Exchange to Change January 2018 E2C January 2018 web | Page 8

8
INTERVIEW
situation yourself?
Eva: Genocide is a legal term coined
after the Second World War and
implies the intent to destroy a
group of people, in whole or in part.
Genocide is a strong term that forces
the international community to act
and protect the persecuted group.
Ethnic cleansing, on the other hand,
is not a legal concept. It stands for
the expulsion of a group of people
from a territory. For the purpose
of my dissertation, I compared
several well-known genocides of
the twentieth century and studied
the Genocide Convention, which is
the most authoritative document
under international law when it
comes to the crime of genocide. I
eventually concluded that the violence
committed against the Rohingya
people must be deemed a genocide.
Given that you conclude that the
violence should be considered a
genocide, would it be possible to
bring this to the International Court
of Justice in The Hague?
Eva: Whether the case of the Rohingya
people can be brought before the
International Criminal Court (ICC)
is a complicated issue. Myanmar is
no state party to the ICC. However,
the situation could be referred to the
ICC by the UN Security Council (SC).
Unfortunately, the SC’s permanent
members are rather reluctant to act
up against the Buddhist majority of
Myanmar. More specifically, China
has important economic and political
interests in Myanmar and therefore
vetoes any meaningful action by the
SC. For example, the SC recently
failed to issue a unanimous resolution
to condemn the violence against
the Rohingya people (6 November
2017). China opposed it because
E xchange to change J anuary 2018
resolutions of the SC are legally
binding. Therefore, the resolution
was turned into a mere presidential
statement, which also goes on the
formal record of the SC, but does
not have the same legal value as a
resolution. Considering that the SC is
unable to issue a resolution, it is highly
unlikely that it will be able to refer the
situation to the ICC.
What is your opinion about the
current reception of ‘Rohingya
refugees’ in your country,
Bangladesh? What do you see as
positive elements? Which challenges
need to be overcome?
Juel: Bangladesh has received
approximately 600,000 forcefully
displaced Myanmar citizens since
25 August 2017. Most of the people
of Bangladesh have expressed
their support to the government
and extended their hands to the
refuge-seeking Rohingyas from a
humanitarian mindset. The people
here recalled the situation of the 1971
liberation war of Bangladesh when
more than 10 million people took
refuge in India. Bangladesh has been
working on its agenda which is simply
to create international pressure on
Myanmar so that the refuge-seeking
Rohingyas can be repatriated to their
homeland. I personally support this
position of Bangladesh. I believe that
a strong diplomatic effort can bring
this crisis to an end.
The only positive element I can
see in receiving the refuge-seeking
Rohingyas is that Bangladesh has
shown its utmost humanity towards
the victims of ruthless human rights
violations, the forcefully displaced
Myanmar citizens, and provided
them refuge. However, the challenges
are many. Bangladesh is a densely
populated country. The refuge seeking
Rohingyas have been accommodated
in two sub-districts of Cox’s Bazaar.
The number of local citizens living in
the areas is 300,000. The refugees
outnumber the local people. Moreover,
in 2017, Bangladesh experienced two
severe floods and thereby damage to
crops and other resources. Therefore,
it has been difficult for Bangladesh
to meet the basic needs of its own
population, including these refugees.
Through different assessments
including one by Transparency
International Bangladesh, more
challenges have emerged, including
the management of relief funds,
environmental degradation, health
hazards, price increases, potential
risks of communal conflicts, militancy,
sex trade, trafficking, etc.
W