GENEVA (20 December 2017) – The Government of Myanmar has
informed UN Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee that all access to the country has
been denied and cooperation withdrawn for the duration of her tenure.
Ms. Lee had been due to visit Myanmar in January to
assess the state of human rights countrywide, including the human rights abuses
against Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine State.
“I am puzzled and disappointed by this decision by the
Myanmar Government,” said Ms. Lee. “This declaration of non-cooperation with my
mandate can only be viewed as a strong indication that there must be something
terribly awful happening in Rakhine, as well as in the rest of the country.”
The Special Rapporteur said she sincerely hoped Myanmar
would revisit the decision.
Don’t miss to read here, Myanmar government has banned UN
envoy for the reason of mass graves: https://mirsdq.blogspot.com/2017/12/witness-rohingya-mass-grave.html
“Only two weeks ago, Myanmar’s Permanent Representative
informed the Human Rights Council of its continuing cooperation with the UN,
referencing the relationship with my role as Special Rapporteur,” she said.
“Now I am being told that this decision to no longer
cooperate with me is based on the statement I made after I visited the country
in July.”
Ms. Lee had previously been afforded cooperation and
access to Myanmar, and had maintained a relationship of mutual respect with the
Government. The Government has now claimed that her end-of-mission statement in
July was biased and unfair.
The Special Rapporteur’s mandate requires two visits to
Myanmar a year, in order to report to the Human Rights Council and the UN General
Assembly. Since taking up the mandate in June 2014, she has visited six times.
While the Government had responded positively to past
requests to visit, access to some areas had been consistently refused, with the
authorities citing security concerns.
The Government is also not cooperating with the Human
Rights Council Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar,
established in March 2017.
“It is a shame that Myanmar has decided to take this
route,” said Ms. Lee. “The Government has repeatedly denied violations of human
rights are occurring throughout Myanmar, particularly in Rakhine State. They
have said that they have nothing to hide, but their lack of cooperation with my
mandate and the fact-finding mission suggests otherwise,” said the expert.
END
Source: https://shar.es/1MU05p