ICC prosecutor in Bangladesh to take Rohingya testimonies

By SM Najmus Sakib

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) — An International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor on Thursday met with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh to receive their testimonies on alleged genocide they experienced at the hands of Myanmar's military or witnessed.

Karim Asad Ahmad Khan visited two refugee camps in the southern district of Cox's Bazar and spoke to 35 Rohingya people who fled Myanmar in August 2017 following a military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

A 10-member delegation headed by Khan met with the Rohingya Muslim men and women who shared their experiences of persecution in Myanmar, officials and refugees told Anadolu.

Nearly 1.2 million Rohingya live in Bangladesh today, with most having fled a brutal military crackdown in Rakhine state in August 2017. While the majority are still in overcrowded camps in Cox's Bazar, around 30,000 have been shifted to the island of Bhasan Char since late 2020.

The delegation was accompanied by two officials of Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry and its Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC).

RRRC additional Commissioner Khalid Hossain, who accompanied the delegation, confirmed to Anadolu that some 35 Rohingya met and spoke to the ICC team.

The body's chief Commissioner Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, meanwhile, told Anadolu that Prosecutor Khan also held a meeting with local refugee officials, urging increased protection for Rohingya in Cox's Bazar who shared their experiences with the ICC.

"The ICC team is here in Cox's Bazar for their official visit on the Rohingya genocide case investigation. They have had their meetings with the Rohingya people and taken their witnesses. We supported them (ICC) as we did earlier when they visited Cox's bazar," he said, noting that officials said they would provide safety, security, and logistical support as required.

- Ethnic cleansing, torture, execution, rape

Muhammad Zubair, chairman of Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights, a Rohingya rights group based in Cox's Bazar, told reporters that the testimonies received by the ICC delegation included recounts of ethnic cleansing, torture, loss of dignity, and the burning of homes in Myanmar during the crackdown in August of 2017.

They also said they witnessed loss of property, execution, and rape.

In November 2019, judges at the ICC approved a prosecution request to investigate crimes against Myanmar's Rohingya Muslim minority, though Myanmar had since rejected the international court's jurisdiction on the matter.

Bangladesh is a member state of the ICC, while Myanmar, which is not a party to the Rome Statute, has been accused of committing widespread abuses against Rohingya.

The ICC delegation arrived in Bangladesh on Tuesday to investigate the extent of torture carried out by Myanmar's army. The visit is scheduled to continue until Friday.

During talks on Wednesday, Bangladeshi Foreign Minister A K Abdul Momen assured Khan that Dhaka would provide all possible support and cooperation to the ICC prosecution related to the investigation.

Khan also met Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on the same day. In a tweet, he said: "We agreed: the world cannot forget about the Rohingya and the need for accountability. My Office is pushing forward in its efforts to deliver this."

- World's most persecuted people

The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.

According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017, pushing the number of persecuted people in Bangladesh above 1.2 million.

Since Aug. 25, 2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar's state forces, according to a report by the Ontario International Development Agency (OIDA).

More than 34,000 Rohingya were also thrown into fires, while over 114,000 others were beaten, said the OIDA report, titled Forced Migration of Rohingya: The Untold Experience.

As many as 18,000 Rohingya women and girls were raped by Myanmar's army and police and over 115,000 Rohingya homes burned down, while 113,000 others vandalized, it added.