Reaction to the ICC prosecutor's warrant request for Myanmar military leader

By Stephanie van den Berg and Shoon Naing

The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) on Wednesday said he was seeking an arrest warrant for Myanmar's military leader Min Aung Hlaing for crimes against humanity linked to the alleged persecution and deportations committed against the Rohingya.

The Myanmar authorities have not yet responded to the prosecutor's announcement.

Here are some reactions:

ZIN MAR AUNG, FOREIGN MINISTER FOR MYANMAR'S SHADOW NATIONAL UNITY GOVERNMENT:

"The ICC application for a warrant of arrest for Min Aung Hlaing represents a critical moment in Myanmar history. He must be held fully accountable for every innocent life he has destroyed and the families he has torn apart."

MOHAMMED ZUBAIR, RESEARCHER AND ROHINGYA REFUGEE EXILED IN BANGLADESH

"Under (Min Aung Hlaing's) command, the military killed thousands of Rohingya and subjected countless women and girls to horrific acts of sexual violence. As the primary perpetrator of these atrocities, Min Aung Hlaing must be held accountable.

"The ICC and ICJ (International Court of Justice) must take decisive action to ensure justice for the Rohingya community and to prevent such crimes from happening again."

TUN KHIN, PRESIDENT OF THE BURMESE ROHINGYA ORGANISATION UK

"This is a rare day of celebration for the Rohingya. For decades the international community allowed the Myanmar military to violate international law against ethnic and religious minorities, without taking any action.

"This encouraged the Myanmar military to scale up abuses, including the genocide of the Rohingya. Today we have finally taken another step towards justice and accountability."

RO NAY SAN LWIN, CO-FOUNDER OF THE FREE ROHINGYA COALITION ADVOCACY GROUP

"It has been five years since the start of our case. Now it is time to end them getting away with committing crimes against us. We welcome this move and we hope the arrest warrant will be permitted quickly.

"We hope Min Aung Hlaing will become a wanted person ... which will also have an impact on the coup and will force him to make a change to the current political situation in Myanmar."

MELANIE O'BRIEN, PRESIDENT OF THE INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF GENOCIDE SCHOLARS

"It is an important step towards justice for the Rohingya. Of course the ICC will be challenged to get Min Aung Hlaing in custody. As a notorious hermit state and military ruler, he does not travel and thus will not find himself in the territory an ICC state party.

"But it is disappointing to see another arrest warrant request with no genocide crimes. The Rohingya case is undoubtedly genocide ... They drove the Rohingya across the border into conditions of starvation and disease, with a lack of healthcare, including for women pregnant with rape babies."