A report by the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School
Following a four-year investigation by the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School, this report has found that the military committed war crimes and crimes against humanity in 2005-2006, and that perpetrators, including the current Home Affairs Minister, continue to serve at the highest levels of the country’s government.
Through more than 150 interviews with eyewitnesses, the Clinic documented how soldiers fired mortars at villages; opened fire on fleeing villagers; destroyed homes, crops, and food stores; laid landmines in civilian locations; forced civilians to work and porter; and captured and executed civilians.
The report specifically implicates three commanders in international crimes as defined by the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court: Major General Ko Ko, the current Home Affairs Minister; Brigadier General Khin Zaw Oo, the current commander of the Bureau of Special Operations 4; and General Maung Maung Aye, most recently the Naypyidaw Regional Commander. All three received promotions after the offensive.
The Clinic’s evidence is sufficient to satisfy the standard required for the issuance of an arrest warrant against these commanders by the International Criminal Court. Under international criminal law, these commanders could be held accountable for their own actions as well as for crimes committed by soldiers under their effective command and control. Although the Clinic’s memorandum uses the framework of the Rome Statute, international justice is not the only means of addressing past abuses.