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PGA commends the powerful resolution adopted by the European Parliament on 19 on Myanmar and the situation of the Rohingya. The Resolution is based on several tabled motions, including by PGA members Mr. Urmas Paet (Estonia), acting as the first signatory on behalf of RENEW Europe Group,  Mr. Ivan Štefanec (Slovakia), Mr. Ernest Urtasun (Spain), and the Vice-President of the European Parliament, Mr. Fabio Massimo Castaldo (Italy).

The Resolution condemns the human rights violations and the systematic and widespread attacks, including killings, harassment, rape and the destruction of property which may amount to genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity perpetrated by the armed forces against the Rohingya population.

While welcoming the on-going preliminary examination at the International Criminal Court (ICC) relating to the deportation of Rohingya people from Myanmar, the Resolution seeks to ensure that all crimes committed against Rohingya people be subject to investigation. In particular, European Parliament reiterates its call for Myanmar to join the Rome Statute and on the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Myanmar to the ICC or to create ad hoc international criminal tribunal. Further, it calls for the European Union (EU) and its Member States to join and support efforts to open a case on Myanmar’s possible violation of the UN Genocide Convention before the International Court of Justice.

The Resolution was adopted just three days after the UN-appointed independent panel concluded “that the evidence that infers genocidal intent on the part of the State […] has strengthened, [and] there is a serious risk that genocidal actions may occur or recur.”

The on-going repressive policies by the Myanmar military against the Rohingya, which include killings; sexual violence; forced labour; and denial of the rights to health, education, food security, and free movement,as well as political rights, have led a significant deterioration of the situation since August 2017, as documented by reports of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) including Human Rights Watch  and Amnesty International, and as evidenced in United Nations statements and reports.

PGA fully supports the text of the Resolution, demands cessation of the on-going systematic persecution of Rohingya, and to urges Myanmar to ratify the Rome Statute – a recommendation that was included in a previous European Parliament resolution on the situation of Rohingya adopted on 14 December 2017 as a result of an amendment submitted by then PGA Member, Ms. Barbara Lochbihler. Ratification of the Rome Statute would not only reinforce the Rule of Law in Myanmar, essential to holding credible and independent investigations into the alleged serious and systematic human rights violations, but would also demonstrate the country’s commitment to criminal justice and human rights.

These innocent victims who arrive in the fields on the border of Bangladesh include children who have lost at least one parent and are at risk every day. They suffer sexual abuse by those same militias that have already killed their parents. They live in constant fear, lack basic living supplies, and suffer from severed malnourishment. The EU and international community cannot act as an idle bystander, watching as this humanitarian crisis and potential genocide unfolds. We have the responsibility to do our utmost to stop these grave human rights violations.Mr. Fabio Massimo Castaldo (Italy)
Vice-President of the European Parliament, PGA member

As the UN has recently confirmed, some 600,000 Rohingyas remaining in the state are living in fear of a new genocide. The crimes against humanity and war crimes against ethnic communities are continuing, and the army and government are enjoying impunity. This state of impunity cannot be tolerated. Human rights violations must be investigated in depth and the perpetrators have to be held responsible. To achieve this, the support and power of the European Union is essential: it should use all measures in its disposal to pressure the Myanmar government and army to end their atrocities against the Rohingya.Mr. Urmas Paet, MEP (Estonia)
PGA member