Respond to ICC request on Rohingya issue, speakers urge govt

Speakers at a seminar on Thursday urged the government to respond to the request of International Criminal Court (ICC) to place evidences of genocide and atrocities on Rohingyas.

They also raised questions on why different international and national NGOs working in relief work are not raising voices on genocide in Myanmar.

Dhaka University Research Society (DURS) and COAST Trust jointly organised the seminar titled "Genocide and Atrocities against Rohingya: Accountability and International Criminal Court" at Dhaka University Teacher Student Centre.

The seminar was jointly moderated by Saifullah Sadeq of DURS and Barkat Ullah Maruf of COAST Trust, reports UNB.

The seminar was addressed, among others, by Shireen Haq of Nari Pokkho, Rezaul Karim Chowdhury of COAST Trust, Saiful Huq Omi, Dr Shaikh Abdus Salam, Prof Mofizur Rahman, Dr Muhammad Manjurul Karim, and Dr Fazrin Huda.

In the seminar, COAST Trust social media team presented three documentary films namely, The Persecuted, Genocide - stories of Genocide Survivors and The No Woman Lands. The three films were jointly made by Barkat Ullah Maruf and Ripon K Das just after the August 2017 Rohingya influx.

In her speech, Shireen Haque said that a memorandum of concerned citizen has already been given to the Bangladesh government urging to respond to ICC request.

This is an international issue, this is not only relief issue, this is a political problem, she said.

If it is not solved in Myanmar then it will have impact in Bangladesh, she added.

Rezaul Karim Chowdhury said that, UN must not fail again like Rwanda case, government of Bangladesh and its civil society must do mobilization in international level to bring Myanmar junta in ICC and stand against in any Genocide.