(FeaturedNews.com) – The Myanmar military began driving out the Rohingya, a minority ethnic group, from the country in 2017, moving almost one million people across the border. The accounts by the victims included stories of drownings, burnings, and rapes. The military then seized control of the government in a move the US government categorized as a coup. Now, the United States is speaking out about the crimes of the ruling party.
US investigators documented what happened in Myanmar in 2018, but the Biden administration just formally announced the decision that the military committed genocide and crimes against humanity. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said in a speech on March 21 the US formally condemned the Myanmar military for its actions.
The legal designation may help increase pressure internationally to hold the group responsible and make it harder for them to continue on this path. Also, it allows victims to know the United States recognizes what they have gone through as wrong.
The Myanmar military denies all accusations. It said any actions have been against terrorists.
Various human rights groups and some lawmakers have been pressuring the White House under Trump and Biden to publicly declare the military is responsible for genocide. Blinken said the United States has considerable evidence of the military’s crimes against the Rohingya. So, why did it take so long for the government to formally condemn the actions?
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