An exhausted Rohingya refugee fleeing violence in Myanmar cries for help
from others crossing into Palang Khali, near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh
November 2, 2017. Source: Reuters/Hannah McKay
BURMA (Myanmar) has joined the ranks of the Democratic Republic of
Congo, Iraq and South Sudan on a list of 19 countries submitted to the
United Nations Security Council regarding sexual violence in armed
conflict, which said “brutal sexual assault” had been used as a
“calculated tool” against Rohingya Muslims.
Its army the Tatmadaw has for the first time been included in the annually released report,
which was presented to the Security Council by the UN Secretary
General’s Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict on
Monday.
Sexual violence had been “integral to their [Burma’s army] strategy,
humiliating, terrorising and collectively punishing the Rohingya
community”, said the report, which added that it was a “calculated tool
to force them to flee their homelands and prevent their return”.
Humanitarian agencies have said more than 671,000 Rohingya refugees have
fled Rakhine State into Cox’s Bazar in since Aug 25 in response to
so-called “clearing operations” by army. The military and Buddhist
vigilantes stand accused of mass killings, rape and arson in Muslim
villages.
Echoing the UN Rights Chief who last year said the
situation was a “textbook example” of ethnic cleansing, Secretary
General’s report referred to “‘ethnic cleansing’ under the guise of
clearance operations in northern Rakhine”.
Violence was perpetrated against women including those who were
pregnant, it said, because they are viewed as “custodians and
propagators of ethnic identity”. It is linked to an “inflammatory
narrative” which alleges high fertility rates among Rohingya women
represent and “existential threat” to the majority Buddhist population,
said the report.
A Myanmar policeman stands outside of a camp set up by Myanmar’s Social
Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Minister to prepare for the
repatriation of displaced Rohingyas, who fled to Bangladesh, outside
Maungdaw in the state of Rakhine, Myanmar January 24, 2018. Source:
Reuters
The Special Representative had heard accounts of “rape, gang rape,
forced nudity and abduction for the purpose of sexual slavery during
military campaigns of slaughter, looting and the razing of homes and
villages,” from “almost every woman and girl” during her visit to
refugee camps in November, it said.
The UN report reflects the testimonies of Rohingya women whose stories
have been widely documented by medical professionals and service
providers in Cox’s Bazar, as well as other UN agencies, rights groups
and foreign government representatives.
“This is the fastest refugee movement since the Rwanda genocide. I am
extremely grateful to Bangladesh for opening its borders,” said Director
of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation’s women section Razia
Sultana in a statement presented on behalf of civil society to the Security Council.
“However, the international community, especially the Security Council, has failed us,” she said.
Razia Sultana, human rights activist and lawyer, addresses the Security
Council’s open debate on behalf of the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace
and Security. Source: UN Photo/Mark Garten
Razia’s statement alleged that government troops had raped “well over”
300 women and girls across 17 villages in Rakhine – some who were as
young as six years old. “This number is likely only a fraction of the
actual total number of women raped,” said her statement.
The statement said that many of Burma’s other ethnic groups such as
“Karen, Kachin, Chin, Mung, and Shan have also faced decades of
entrenched discrimination, rape, and other human rights violations by
the military operating with impunity.”
In a visit organised by the UK, Peru and Kuwait, the Security Council
will visit camps in Cox’s Bazar and then Burma later this month.
“During this visit, you must meet with women and girl survivors. I could
facilitate safe meetings,” said Razia. “You must work with the
Bangladesh authorities to stop the trafficking, pressure the Myanmar
Government and senior officials to cooperate with the UN Fact Finding
mission, and insist on unrestricted humanitarian access across Rakhine
State.”
After her visit to Cox’s Bazar last November, the UN Secretary General’s
Special Representative on Sexual Violence’s announced that she would be
referring Burma to the ICC.
