In a major diplomatic breakthrough, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has unanimously adopted a resolution to move at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for establishing the legal rights of the Rohingyas and addressing the question of accountability and justice.
The resolution to pursue a legal recourse through the ICJ came after a long series of negotiations to seek accountability for crimes committed against humanity and gross violation of human rights in the case of the Rohingyas in Myanmar, said a Foreign ministry release on Monday (Feb 4).
The Gambia led the process with a ten-member high-powered ministerial committee.
The Committee’s first meeting was co-chaired by the Gambia in Banjul on Feb 10.
It recommended taking legal steps for establishing legal rights on the principles of international law – specifically the Genocide Convention and other Human Rights and Humanitarian Law principles.
This unanimous measure sets a precedent for the OIC in pursuing the legal path to justice to address crimes committed against humanity and for establishing the legal rights of the Rohingya population to their rightful homeland in the Rakhine state of Myanmar.
The Committee’s decision was endorsed in a full-fledged resolution and adopted in the final session of the 46th Council of Foreign Ministers in Abu Dhabi on the last day of the Council meeting.
Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen led a high-powered delegation to the Council and to the negotiations in the Special Committee in this regard.