Human Rights Council 39: Interactive Dialogue with the Fact Finding Mission on Burma
This UK statement was delivered at the 39th session of the Human Rights Council during the interactive dialogue with the fact finding mission on Burma.
The Human Rights Council takes place at the Palais des Nations in Geneva
The United Kingdom thanks the UN Fact Finding Mission for their report and the painstaking and difficult work completed in order to document these horrific events.
The report by the Fact Finding Mission has reaffirmed the appalling human rights violations that so many in Burma have suffered. The report is a damning verdict on the culpability of the Tatmadaw for ethnic cleansing and possible crimes against humanity in Rakhine. There cannot be impunity for such acts.
While our focus is so often on Rakhine we should not forget the situation in other parts of the country. The Fact Finding Mission confirmed that crimes committed in Kachin and Shan also constitute human rights violations.
The UK believes that the gravity of the report warrants the attention of the international community, both here in the Human Rights Council and the UN Security Council. We will discuss with other Security Council members options for bringing the report before the Security Council in due course.
The UK regrets that the Burmese government refused to cooperate with the Fact Finding Mission. As the international community considers its response to this report we should remember the importance of domestic acceptance and accountability. A domestic process is always the preferred route to accountability. But where a domestic process cannot demonstrate impartiality or credibility we must look to international options for achieving justice.
Mr President,
In line with the report’s recommendations, how can we best ensure that any accountability process is ‘transformative, victim-centred, comprehensive and inclusive’?
Thank you.