Myanmar’s Lawyer Questions Whether Court Can Determine Genocide Based on UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) Report
[ICJ Report]
January 29 | Burma Independent Voice
During the first day of the second round of final oral arguments regarding the genocide case against the Rohingya at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Christopher Staker, a lawyer for the Myanmar military, questioned whether the Court could establish the commission of genocide based on the reports of the UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFM).
This statement was made during the proceedings held at the ICJ on January 28, where the Myanmar military presented its final arguments.
Lawyer Christopher Staker asked whether the Court could confirm the determination of genocide based on FFM reports—specifically, whether it could rely on reports that utilized a lower “standard of proof” than the one required by the Court itself. Furthermore, he questioned whether the Court could make its decisions based solely on the expressions of opinion contained within those reports.
In his submission, Staker argued that making a determination based primarily on such reports would amount to an abdication of the Court’s judicial fact-finding function, effectively delegating that responsibility back to the FFM.
In contrast, during its final submissions on January 27, The Gambia stated that the evidence obtained from credible and authoritative sources makes it fully reliable that Myanmar has committed genocide, adding that the matter now rests in the hands of this honorable Court.
The Gambia expressed its belief that the Court will fulfill its duty to protect the rights of the Rohingya—a group protected under the Genocide Convention—by holding Myanmar accountable for its treaty violations.
