Commission of Inquiry

Burma has not ratified the Rome Statute. As such, it is not a State Party to the International Criminal Court (ICC).

As a result, only the UN Security Council can refer the situation of Burma to the ICC. To make a referral, the Security Council needs nine “yes” votes from its members. UN Security Council members can abstain and any of the five permanent members can veto the referral.

To assist the UN Security Council on whether the situation in Burma should be referred to the ICC, the UN Security Council may adopt a resolution requesting that the UN Secretary-General establish a Commission of Inquiry to investigate and report on crimes against humanity and war crimes in Burma.

The precedent of Darfur (Sudan) represents the closest analogy to the situation in Burma.

On 18 September 2004, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1564, which requested that the UN Secretary-General establish a Commission of Inquiry to investigate reports of violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law in the Darfur region of Sudan. The resolution was adopted with 11 UN Security Council members voting in favor and four abstaining (Algeria, China, Pakistan, and Russia).

On 25 January 2005, the Commission of Inquiry submitted a report on its findings to the UN Secretary-General. The Commission of Inquiry recommended that the Security Council refer the situation in Darfur to the ICC.

On 31 March, 2005, the UN Security Council passed Resolution 1593, which referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC Prosecutor. The resolution was adopted with 11 UN Security Council members voting in favor and four abstaining (Algeria, Brazil, China, and the US).