DESK REPORT:

A delegation from the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is now visiting Bangladesh. In November 2019, ICC Judges authorised the request by ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda to investigate alleged crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya people from Myanmar.

The delegation is in Bangladesh as part of ongoing activities by the ICC Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) in accordance with its mandate under the Rome Statute, concerning the Rohingya situation, reports UNB. The Prosecutor’s delegation is led by Phakiso Mochochoko, Director of Jurisdiction, Cooperation and Complementarity.

The Office’s delegation currently in Bangladesh is not part of an investigation team and not collecting evidence in relation to any alleged crimes, according to a media note. The general overall purpose of this visit is outreach - to engage with relevant stakeholders and explain the judicial process and the status of the investigation to the public, it said. An official statement will be issued on Tuesday on behalf of Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda wrapping up the visit.

Bangladesh is now hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas in Cox’s Bazar district and most of them entered Bangladesh since August 25, 2017 amid military crackdown in Rakhine State of Myanmar against Rohingyas. In a sweeping legal victory for members of the Rohingya Muslim minority, the United Nations` top court - International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Myanmar take all measures in its power to prevent genocide against the Rohingya people. The court`s president, Judge Abdulqawi Ahmed Yusuf, said the International Court of Justice "is of the opinion that the Rohingya in Myanmar remain extremely vulnerable”.