By Ra Wai / MPA
Ambassador U Kyaw Moe Tun has called for the military junta to be referred to the International Criminal Court (ICC) via the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), according to a report from Myanmar’s Permanent Mission to the United Nations on October 19.
The UNSC and the international community are urgently called upon to impose a global arms embargo and ban jet fuel supplies to the military council. Relevant legal actions should be taken against members of the military council, applying universal jurisdiction within the domestic legal frameworks of certain nations, urged Ambassador U Kyaw Moe Tun, Myanmar’s Permanent Representative to the UN, in his speech during a UN meeting held on October 16.
“The heavy bureaucracy of the UN and the opposition from certain authoritarian states in the Security Council, which prioritize their interests, would prolong the international action against the junta through the UN,” a political analyst based in Yangon told MPA. “However, the ambassador continues his efforts to unveil the junta’s crimes at the UN platform.”
The exercise of universal jurisdiction should be aimed at eradicating “hideouts” for perpetrators of serious international crimes and preventing major crimes, regardless of the circumstances. The international community’s response to stop the ongoing violence by the military against the people of Myanmar has so far been inadequate, according to the ambassador.
The military has systematically dismantled the rule of law in Myanmar, escalating its brutal violence against the population. Concurrently, by deliberately destroying the legal frameworks, it has made it impossible to conduct independent, fair, and impartial investigations within the country, noted the ambassador.
Additionally, the ambassador further stated that the military-controlled courts consistently violate the legal rights and protections of victims, operating without transparency or fair judgment. During the period of the unlawful power grab, Myanmar’s judicial system not only collapsed but also became a tool for actively collaborating in the military’s crimes against the people. The current situation clearly demonstrates that Myanmar’s domestic legal system is completely incapable of effectively prosecuting perpetrators of crimes or holding them accountable for their actions.
