Myanmar unwilling to probe Rohingya abuse: Rights envoy

Suu Kyi promises 'transparency' over atrocities to attract investors

FE Team | Published: October 09, 2018 23:37:52

YANGON, Oct 9 (AFP): Myanmar is "unable and unwilling" to investigate its abuses against Rohingya Muslims, a UN rights envoy has said, bolstering calls for the country's generals to be hauled before an international court.
A UN fact-finding mission has called for Myanmar's top brass to be investigated for genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes over a brutal crackdown against Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state that forced more than 720,000 of the beleaguered minority to flee the country to Bangladesh.
Myanmar has dismissed the allegations, slamming the UN body as biased, and the government has set up its own committee to investigate the crimes.
But UN special rapporteur to Myanmar Yanghee Lee-who has been barred from entering the country since December-said the government has shown little capacity for an unbiased probe into the violence, saying it has taken "limited and insufficient steps".
"[Myanmar] is unable and unwilling to discharge its obligation to conduct credible, prompt, thorough, independent and impartial investigations and prosecutions," Lee said in a report she published via her Twitter account on Monday.
Given Myanmar's refusal to hold itself accountable, she added, it was up to international courts to seek justice.
"The onus is on the international community to take action," she warned. "Any delay in instituting justice will only result in more violations."
In her conclusions she recommended the UN should "refer the situation in Myanmar to the International Criminal Court immediately".
However, embattled leader Aung San Suu Kyi vowed on Monday to increase transparency over her government's handling of the Rohingya crisis while pitching for foreign investment in Myanmar ahead of a regional summit in Tokyo.
"I'm ready to acknowledge that we have challenges to face particularly with regard to the Rakhine and with the struggles we have on the peace front," Suu Kyi said in a speech before Japanese businessmen, referring to Myanmar's westernmost state where the minority dwelled.
"We are not hiding this fact from our friends," she said.
In the speech ahead of the summit in Tokyo, Suu Kyi said she was aware that peace and stability in her country were necessary for attracting foreign investment.