Myanmar’s military has said it is planning to conduct an investigation into the behaviour of military personnel during security clearance operations conducted in northern Rakhine State in response to the attacks by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army in the region on August 25.
A statement published on the Facebook page of the office of the Commander-in-chief on Friday morning said that the committee would be headed by the Tatmadaw’s inspector general Lieutenant-General Aye Win.
The military’s response in northern Rakhine has come in for strong criticism from the international community, after more than 500,000 people – mainly Muslims who identify as Rohingya – fled into Bangladesh. Many of those arriving have accused security personnel and Rakhine vigilantes of burning homes and killing Muslim villagers. The government and military have denied the accusations.
The announcement of the commission comes a day after the European Union said it was ending ties with the country’s military chiefs to protest the “use of disproportionate force” in their operations in northern Rakhine.
Officials from the Tatmadaw’s True News Information Committee refused to comment when asked if the move was a response to the EU’s announcement.
In August, a government-appointed commission tasked with investigating accusations of abuses by security forces in the aftermath of the October 2016 attacks dismissed allegations of widespread abuses.
The commission, headed by vice president U Myint Swe, said any “excessive actions” were likely committed by low-rank “individual members of the security forces”. Rights groups were highly critical of the commission’s findings.
Myanmar’s government has said it will refuse visas to members of a UN fact-finding mission from tasked with investigating the human rights situation in northern Rakhine State and other parts of the country.
