Kyaw Moe Tun, Myanmar’s Permanent Representative to the U.N., said that the International Criminal Court (ICC) should issue an immediate arrest warrant for regime leader Min Aung Hlaing on Tuesday – nearly one year after the ICC Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan requested an arrest warrant for Myanmar’s general who led the Feb. 1, 2021 military coup.
“In order to stop military atrocities, ensure justice for victims, and put an end to impunity for criminals, a declaration acknowledging the court’s jurisdiction over crimes committed within Myanmar was filed to the ICC,” Kyaw Moe Tun told a meeting of the 80th session of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Nov. 11.
The ICC arrest warrant for Min Aung Hlaing was requested by Chief Prosecutor Karim Khan on Nov. 27, 2024 for crimes against humanity for the forced deportation of the Rohingya from Arakan State into Bangladesh in 2016-17.
The Gambia filed a case of genocide against Myanmar at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2019 for its treatment of the Rohingya.
Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun said that the regime is covering up its crimes to avoid international justice and accountability. It also seeks international legitimacy through holding elections, which are scheduled to begin on Dec. 28.
“It will never be free, fair or inclusive. It will create more violence, more instability in Myanmar,” he added, while appealing to the international community and U.N. member states to reject the regime’s 2025-26 elections.
The regime’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated on Nov. 12 that foreign embassies in Yangon and representatives from the U.N. were briefed about the current situation in Myanmar, including the upcoming elections and the proliferation of cyber scam operations along the China and Thailand borders.
Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun urged all U.N. member states to stand with the people of Myanmar to achieve a peaceful future without war, and to build a federal democratic country by ending military dictatorship for once and all.
Kyaw Moe Tun was appointed as Myanmar’s Permanent Representative to the U.N. by the National League for Democracy (NLD) government in 2020 before it was ousted in the 2021 coup. State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint have been held in detention over the last five years.
Myanmar’s U.N. ambassador has retained the position despite attempts by the regime, which seized power during the 2021 coup, to replace him. He now represents the National Unity Government (NUG), a group of elected lawmakers ousted in the coup.
Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun’s speeches have highlighted the situation in Myanmar since 2021, including the widespread human rights violations committed against civilians since anti-coup street protests led to a nationwide armed uprising against a return to military rule.
In September, international support rallies calling for Kyaw Moe Tun to remain Myanmar’s U.N. Ambassador were held in Australia, Canada and the U.S.
