Press Release: ARNO Rejects Government’s Investigation
Commission
Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO)
3 December 2016
ARNO Rejects Government’s Investigation Commission
Arakan Rohingya National
Organisation (ARNO) is strongly opposed to the government’s pretension and lack
of honesty, and rejects the 13-member investigation commission formed on 1
December, inter alia, for the following reasons:
1. The military and police
crackdown on innocent Rohingya civilian population in Northern Arakan since 9
October is state sponsored. It has been carried out with manifest intention of
destroying the Rohingya minority community. Not only Myanmar military top brass
but also the State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi is morally, officially and
wickedly responsible for it.
2. The investigation commission
is headed by Vice-President 1 U Myint Swe, who was much feared former Chief of
Military Security Affairs. No Rohingya or Muslim is taken in the commission and
it fully represents the perpetrators and their interest. It cannot be taken as
impartial and independent.
3. The Myanmar security forces
are still indulging in violent killings, rapes and arson attacks in Rohingya
villages even when the former UN Secretary-General Mr. Kofi Annan, the head of
the Advisory Commission on Arakan, is on his observation tour to Maungdaw
District from 2 December.
4. So far, more than 500
innocent Rohingya civilians were killed, many hundreds of women raped, about
3500 houses were burned down, unknown number of people arrested and
involuntarily disappeared, and at least 40,000 internally displaced, in
addition to systematic destruction of rice, paddy and food products. About
10,000 people fled to Bangladesh. In fact, this level of indescribable criminal
atrocities is aimed at forcing the entire community to flee their ancestral
homeland of Arakan and make them to wander from place to place with ultimate
aims of perishing them.
5. By all legal definition, the
Myanmar government is committing genocide and crimes against humanity,
including ethnic cleansing, against the Rohingya people. They are international
crimes with international jurisdiction. Thus the Rohingya issue is an
international issue and it cannot be pleaded as internal affairs of Myanmar.
6. Like all other previously
formed inquiry commissions on Rohingya issue, the newly formed Investigation
Commission is just for show and impression. It is not trustworthy and we REJECT
it totally.
7. We therefore demand an
urgent UN sponsored international commission to investigate into genocide and
crimes against humanity and bring the perpetrators to justice.
For more details, please
contact:
U.K.: Ronnie +44-7783118354
Japan: Zaw Min Htut
+81-8030835327
Australia: Dr. Hla Myint
+61-423381904
USA: Dr. Mohammed Habib Ullah
+1-4438158609
Canada: Nur Hasim +1 (519)
572-5359
Bangladesh: Ko Ko Linn:
+880-1726068413
Email: info@rohingya.org