Last week, as the international community celebrated Human
Rights Day, the iconic Burmese leader and Nobel laureate, State
Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, appeared in person before the
International Court of Justice (ICJ) to defend her State against
allegations of genocide. It was the first time the State of Myanmar
had been called before an international court concerning its
controversial treatment of the Rohingya minority group in the
country.
The Gambia brought these ICJ
proceedings alleging that Myanmar's actions against the
Rohingya Muslim minority population constitute violations of public
international law. The Gambia seeks to hold Myanmar to account for
violation of its obligations under the Convention on the
Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (Genocide
Convention), to which both States are parties. Starting 10 December
2019, the ICJ held three days of public hearings at The Hague to
address the request for provisional measures made by The Gambia
