ADVISORY COMMISSION ON RAKHINE STATE
Council in Geneva called for the establishment of an international
fact-finding mission to examine, inter alia, allegations of human
rights violations committed by Myanmar’s security forces in Rakhine.
The mission is scheduled to give an oral update to the Human Rights
Council in September 2017 and a final report in March 2018. The
fact-finding mission’s mandate differs from that of the Rakhine
Advisory Commission, which has a much broader mandate, and does
not investigate specific cases of alleged human rights abuses.
(f)
○
After the recent violence in northern Rakhine State, the international
discourse on Rakhine has become more heated and confrontational.
Essentially, domestic and international actors have sought to pull
the Myanmar Government in opposite directions. Such polarization
has been challenging for the Commission, as it seeks to bridge
national and international interpretations of the conflict, to
address as objectively as possible the causes of tension and
violence in Rakhine State and to recommend practical steps that
can be taken to deal with these fundamental problems.
○
The Commission’s recommendations would have been more
precise if relevant statistical and other data on Rakhine State and
its individual communities, including the smaller minorities, had
been available.
Acknowledgements
The Commission would like to express its appreciation for the invaluable
support and input provided by a wide range of stakeholders, before
and after its establishment. These include: The President of the
Republic, the State Counsellor and other members of the Myanmar
Government; upper and lower houses of Parliament, the Commanderin-Chief and the Tatmadaw, and the Rakhine State Government;
Rakhine and Muslim political parties, religious associations and civil
society organizations; town elders and residents of villages, IDP camps
and refugee camps; UN officials, INGO representatives, academics and
analysts; accredited diplomats in Yangon, and officials from other countries
in the region, including Bangladesh, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia;
other international organisations, such as ASEAN, OIC, and the EU.
The Kofi Annan Foundation in Geneva led by the Executive Director,
Alan Doss provided extensive support to the Commission in liaison with
the Commission secretariat in Yangon headed by Andreas Indregard.
FINAL REPORT
17