Gambia files Rohingya genocide case against Myanmar at ICJ
THE HAGUE (Reuters) - Gambia said on Monday it had filed a case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Myanmar of committing genocide against its Rohingya Muslim minority, drawing praise from human rights groups and Rohingya activists.
More than 730,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh since a 2017 crackdown by Myanmar’s military, which UN investigators say was carried out with “genocidal intent”. Buddhist majority Myanmar denies accusations of genocide.
Gambia, a tiny, mainly Muslim West African nation, lodged its lawsuit after winning the support of the Organisation for Islamic Cooperation (OIC), which has 57 member states. Only a state can file a case against another state at the ICJ.
“The aim is to get Myanmar to account for its action against its own people: the Rohingya”, Justice Minister Abubacarr Tambadou told a news conference in The Hague, where the U.N. court is based. “It is a shame for our generation that we do nothing while genocide is unfolding right under our own eyes.”
Both Gambia and Myanmar are signatories to the 1948 Genocide Convention, which not only prohibits states from committing genocide but also compels all signatory states to prevent and punish the crime of genocide.
While the ICJ has no means to enforce any of its rulings, going against the decisions of the court could further harm Myanmar’s international reputation.
“This is monumental for the Rohingya community who have endured so much,” Rohingya activist Yasmin Ullah told a news conference in The Hague after the case was announced.
“A court’s characterisation of our experience as genocide is long overdue,” she added, calling on other nations to join Gambia in the ICJ lawsuit.
Human Rights Watch also welcomed the move.
“Gambia has found a way to turn the international community’s handwringing over the Rohingya into action,” said Param-Preet Singh, associate director of HRW’s international justice programme.
A Myanmar government spokesman did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.