Sanctions not enough for Rohingya crisis

A woman walks through the camp in Inn Din village near Kyauk Taw, Rakhine State, western Myanmar on Sunday. About 127,000 Rohingya dwell in camps in central Rakhine, set up in 2012 after earlier bouts of violence by Myanmar state security. (EPA photo)

One year ago, on Aug 25, the world witnessed the start of a dramatic and massive exodus of around 700,000 Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar to Bangladesh. It continued for months, until the vast majority of Rohingya from Maungdaw district in northern Rakhine state had left Myanmar.

Its immediate cause was a wave of brutal military action, triggered by attacks on security posts by Rohingya militants. Between August 2017 and June of this year, 706,364 refugees crossed the border, according to United Nations agencies. Arrivals from earlier years bring the total up to around one million.

One year on we are witnessing another rapid series of developments. This time they focus on criminal accountability for those deemed most responsible for serious crimes.