Desk Report:
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, has announced that the UN’s fact-finding report on the atrocities committed during the July-August uprising is in its final stages and is expected to be released by mid-February.
Türk shared this update during a meeting with Bangladesh Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, on Wednesday. He confirmed that the report would be shared with Bangladesh prior to its official release by the UN rights office in Geneva.
Professor Yunus expressed gratitude to the UN Human Rights Office for its investigation into the violence during the student-led uprising, noting that the findings of six major independent reform commissions would also be released around the same time. He highlighted that the findings of these reports could complement one another.
In addition, Yunus sought the UN’s continued support in addressing the worsening Rohingya crisis, exacerbated by the recent influx of tens of thousands of refugees from Myanmar. Türk assured Yunus of his full backing and revealed that he had been engaging with key stakeholders, including the UN Special Envoy on Myanmar, Julie Bishop, to address the situation.
Yunus proposed the creation of a UN-supervised safe zone in Myanmar’s Rakhine State to curb the ongoing refugee flow. He also emphasized the significance of an upcoming high-level conference focused on the Rohingya crisis, which he believes will refocus global attention on the humanitarian emergency. Türk concurred, stating that such a conference is crucial for rekindling international focus on the issue.