Human rights activists call on UN Security Council to refer Myanmar's military rulers to International Criminal Court

(MENAFN) Human rights activists have called on the UN Security Council to refer Myanmar's military rulers to the International Criminal Court and for neighboring Southeast Asian countries to support the pro-democracy movement. The leaders of two women's rights organizations made this request ahead of a closed council meeting on Myanmar, during which members heard briefings from UN special envoy for Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer and Indonesia's Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi.


Myanmar's military has been accused of human rights violations for years, including during a brutal 2017 counterinsurgency campaign against Rohingya Muslims. International courts are considering whether that crackdown constituted genocide. In 2021, the military ousted Myanmar's elected civilian government and moved to violently suppress public opposition to the takeover. The situation is now considered by some experts to be a civil war in which the army is conducting major offensives against widespread armed resistance.


May Sabe Phyu, director of the Gender Equality Network, a coalition of organizations promoting women's rights in Myanmar, accused the military of conducting "a terror campaign" and committing "heinous acts" that constituted crimes against humanity. She urged the Security Council to refer the junta's actions to the International Criminal Court for prosecution. Meanwhile, ASEAN adopted a five-step consensus on restoring peace in Myanmar in April 2021. Myanmar agreed to the plan but has not implemented it, leading to the country's exclusion from some top-level ASEAN meetings since then.

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