Six top generals of the "Tatmadaw" or the Armed Forces of Myanmar led by its commanding officer, Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, must be prosecuted for the genocide of the Muslim Rohingya people, demanded the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). Myanmar is among the 47 members of the Human Rights Council.
The historic condemnation was made in the first report by the UNHCR investigating the genocide and ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, which began in August 2017. UNHCR said these officers must be investigated and prosecuted for the "gravest" crimes -- including genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes -- against civilians under international law.
The list of gravest crimes these generals are accused of instigating is the cold-blooded murders of 10,000 Rohingya, either slaughtered outright by soldiers of the Tatmadaw or murdered by Buddhist mobs abetted by the army.
Tatmadaw soldiers are also confirmed to have cold-bloodedly shot children to death. There were also numerous rapes and gang rapes of Rohingya women by Myanmar soldiers, as well as tortures and mutilations. Tatmadaw forced Rohingya from the homes in a violent spasm of ethnic cleansing not seen since the crimes in the Balkans in the 1990s.
All in all, the crimes committed by the Tatmadaw and their Buddhist allies include murder, rape, torture, sexual slavery, persecution, and enslavement. UNHCR investigators are convinced the death toll is much higher but have no access to the affected regions, thereby making a precise accounting difficult, if not impossible.
The UNHCR report details the forced mass exodus of 700,000 to one million Rohingya from Myanmar beginning in August 2017. This murderous eviction at gunpoint was previously described by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights as a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.
The UNHCR investigators -- Radhika Coomaraswamy, Marzuki Darusman, and Christopher Sidoti -- emphasized the horrific and organized brutality inflicted by the Tatmadaw on civilians in Rakhine state since 2011. The Tatmadaw also committed human rights violations and committed murders and atrocities in Kachin and Shan state, as well.
Working under a mandate from the UNHCR, the investigators carefully assembled hundreds of accounts by Rohingya. They also pored over dozens of satellite footage and other information to build the report.
Based on reasonable grounds, the investigators concluded the patterns of gross human rights violations and serious violations of international humanitarian law they uncovered amount to the gravest crimes under international law.
Sidot said these crimes were principally been committed by the military or the Tatmadaw.
The investigators concluded that criminal investigation and prosecution is warranted considering the horror and gravity of the crimes. Any legal action must focus on top Tatmadaw generals, who must be tried under the three categories of crimes under international law: genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
Investigators said the situation in Myanmar must be referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for prosecution. If the ICC isn't the proper legal venue, then a special tribunal must be established to investigate the Rohingya genocide. The fact-finding team's assessment indicates the crimes against the Rohingya meet the strict legal definition of genocide.
The investigators pointed out there exists a very clear chain of command in the Tatmadaw. They have no doubt whatsoever that what they saw in Rakhine wouldn't have happened without the knowledge of the senior military leadership, and under their effective control.
They said it's because of the clarity of the Tatmadaw chain of command that they've recommended the investigation and prosecution of these six generals. Among these top generals is Minister of Defense Lt. Gen. Sein Win and Vice Chief of Defense Vice-Senior General Soe Win.
