A formal criminal file accusing Myanmar regime leader Min Aung Hlaing of war crimes and crimes against humanity has been submitted to Court of First Instance in the Timor-Leste capital Dili, marking a significant escalation in international legal efforts to hold him accountable for alleged crimes committed since the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.
Min Aung Hlaing is already facing scrutiny from the world’s two highest international courts in The Hague—the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ)—where Myanmar stands accused of violating the Genocide Convention for its systematic atrocities against the country’s ethnic Rohingya population.
“I urge the Timorese authorities to take the simple step of opening an investigation against war criminal Min Aung Hlaing, who is already under investigation by the [ICC],” said Salai Za Uk Ling, the director of the Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO). The file for judicial review alleges that Min Aung Hlaing holds command and control responsibility for a systematic campaign of atrocities committed in Myanmar’s Chin State.
It is the latest phase in legal proceedings initiated in January under the legal principle of universal jurisdiction by CHRO and the Myanmar Accountability Project (MAP). This allows national courts to prosecute individuals for heinous international crimes—such as genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and torture—regardless of where the crime was committed, the nationality of the perpetrator, or the nationality of the victim.
Allegations of atrocities in Chin State
The legal filing details a devastating list of gross human rights violations allegedly committed by the Myanmar military and ordered by Min Aung Hlaing.
“The Chin People, against whom the junta is committing gross human rights violations on an industrial scale, look for support to the people of Timor-Leste, who have a shared history of atrocity crimes such as rape, massacres, and indiscriminate attacks on civilians,” Salai Za Uk Ling added, appealing directly to the shared historical trauma of Timorese.
Jose Teixeira, the lead lawyer in the case from the Timorese law firm Da Silva Teixeira & Associados, expressed confidence that the court in Dili will proceed with the case against Myanmar’s Min Aung Hlaing.
“There is a legal obligation to open an investigation, and we believe the court will make this determination,” Teixeira said, noting that the proceedings would not unduly burden Timor-Leste’s judicial system, as the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) has already been investigating Min Aung Hlaing and stands ready to support the case.
International support for investigations
The filing in Dili adds to a rapidly growing list of international legal challenges encircling the Myanmar dictator.
Chris Gunness, the MAP director, highlighted the stark contrast between Min Aung Hlaing’s recent attempts to legitimize his rule following elections in January and his status as an internationally wanted man.
“This case lays bare the absurdity of the situation in Myanmar,” Gunness said. “Despot Min Aung Hlaing is attempting to fool the world that he is the rightful leader… The reality is that Min Aung Hlaing is a wanted war criminal. Cases against him are piling up in multiple jurisdictions around the world, such as Argentina, Turkey, the Philippines, and Timor-Leste.”
On April 3, Indonesian authorities formally accepted a criminal file under their new penal code, accusing Min Aung Hlaing of genocide. The filing in Jakarta was brought forward by Rohingya genocide survivor Yasmin Ullah alongside 10 prominent Indonesian public figures.
“This dictator should be in prison, not the presidential palace,” Gunness concluded.
