(Geneva) Burma is in the grip of an “escalation” of war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the army, UN investigators warned on Tuesday, reporting systematic torture, gang rape and violence against children.
In its annual report, which covers the period from July 2023 to the end of June 2024, the UN Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar highlights that these atrocities committed by the military have intensified “at an alarming rate throughout the country”, according to a press release.
During this period, the Investigative Mechanism has collected evidence showing that war crimes have become “more intensive and violent”, such as airstrikes on schools, religious buildings and hospitals without any apparent military target, or physical mutilations of persons detained during combat, including beheadings and the public display of disfigured and sexually mutilated bodies.
“We have collected substantial evidence showing horrific levels of brutality and inhumanity across Burma. Many crimes were committed with the intent to punish and terrorize the civilian population,” Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Investigative Mechanism, said in the statement.
Since the putsch of 1er February 2021, which closed a decade of democratic parenthesis, Burma is mired in a violent conflict between the army and its adversaries from the political opposition and ethnic minorities.
Over the past six months, more than three million people have been displaced by violence, the report said.
Thousands of people have been arrested and many have been tortured or killed in custody, UN investigators say, citing widespread evidence of systematic torture, including severe physical and mental abuse, such as electric shocks, strangulation, sleep deprivation and gang rape.
Culture of impunity
The victims include people of all ages and genders, including children, the report said.
“No one has been held accountable for the crimes committed, which encourages the perpetrators and reinforces the culture of impunity in the country. We are trying to break this cycle. I believe that the Mechanism has made considerable progress in building criminal cases against those most responsible for these crimes,” Mr. Koumjian said.
Established by the UN Human Rights Council in September 2018, this investigative mechanism aims to collect evidence on the most serious crimes.
Investigators shared much of the evidence with authorities working on ongoing Rohingya cases at the International Criminal Court, the International Court of Justice and in Argentina, the statement said.
The report’s findings are based on information and evidence collected from more than 900 sources, including more than 400 eyewitness testimonies.
Investigators also obtained photographs, videos, audio material and other documents, such as maps, geospatial imagery and forensic evidence.
“While the vast majority of information gathered concerns crimes committed by Burma’s security forces, there is also credible evidence of crimes committed by armed groups fighting the military,” the statement said, including summary executions of civilians suspected of being informants or collaborators with the military.