Myanmar government rejects UN probe on Rohingya 'mass killings'
The Myanmar government today rejected the UN probe which declared that the country's military commanders should be prosecuted over mass killings and gang rapes of Rohingyas with "genocidal intent".
"We didn't allow the FFM (the UN Fact-Finding Mission) to enter into Myanmar, that's why we don't agree and accept any resolutions made by the Human Rights Council which gave its scathing assessment on Monday," said spokesman Zaw Htay, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper, AFP quoted.
The UN probe also criticised Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi who is heading the civilian government declaring her government allowed "hate speech to thrive, destroyed documents and failed to protect minorities from crimes against humanity and war crimes by the army in Rakhine, Kachin and Shan"
"In doing so, it contributed to the commission of atrocity crimes", the report added.
According to the UN, over 700,000 Rohingyas have fled Myanmar into Bangladesh since August 25th last year due to the military crackdown. The UN report maintained that the military action, which included the scorching of villages, was "grossly disproportionate to actual security threats".
The report said Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, "has not used her de facto position as Head of Government, nor her moral authority, to stem or prevent the unfolding events, or seek alternative avenues to meet a responsibility to protect the civilian population".
The report by UN investigators called on the Security Council to refer the Myanmar situation to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Reacting to the probe, the United States called for Myanmar military leaders to be brought to justice. "The facts of the ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya must be said, and they must be heard," said Nikki Haley, the US ambassador to the United Nations.
However, China and Russia who have veto power in the UN have said dialagoue was the solution to the problem with the Chinese government asserting on Tuesday that pressure tactics was not going to work.
