27 February 2017
GENEVA (Issued as
received) – The Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar
is calling for urgent action by the Government there to end the suffering of
the Rohingya population in the country.
Speaking at the end
of a four-day visit to Dhaka and Cox’s Bazar Yanghee Lee said: “the magnitude
of violence that these families have witnessed and experienced is far more
extensive than I had originally speculated.”
During her visit,
she met members of the Rohingya population who had fled to Bangladesh after 9
October 2016 when the Myanmar Border Guard Police facilities were attacked and
reprisals followed.
The expert reported
several allegations of horrific attacks including the slitting of some people’s
throats, indiscriminate shootings, houses being set alight with people tied up
inside and very young children being thrown into the fire, as well as gang
rapes and other sexual violence.
In addition to the
alleged human rights violations occurring within the context of the security
operations that followed the 9 October attacks, Ms. Lee also highlighted how
the Government of Myanmar appears to have taken, and continues to take, actions
which discriminate against the Rohingya and make their lives even more
difficult.
The Special
Rapporteur said: “I urge the Government of Myanmar to immediately cease the
discrimination that the community continues to face, to act now to prevent any
further serious rights violations and to conduct prompt, thorough, independent
and impartial investigations into those already alleged to have occurred.”
“We all owe it to
those I have met and their fellow community members to do everything in our
power to ensure this is done and to give the Rohingya people reason to hope
again,” she concluded.
The Special
Rapporteur will present her full report to the UN Human Rights Council on 13
March 2017. The report will be posted online.
http://ap.ohchr.org/documents/dpage_e.aspx?m=89
Professor Yanghee
Lee (Republic of Korea) was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2014 as the Special Rapporteur on situation of human rights in
Myanmar. She is independent from any government or organization and
serves in her individual capacity. Ms. Lee is currently serving as the
Chairperson of the Coordinating Committee of Special Procedures of the Human
Rights Council. Ms. Lee served as member and chairperson of the UN Committee on
the Rights of the Child (2003-2011). She is currently a professor at
Sungkyunwan University, Seoul, and serves on the Advisory Committee of the National
Human Rights Commission of Korea. Ms. Lee is the founding President of International
Child Rights Center. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/CountriesMandates/MM/Pages/SRMyanmar.aspx
The Special
Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special
Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest
body of independent experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name
of the Council’s independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms. Special
Procedures mandate-holders are independent human rights experts appointed by
the Human Rights Council to address either specific country situations or
thematic issues in all parts of the world. They are not UN staff and are
independent from any government or organization. They serve in their individual
capacity and do not receive a salary for their work. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/Pages/Welcomepage.aspx
UN Human Rights,
country page: Myanmar. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/AsiaRegion/Pages/MMIndex.aspx
For more information
and media requests, please contact Ms. Azwa Petra (+41 22 928 9103 / apetra@ohchr.org)
For media inquiries
related to other UN independent experts:
Bryan Wilson, OHCHR
Media Unit (+ 41 22 917 9826 / mediaconsultant1@ohchr.org)
You can access the
Special Rapporteur’s statement online. http://www.ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/SP/CountriesMandates/MM/Pages/SRMyanmar.aspx
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Source: https://shar.es/1U0ygL