30 November 2018
Madam Chairperson,

My name is Nurul Islam. I am Rohingya. I am Chairman of the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO). I was born in Muangdaw township of Rakhine State, in a country then called Burma and now called Myanmar. From the birth of the State on January 4th, 1948, my people have been nationals of Burma now Myanmar. We were loyal participants in the national political processes, for which we had recognized Political Parties and, until 2015, we voted in elections. We have not and do not seek to separate from the Union of Myanmar. Unfortunately, my people have been subjected to systematic persecution for half a century including the steady suspension of almost all our human rights, including freedoms to marry, have children, education, movement and so much else. In addition to the violation of our human rights, we have been subjected to the effective withdrawal of our citizenship. Ultimately, we have been subjected to the destruction of our community – to genocide.

Madam Chairperson,

Genocide is defined in the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, to which Myanmar is a State Party along with 148 other States. Accordingly, we call for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN Special Rapporteur and the UN system as a whole to apply the 1948 Genocide Convention to the ongoing situation. And we call for States Parties, individually or in cooperation, to act according with the Genocide Convention to hold the State of Myanmar to account, notably before the International Court of Justice, and to seek interim measures to stop the ongoing genocide and to attain reparations.

Thank You.