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Wednesday, January 22, 2020

Will there be more courts-martial in Myanmar?

A commission appointed by the government of Myanmar to investigate allegations regarding violence against the country's Rohingya minority has submitted its report. The government's summary suggests there will be courts-martial if warranted. According to this account by Radio Free Asia:
The President’s Office announced that Win Myint sent the full report to military commander-in-chief Min Aung Hlaing to investigate and take action against servicemen and other security forces responsible for atrocities cited in the report.

In an executive summary of the report issued Tuesday, the President’s office concurred with the [Independent Commission of Enquiry]'s suggestion that investigations against those deemed responsible for human rights abuses should be conducted and that military courts should proceed with prosecutions if there is sufficient evidence.

“According to the evidence offered by the ICOE , war crimes and serious human rights violations may have occurred in the form of disproportionate use of force by some members of Myanmar’s Defense Services and Police Force in the course of internal armed conflict against [the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army],” the summary said.

“This must be further investigated, verified, and thereafter prosecuted by Myanmar’s natural legal processes, in particular its military justice system,” it said.
The true test will be whether any more courts-martial occur, on what charges, with what rigor and transparency, and with what results.

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