Lawyers slam Suu Kyi's defense of Myanmar genocide against Rohingya

Lawyers seeking to halt an ongoing genocide against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar have strongly denounced Aung San Suu Kyi’s silence in the face of genocide accusations and her defense of the country’s armed forces, saying  the fallen pro-democracy icon chose to ignore “unspeakable” acts committed against civilians.

Lawyers presenting Gambia's case at the Hague accusing Myanmar of genocide against Rohingya said her arguments that Myanmar's 2017 military crackdown was a "clearance operation" targeting militants ignored widespread mass murder, rape and forced deportation.

"Madame agent, your silence said far more than your words," lawyer Philippe Sands said, referring to Suu Kyi, who is officially acting as Myanmar's agent in the case.

"The word 'rape' did not once pass the lips of the agent," added Sands, as Suu Kyi sat impassively in the courtroom.

The hearings have seen the astonishing spectacle of the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize laureate defending the very army that ordered her kept under house arrest for some 15 years.

She used a dramatic appearance at the court in The Hague on Wednesday to say there was no "genocidal intent" behind the operation that led to more than 700,000 Rohingya fleeing into neighboring Bangladesh.

Suu Kyi defended Myanmar's actions saying it faced an "internal conflict" and that the military conducted "clearance operations" after an attack by Rohingya militants in August 2017.

But Paul Reichler, another of the lawyers, told the court that those killed included "infants beaten to death or torn from their mothers arms and thrown into rivers to drown."

"How many of them were terrorists? Armed conflict can never be an excuse for genocide," he added.

The lawyer said Suu Kyi had also failed to deny the conclusions of a 2018 UN investigation that found genocide had been committed in Myanmar against the Rohingya.

"What is most striking is what Myanmar has not denied," Reichler said.

“There is no reasonable conclusion to draw other than the inference of genocidal intent from the state’s pattern of conduct,” Reicher said. “We heard nothing about sexual violence from Myanmar yesterday, not a single word about it.”

Myanmar faces genocide accusations for persecuting Rohingya

Myanmar’s government faces accusations of involvement in genocide.

Gambia has taken Myanmar to the ICJ, accusing it of breaching the 1948 UN Genocide convention and seeking emergency measures to protect the Rohingya.

Acting on behalf of the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Gambia requested emergency legal proceedings at the ICJ to recognize that Myanmar’s armed forces committed genocide against the Rohingya Muslims in 2017 and that violations continue.

With maps, satellite imagery and graphic photos, Myanmar’s accusers have detailed what they insist is a deliberate campaign of ethnic cleansing and genocide that saw more than 700,000 Rohingya flee to neighboring Bangladesh.

About 600,000 Rohingya people remain confined in Myanmar camps and villages, unable to leave without permission.

Gambia wants the ICJ to take “all measures within its power to prevent all acts that amount to or contribute to the crime of genocide.”

Once regarded as an international rights icon for standing up to Myanmar's brutal junta, Suu Kyi's reputation has been tarnished by her decision to side with the military over the Rohingya crisis.

Suu Kyi defends Myanmar at Rohingya genocide trial

Myanmar’s de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi has defended her country

Suu Kyi was expected to offer closing remarks later Thursday.

A decision on the measures could take months, while a final ruling if the ICJ decides to take on the full case could take years.

ICC says it has jurisdiction over Myanmar crimes against Rohingya

The International Criminal Court says it has jurisdiction to probe the forced deportations of Rohingya from Myanmar to Bangladesh as a possible crime against humanity.

Rohingya Muslims, recognized by the UN as the world’s most persecuted minority group, are denied citizenship as Myanmar's leadership brands them “illegal” immigrants from Bangladesh, which for its part says they are from Myanmar.

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