War crimes case against Myanmar dictatorship moves to next phase in the Philippines

Mizzima

As part of the ongoing global initiative to bring the Myanmar dictatorship to justice, war crimes survivors from north-western Chin State have filed their second “motion to resolve” at the Philippines Department of Justice, the next step in a case initiated in 2023, according to the Myanmar Accountability Project (MAP) and the Chin Human Rights Organization (CHRO) 31 July.

The motion brings further pressure on the authorities in Manila to open an investigation into the massive arson attack in 2021 by junta forces on the Chin town of Thantlang. In the junta assault, some fifteen hundred houses, churches, schools, medical facilities and other civilian structures were destroyed, and thousands of civilians were forcibly displaced, many into India.

A Christian Pastor, Cung Biak Hum, was deliberately targeted and his body mutilated, while Pa Ral Tu, an unarmed church official, was also deliberately shot and killed. Both men were attempting to bring medical aid to survivors.