Nations urged to support Gambia to ensure accountability for genocidal crimes against Rohingyas

The governments of all the countries and international community have been urged to extend all possible support to The Gambia to ensure justice for the victims of genocide committed against the Rohingyas in the Rakhine State by Myanmar authorities.

The call was made at a reception hosted in honour of The Gambian Minister of Justice Abubakar Tambadou and Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Canada to Myanmar Bob Rae, said the Bangladesh Embassy in The Hague on Wednesday.    

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Gambia, Abu Bacarr Marie Tambadou; Foreign Secretray of Bangladesh, Md. Shahidul Haque; Bob Rae, Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Canada to Myanmar; Director of OIC, Dr. Hassan Ahmed Abedin; Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to the Netherlands, Dr. Hissa Abdulla A. Alotaiba; Charge d’Affaires, a.i. of the Embassy of Saudi Arabia in The Hague, Nasser A. Alghanoom; and Charge d’Affaires, a.i. of the Embassy of Malaysia in The Hague, Dr. Mohd. Norhisyam Mohd. Yusof spoke at the reception.

The Reception was jointly organized by the Embassies of Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Malaysia in The Hague. 

President of the International Criminal Court, Director-General of the OPCW, Gambia’s Legal Team, Dutch politicians and senior government officials, Ambassadors, members of diplomatic corps, representatives from The Hague-based international organizations, representative from the OIC Secretariat, members of international media and international civil society organizations, Rohingya representatives, among others, joined the Reception.

Foreign Secretary Haque explained the historical background of how Bangladesh has been bearing the brunt over decades of the systematic persecution against the Rohingyas in the Rakhine State by the Myanmar authorities. 

Narrating the horrors unleashed on the Rohingya people on 25 August 2017 in the Rakhine State by Myanmar authorities, he highlighted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s humanitarian drive to open the borders for the persecuted Rohingyas despite Bangladesh’s multi-dimensional constraints. 

He also touched upon Prime Minister’s bringing the perpetrators’ accountability issue before the international community in the UN General Assembly first in 2018. 

Thanking the international community for their support to Bangladesh on the Rohingya issue, the Foreign Secretary urged them to raise their voice to ensure justice for the persecuted Rohingyas. 

He also lauded The Gambia for its instituting the case against Myanmar at the ICJ under the 1948 Genocide Convention and thanked the OIC to back The Gambia in this endeavour. 

The Minister of Justice of The Gambia Abubakar Tambadou highly praised Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her hosting the persecuted Rohingyas and extending all the support to them. 

He expressed his appreciation to the OIC for its support and endorsement to The Gambia to file the case against Myanmar before the ICJ to ensure accountability for the genocide committed against the Rohingya by Myanmar. 

He termed that Gambia’s fight against Myanmar is not the fight between two States rather the fight of international community for humanity. He urged international community to extend their political, diplomatic and moral support to ensure justice for the Rohingya genocide victims.

The Special Envoy of the Prime Minister of Canada also highly lauded Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her hosting around a million persecuted Rohingyas and extending support to them. 

Referring to the joint statement issued by the governments of Canada and the Netherlands on 9 December 2019 to support the Gambia in all possible means for the case against Myanmar, he urged all governments to extend their support to the Gambia as well. 

The Ambassador of UAE, Charge d’Affaires of Saudi Arabia and Malaysia and OIC representative in their speeches also praised Bangladesh for hosting of the persecuted Rohingya people assured their support to the Gambia for the case against Myanmar at the ICJ. 

Bangladesh Ambassador to the Netherlands Sheikh Mohammed Belal received the guests at the reception on behalf of the host countries of Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Malaysia.

The Gambia's submissions before the ICJ have been lauded by the international community.