Five Years On, ICJ Orders to Protect Rohingya Remains Ignored

London, MINA – Five years after the International Court of Justice (ICJ), known as the World Court, issued a legally binding order to protect the Rohingya in Myanmar from further persecution, the order remains ignored by Myanmar’s military and armed groups in the region.

According to Rohingya Today, a report released by the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK) titled ‘The Genocide Never Stopped – Five Years On from the World Court’s Order to Protect the Rohingya’ reveals ongoing violations of the ICJ’s provisional measures to prevent genocide.

Published on Thursday (January 23), the report draws from comprehensive research, including on-the-ground accounts, to provide evidence of Myanmar’s continued non-compliance.

The report also criticizes the United Kingdom, as the penholder on Myanmar at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), for failing to convene an emergency Council session. The UNSC has both the authority and the obligation under the UN Charter to enforce the ICJ’s binding orders in cases of defiance.

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“The International Court of Justice’s binding legal orders were meant to protect the Rohingya, yet the Burmese military continues to defy them, while the Arakan Army actively commits atrocities against the Rohingya. The international community’s complete failure to enforce these orders is enabling the continued genocide of the Rohingya,” said Tun Khin, President of BROUK.

Tun Khin also highlighted the global community’s broader failure to uphold international law and enforce the Court’s orders, following the United Nations’ warning in November 2024 of an imminent famine in Rakhine State, which could leave up to two million people facing starvation. He emphasized the urgency of opening trade and humanitarian routes from neighboring Bangladesh to mitigate the crisis.

“The approach of the United Kingdom, United States, EU, and the rest of the international community toward the Rohingya crisis can be summed up in one word: failure,” Tun Khin stressed.

“We have seen repeated failures—failure to act on early warnings to prevent genocide, failure to provide adequate support for refugees in Bangladesh, failure to enforce the ICJ’s orders, and now failure to address the warning of an imminent famine,” he added. (FARAH)

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Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)