UN Investigators Uncover 'Systematic Torture' in Myanmar Detention Centers

GENEVA – A UN-mandated investigation has revealed a disturbing pattern of "systematic torture" in Myanmar's detention facilities, with investigators documenting a wide range of human rights abuses, including beatings, sexual violence, and the deaths of detainees.

The Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), in a report covering the period from July 2024 to June 2025, details horrific abuses carried out by military and security forces. The report, based on hundreds of eyewitness testimonies and other evidence, paints a grim picture of life for those held in these facilities.

Brutal Tactics and Vulnerable Victims

The IIMM’s findings highlight a variety of brutal torture methods, including:

• Physical Violence: Beatings, electric shocks, and strangulation.
• Sexual Violence: Gang rape and the burning of sexual body parts.
• Other Abuses: Some of the torture has been so severe that it has resulted in death.

The victims are not limited to political opponents. The report specifies that activists and journalists are also being targeted. In a particularly alarming finding, the IIMM found that children as young as two years old were detained as proxies for their missing parents, a tactic used to pressure and intimidate families.

While the report doesn't publicly name the individuals responsible, it states that investigators have made significant progress in identifying both the direct perpetrators and the high-ranking commanders who oversee these facilities. The IIMM is deliberately withholding these names to avoid alerting those under investigation.

Investigators are also analyzing the chain of command, with a specific focus on the Myanmar Air Force, to identify those responsible for aerial attacks that have targeted civilian infrastructure, including schools, homes, and hospitals.

The evidence collected by the IIMM is crucial for international legal efforts. The information is being used to support ongoing cases before international tribunals, including the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

In a significant development, evidence from the IIMM has already contributed to a request for an arrest warrant for Myanmar's military chief, Min Aung Hlaing, by the ICC prosecutor. This shows that the work of the IIMM is directly contributing to a path toward accountability for the atrocities committed since the 2021 military coup.

The report underscores a troubling increase in the "frequency and brutality of atrocities" in Myanmar, a crisis that has also led to a severe humanitarian situation with millions displaced and in desperate need of aid.