Families of Junta crackdown victims call for ICC prosecution

09 July 2021
Families of Junta crackdown victims call for ICC prosecution
A demonstrator holds a placard during an anti-military coup protest in Mandalay, Myanmar, 05 May 2021. Photo: EPA

Families of the victims of a brutal crackdown on anti-junta protests in Myanmar are calling on the Netherlands-based International Criminal Court (ICC) to prosecute those responsible for the death or dismemberment of their loved ones RFA reported.

In recent days, the family members of those killed or maimed by junta soldiers have urged the ICC to hold the military’s leadership to account for its actions, which they say fall under the court’s jurisdiction according to its founding treaty, the Rome Statute.

Under the statute, the ICC can accept cases related to four main crimes—genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and crimes of aggression. Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) is currently gathering evidence of crimes perpetrated by the junta that it plans to present to the ICC, although the country is not a signatory to the Rome Statute or a member of the court.