Md. Rizwanul Islam: The Rohingya Crisis, Genocide, and Repatriation

In this episode we speak with Rizwanul Islam about the Rohingya crisis, the persecution and displacement of Rohingya from Myanmar, and the legal and political challenges surrounding their possible repatriation. We discuss the roots of Rohingya statelessness, Myanmar’s 1982 Citizenship Law, the role of anti-Rohingya propaganda, the pressures placed on Bangladesh by mass displacement, and the limitations of the international refugee system. The conversation also examines The Gambia v. Myanmar before the International Court of Justice, the significance of the Genocide Convention, the principle of erga omnes partes, and whether the ICJ could go beyond a declaratory judgment to support safe and dignified repatriation. Rizwanul Islam is a scholar of public international law and Dean of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at North South University in Bangladesh. He is co-editor, with Mahbubur Rahman and Abdur Rob Khan, of "Rohingya Repatriation: An Elusive or Achievable Agenda?" He also co-edited, with Hannah Buxbaum, the American Journal of International Law Unbound symposium “Exploring Extraterritoriality’s Empire.” The discussion also considers broader questions about international law, accountability for mass atrocities, the limits of legal enforcement, and what meaningful justice for the Rohingya might require. 0:00 Cold Open: What Precedent Are We Creating? 2:12 Introduction 2:49 Who Are the Rohingya? 5:07 Statelessness and the Rohingya Crisis 7:16 Citizenship, History, and Myanmar’s 1982 Law 9:56 Why Long-Term Settlement in Bangladesh Is Unsustainable 14:08 The Limits of the Global Refugee System 18:55 The ICJ and The Gambia v. Myanmar 23:17 Why The Gambia Brought the Case 26:23 The Genocide Convention and Obligations to All States Parties 29:05 Why a Declaratory Judgment Is Not Enough 32:22 Can the ICJ Order Repatriation? 39:43 Legal Precedents for Innovative Remedies 43:10 Law, Judges, and Human Considerations 47:46 What Justice for the Rohingya Requires 51:07 Enforcing ICJ Judgments 55:54 Myanmar’s Military Coup and the Prospects for Justice 58:52 What Safe and Dignified Repatriation Requires 1:01:53 Responsibility to Protect and Its Limits 1:05:49 International Law, Accountability, and Genocide Prevention 1:09:42 A Bangladeshi Perspective on the Rohingya Crisis 1:11:30 Closing