KUALA LUMPUR - Myanmar’s foreign ministry said that the genocide case filed against the country at the
(ICJ) over the treatment of the Rohingya minority is flawed and without basis, last Wednesday.
In a statement, the ministry urged the ICJ, which began hearings on Monday, to reach its judgement based on fact and settled law strictly within the framework of the Genocide Convention.
ICJ judges are hearing three weeks of arguments as they consider accusations by The Gambia that Myanmar committed genocide during a military crackdown in 2017.
During that period, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, reporting killings, sexual violence, and the burning of villages by Myanmar’s army and allied militias.
On the opening day of the hearings, Gambian Justice Minister Dawda Jallow told the court that the Rohingya have been targeted for destruction.
Myanmar’s legal team is scheduled to present its response at the court on Friday.
“The allegations made by The Gambia are flawed and unfounded in fact and law.
“Biased reports, based on unreliable evidence, cannot make up for truth," the foreign ministry said in its statement.
The ministry added that Myanmar, which has been ruled by a military junta since a 2021 coup, is cooperating with the ICJ in good faith as a sign of respect for international law.
The statement avoided using the term Rohingya, referring instead to ‘persons from Rakhine state’.
Currently, about 1.17 million Rohingya are living in overcrowded and poorly maintained refugee camps covering 8,000 acres in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar district.
Myanmar has consistently argued that its military actions were a justified response to attacks by Rohingya insurgents that killed about a dozen security personnel.
A final ICJ ruling may take months or years, and although the court cannot enforce its decisions, a judgement in favour of The Gambia would increase international pressure on Myanmar.
Reader Conversation