Myanmar natives ask DOJ to resolve complaint vs. Myanmar military

Natives of Chin State, Myanmar on Friday urged anew the Department of Justice (DOJ) to resolve the complaint they filed for war crimes against some members of the Myanmar military.

In an 8-page second motion to resolve, the natives asked the DOJ to reverse and set aside its letter declining to take cognizance of the complaint due to jurisdictional conditions.

“No other domestic or international authority is currently investigating the war crimes committed against Complainants and the Chin people of Myanmar,” the motion read.

“Continued inaction by this Honorable Office is therefore not neutral — it operates, in practical effect, as a denial of any forum of accountability, contrary to the very jus cogens obligation this Honorable Office has itself acknowledged,” it added.

In 2023, the complainants filed a complaint against 10 officers of the military for violations of Republic Act 9851 or the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.

However, in March 2024, they received a letter from the Prosecutor General declining to take cognizance of the complaint due to jurisdictional conditions under the Philippine Act on Crimes Against International Humanitarian Law, Genocide, and Other Crimes Against Humanity.

The prosecutor general said that the victim has to be a Filipino, the accused has to be a Filipino, or the accused has to be present in the Philippines.

The complainants appealed this in April 2024 and filed their first motion to resolve in April 2025.

However, the complainants said the motions are still pending.

GMA News Online has asked the DOJ for comment and will publish its response once available. — RSJ, GMA News