A/HRC/40/30 expressed concern over the continued lack of accountability for the victims of the ethnic violence in southern Kyrgyzstan in June 2010.3 7. In September 2018, the new High Commissioner for Human Rights, in her opening statement at the thirty-ninth session of the Human Rights Council, drew attention to the review of China by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in August 2018, which had brought to light deeply disturbing allegations of the arbitrary detention of large numbers of Uighurs and other Muslim minority communities, in so-called reeducation camps across the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region. 4 8. She also drew attention to the situation in Cameroon, which had worsened in recent months as fighting had intensified in the Anglophone regions between security forces and armed groups, with a large number of civilian victims and over 180,000 people forcibly displaced.5 9. The detailed findings of the independent international fact-finding mission on Myanmar (A/HRC/39/CRP.2) were issued in September 2018. The mission determined that many of the human rights violations and serious violations of international humanitarian law in Kachin, Shan and Rakhine States amounted to the gravest crimes under international law. In addition to crimes against humanity and war crimes – reported to have been committed in all three States – the mission found strong evidence indicating that genocide had been committed against the Rohingya in Rakhine State. The mission noted the violent modus operandi of the Myanmar military, known as the Tatmadaw, against its own people and was struck by the similarity of the Tatmadaw operations and conduct across all three States. During its operations, the Tatmadaw systematically targeted civilians, including women and children, committed sexual violence, voiced and promoted exclusionary and discriminatory rhetoric against minorities, and established a climate of impunity for its soldiers. The mission also documented serious human rights violations committed by the Tatmadaw against ethnic Rakhine communities, including forced labour, sexual violence, killings and forced evictions. 10. The mission concluded that the half century of ongoing conflict between the Tatmadaw and the ethnic minorities in Myanmar, involving serious violations of international law, has made it abundantly clear that peace is impossible without a negotiated national political settlement that recognizes the legitimate aspirations of all ethnic minorities in Myanmar. The mission urged the Government of Myanmar to ensure the enjoyment of human rights for all, based on full equality and regardless of citizenship or “national race” status; and to dismantle the systems of oppression and discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities, with an urgent focus on the situation of the Rohingya. 11. During the reporting period, United Nations special procedure mandate holders took early warning measures to address concerns specific to certain countries or situations with respect to minorities. Several mandate holders sent an urgent appeal to Sri Lanka in March 2018, expressing serious concern over the attacks against Muslim minority groups in the Kandy district and the destruction of Muslim-owned properties and Muslim religious sites, as well as the alleged rise of hate speech and incitement to violence against Muslims by Sinhala extremist groups in the country. The mandate holders noted with concern that violent incidents against Muslim minority groups in the Kandy district had occurred on several occasions over recent years, motivated by inflammatory anti-Muslim rhetoric propagated within extremist groups and on social media. The mandate holders welcomed the public statements made by government representatives condemning the attacks, hate speech and incitement to violence, and the Government’s expressed commitment to launch 3 4 5 4 See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23109&LangID=E. See www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=23518&LangID=E. Ibid.