Since the military takeover of Myanmar on February 1, 2021, civilians across the country have endured atrocities amounting to crimes against humanity and war crimes, said the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) in a statement from Geneva yesterday.
“Recently, military authorities [of Myanmar] have imprisoned individuals who criticised or opposed the military’s current attempt to gain legitimacy through managed elections,” it said.
The IIMM was formed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2018 to collect and analyse evidence of the most serious international crimes and other violations of international law committed in Myanmar since 2011.
It aims to facilitate justice and accountability by preserving and organising this evidence and preparing analysis that can be used by authorities to prosecute individuals in national, regional and international courts.
The IIMM has also investigated the allegations of genocide against the Rohingya in 2017 when Aung San Suu Kyi was the de facto leader of the National League of Democracy (NLD) government.
In 2021, the Myanmar military overthrew the country’s elected government of the NLD, further complicating the civil conflict as well as the Rohingya crisis.
Ahead of the fifth anniversary of the military takeover, the IIMM said those who spoke out against the Myanmar military are now among thousands arbitrarily detained by the regime. “Many detainees have been subjected to brutal torture.”
The UN investigative body further said arbitrary arrest and crimes committed in detention are serious violations of international law, and the continued detention of these individuals represents an ongoing violation.
The military has carried out air strikes, indiscriminately or deliberately attacking civilians in their homes, hospitals, and schools, it added.
“Women, men, and children live in constant fear of attack. People of different ages and genders, including children, have survived rape, sexualised torture and other sexual and gender-based crimes. Desperately needed humanitarian aid for the starving Rakhine population has been blocked,” the statement said.
While the majority of the evidence collected and analysed by the IIMM points to crimes committed by the Myanmar military, it is also investigating a growing number of allegations of atrocities committed by opposition armed groups.
“These perpetrators should be aware that their actions are being investigated, and the IIMM stands ready to cooperate with relevant authorities to ensure that they are brought to justice,” said the statement.
