include a second phase focused on military units.
Full story @ timesofoman.com/world