The oral hearings in The Gambia-Myanmar case are taking place from 12 to 29 January at the International Court of Justice in The Hague, the Netherlands. Myanmar delivered its first oral arguments on 19 January, from 10 am to 6 pm local time, with its counsel, Mr Sam-Bloom Cooper, and lead counsel Mr Christopher Staker, presenting the case.

The Gambia has accused the Tatmadaw of carrying out a pattern of conduct in every Bengali village in northern Rakhine State, claiming it was a counterterrorism operation aimed at ethnically cleansing the Bengali population, a charge that Myanmar’s counsel, Ms Leigh Lawrie, countered by citing incidents from 42 villages. Myanmar’s lead counsel Mr Christopher Staker argued that The Gambia’s accusations – that Myanmar’s laws and policies were intended to commit genocide and to discriminate against the Rohingya – were unfounded. (The counterarguments of Myanmar’s counsel Ms Leigh Lawrie, and its lead counsel Mr Christopher Staker, are excerpted separately.)

MNA/TH

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