Govt to pursue charges of crimes against humanity against Hasina, CA tells ICC prosecutor

The interim government would pursue charges of crimes against humanity against the Sheikh Hasina regime at the International Criminal Court (ICC) for the "massacre" during the July-August mass uprising, Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus said yesterday (27 November).

Prof Yunus conveyed this when ICC Prosecutor Karim A.A. Khan called on him at the State Guest House Jamuna.

The ICC prosecutor said they would like to extend cooperation to Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal, which has issued an arrest warrant against Sheikh Hasina and members of her political party.

During the talks, the Rohingya crisis, the situation in Myanmar, humanitarian efforts for the Rohingyas, and the justice and accountability for the atrocities committed during the July-August mass uprising were discussed.

Karim Khan backed the chief adviser's call to hold a special global conference on the Rohingya crisis.

The UN General Assembly has agreed to hold the conference in 2025. He said he hoped a new direction to a sustainable resolution to the crisis would be found from the conference.

The venue, dates, and modalities of the conference will be decided during the first quarter of 2025.

The chief adviser said the conference would bring all the international stakeholders to a table to seek a durable solution to the crisis, especially the plight of the Rohingyas and their young children in the camps in Bangladesh.

"We have to make sure that it does not explode," Prof Yunus said, referring to the young people growing up without hope in the camps.

The influx of tens of thousands of more Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh in recent months and the latest developments in Myanmar have triggered concerns in Bangladesh.

The chief adviser reiterated his recent call for a safe zone inside the Rakhine state of Myanmar to aid displaced people and address the ongoing humanitarian crisis.

"The safety of the zone should be guaranteed by the UN. When the fighting stops, people who live in the safe zone can easily return to their localities," he said.

The prosecutor informed the chief adviser that his office has formally sought an arrest warrant against Min Aung Hlaing, the chief of the Myanmar military government, for crimes against humanity regarding the treatment of the Rohingya minority.

Khaliliur Rahman, the High Representative on the Rohingya affairs, Lamiya Morshed, principal coordinator of the SDGs affairs, and Riaz Hamidullah, the additional secretary of the foreign ministry, were also present during the meeting.

Earlier, the High Representative on Rohingya Affairs, Khalilur Rahman, hosted a luncheon for Prosecutor Khan and the members of his ICC team.

"Bangladesh is among the first Asian signatories to the Rome Statute establishing the ICC, and we look forward to further deepening our cooperation in the coming days," Rahman said.