Statement by Karenni Civil Society Network Welcoming Calls by the UN Fact Finding Mission for Burmese Military Leaders to Be Investigated by ICC

We, the Karenni Civil Society Network (KCSN), welcome the August 27 report of the UN Independent International Fact Finding Mission, which called for six top Burmese military leaders including Senior General Min Aung Hlaing to be investigated by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for genocide against Rohingya Muslims, and for crimes against humanity and war crimes in Arakan, Shan and Kachin States.

We also welcome the ruling by the ICC last week that it has jurisdiction over crimes committed in Burma, even though Burma is not a member state of the ICC. This is clearly the right decision, and will go down in history as such.

Burma Army crimes detailed by the Fact Finding Mission include imprisonment, enforced disappearance, torture, rape and burning of villages. These crimes have all also been committed against the people of Karenni State.

Since 1962 after General Ne Win Led military coup Karenni and other ethnics such as Kachin, Karen, Chin, Mon, Shan and including Burman had been suffering from Burmese army extrajudicial killing. During 1974, 1992 and 1996 Burmese army used four cut policies in Karenni State to control the state. During those operation period hundreds of Karenni lives, habitats and villages had been perished and destroyed by the Burmese army extrajudicial persecution. Recently, in 2017 three Karenni National Progressive Party members and one civilian were killed in cold blood by the Burmese Army. This kind of action was displayed war crime against humanity which committed by Burmese army. However, the NLD government has remained silent on this case, and done nothing to pursue a justice for the victims. In other words, it allowed the Burmese Army to continue committing crimes against ethnic people.

The extrajudicial killing of three Karenni National Progressive Party soldiers and one civilian in 2017 was a clear war crime committed by the Burma Army. However, the NLD government has remained silent on this case, and done nothing to pursue justice for the victims. In other words, it has allowed the Burma Army to continue committing crimes against ethnic people.

KCSN strongly condemns the failure of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi to take action to stop the human rights violations committed by the Burmese military leaders in Arakan and other ethnic states

Therefore, we, KCSN, support the Fact Finding Mission’s call for the situation in Burma to be referred to the ICC, so that Burmese military leaders and their followers may be prosecuted for crimes and human rights violations which have been committed against the ethnic people for 70 years.

Media Contacts:

Khu Ko Reh (Thailand and Myanmar) Email : kcsn2010@gmail.com

Phone: +66 82 196 2258
: +95 97 8951 9458

Richard Htay Reh (Australia)
Phone: +61402 850 973

Oo Reh (USA)
Phone: +1 832 526 2849

Endorsed by:

Members of Karenni Civil Society Network
– Karenni National Youth Organization (KNYO)
– Karenni National Women Organization (KNWO)
– Karenni Evergreen (KEG)
– Karenni Student Union (KSU)
– Karenni Legal and Human Rights Center (KnLHRC)
– Karenni Social Welfare and Development Centre (KSWDC)
– Karenni Refugee Committee (KnRC)
– Karenni Health Department (KnHD)
– Karenni Literacy and Culture Development Committee (KLCDC)
– Karenni Education Department (KnED)

Karenni Society Finland (KnSF)
DEEKU International
Karenni-American Association (KnA)
New Zealand Karenni Society (NZKS)
Karenni Federation of Australia (KnFA)