{"id":79423,"date":"2025-10-29T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-29T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/myanmar-at-a-crossroads-a-choice-between-impunity-and-justice\/"},"modified":"2025-10-29T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-10-29T12:00:00","slug":"myanmar-at-a-crossroads-a-choice-between-impunity-and-justice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gulftimes.ae\/?p=79423","title":{"rendered":"Myanmar at a crossroads: A choice between impunity and justice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), told the UN General Assembly\u2019s Third Committee that \u201cthe frequency and severity of international crimes in Myanmar have escalated.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Warning that civilians of all ethnicities are bearing the brunt, he said: \u201cWe have amassed evidence that persons detained by the military authorities have been tortured and subjected to various forms of sexual violence.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have evidence of the identity of the perpetrators and their commanders.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mr. Koumjian added that his team has also documented summary executions and attacks on schools, hospitals, and places of worship as the military increasingly relies on airstrikes.<\/p>\n<p>He noted that in Rakhine state, where the Arakan Army (an ethnic armed group fighting against Myanmar\u2019s military junta) has seized most territory, the military\u2019s brutal response has left civilians destitute and starving.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[We are] gathering evidence of several alleged atrocities, including drone attacks targeting civilians, executions, rape, torture, and the obstruction of humanitarian aid to a population facing starvation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"context-un_news_full_width_credit_caption type-entermedia_image media media--type-entermedia-image media--view-mode-un-news-full-width-credit-caption\">\n<div class=\"field field--name-thumbnail field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item\">\n<\/div>\n<p>In Mandalay, a teacher stands amid the ruins of the classroom where he once taught English and Science \u2013 now destroyed by the March earthquakes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>An invisible crisis<\/h2>\n<p>Tom Andrews, UN Special Rapporteur on the Human Rights situation in Myanmar, said the situation in has worsened dramatically, with nearly 22 million people now requiring aid and 16.7 million facing acute food insecurity.<\/p>\n<p>March earthquakes in central Myanmar left roughly 200,000 people homeless, damaged 157,000 buildings, and caused an estimated $11 billion in losses.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe military junta took this natural disaster and turned it into a humanitarian catastrophe,\u201d Mr. Andrews said. \u201cThey blocked systematically the delivery of humanitarian aid, harassed and threatened relief workers, looted homes and medical supplies, and forcibly conscripted young people into the military.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Airstrikes on civilian targets surged in the aftermath, surpassing pre-earthquake levels. The health system was also targeted, with 169 attacks on medical facilities and personnel in the first eight months of 2025, while food shortages in central Rakhine state worsened sharply, leaving 58 per cent of families unable to meet basic needs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crisis is getting worse every day,\u201d he warned. \u201cThis is not only a national tragedy; it is affecting the entire region and beyond.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Lack of funds imperilling efforts<\/h2>\n<p>Mr. Koumjian also warned that a funding shortfall could soon force the Mechanism to lose one-third of its staff \u2013 including experts on gender-based crimes and crimes against children \u2013 undermining accountability efforts.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPursuing justice for the crimes committed in Myanmar sends an important message,\u201d he said, \u201cthat the international community will not stand by when civilians are targeted and international law ignored.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"context-un_news_full_width_credit_caption type-entermedia_image media media--type-entermedia-image media--view-mode-un-news-full-width-credit-caption\">\n<div class=\"field field--name-thumbnail field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/global.unitednations.entermediadb.net\/assets\/mediadb\/services\/module\/asset\/downloads\/preset\/Libraries\/Production%20Library\/07-02-2024-UNOCHA-Myanmar.jpg\/image1170x530cropped.jpg\" alt=\"A general view shows an IDP camp in eastern Myanmar.\" title=\"A general view shows an IDP camp in eastern Myanmar.\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1170\" height=\"530\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"field field--name-field-authors field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items\">\n<p>\u00a9 UNOCHA\/Siegfried Modola<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>A general view shows an IDP camp in eastern Myanmar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>\u2018Time is slipping away\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Julie Bishop, the Secretary-General\u2019s Special Envoy on Myanmar, echoed those concerns, urging renewed diplomatic engagement as \u201ctime is slipping away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She described a \u201cdeeply disturbing pattern of indiscriminate attacks on civilians\u201d and said Myanmar\u2019s planned elections risk \u201cdeepening violence and instability\u201d as opposition groups reject them as illegitimate.<\/p>\n<p>She warned that those who support these elections \u201cshould consider potential consequences&#8230;no elections should risk human lives.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Independent experts<\/h2>\n<p>The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) and the Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the country are both mandated by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor abuses and pursue accountability.<\/p>\n<p>The IIMM is tasked with collecting and preserving evidence of international crimes for future judicial proceedings.<\/p>\n<p>The Special Rapporteur is an independent expert, not a UN staff member, who reports impartially on human rights conditions.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/news.un.org\/feed\/view\/en\/story\/2025\/10\/1166221\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), told the UN General Assembly\u2019s&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":79424,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-79423","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-asia-pacific"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v21.0 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - 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