Myanmar’s new president Min Aung Hlaing faces genocide complaint in Indonesia

 Reuters:

JAKARTA, April 6- A criminal case against Myanmar’s newly-elected ​President Min Aung Hlaing was filed in Indonesia on Monday by a group of civil ‌society organisations, accusing the leader of acts of genocide against the Rohingya ethnic group.

Myanmar is a member of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), but relations have come under strain since a 2021 coup led by Min Aung Hlaing, leading ​to civil war and a humanitarian crisis, with large numbers of Rohingya Muslims displaced and forced ​into refugee settlements.

Indonesia, which hosts ASEAN’s headquarters, is the biggest Muslim majority country in ⁠the world, and is among the destinations for Rohingya people fleeing Myanmar or the refugee camps by boat.

Myanmar’s armed ​forces, under then junta chief Min Aung Hlaing, launched an offensive in 2017 that forced at least 730,000 Rohingya ​from their homes and into neighbouring Bangladesh, where they recounted killings, mass rape and arson.

The complaint to Indonesia’s Attorney General’s office was filed by Yasmin Ullah, a Rohingya who fled Myanmar, and several Indonesian figures, including a former attorney general and the chairman ​of Muhammadiyah, one of the country’s biggest Muslim groups, they said in a statement on Monday.

Myanmar has always denied genocide. The junta did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Monday.

Min ⁠Aung Hlaing ​was elected president through a parliamentary vote last week after an army-backed ​party won the December and January election in what Western governments described as a sham, formalising his grip on political power.

The 2021 ​coup has led to widespread protests and nationwide resistance ever since.