Take measures to end Rohingya crisis
Dhaka yesterday reiterated its call to the international community for taking measures to address the root causes of the Rohingya crisis.
Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali made the call at a meeting with the visiting UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Yanghee Lee, at state guesthouse Padma.
Mahmood stressed the need for a peaceful resolution of the longstanding issue of Rohingya influx from Myanmar to Bangladesh, according to a foreign ministry press release.
The minister pointed out that the presence of a huge number of Myanmar nationals in Bangladesh is having adverse effects on the overall socio-economic, political, demographic, environmental, humanitarian and security situation of Cox's Bazar and adjacent districts.
Md Shahriar Alam, state minister for foreign affairs; Kamrul Ahsan, secretary (bilateral and consular) at the foreign ministry; and other high officials were also present.
Lee arrived in Dhaka yesterday on a four-day visit. Today, she is expected to visit various places in Cox's Bazar where Rohingyas, who fled persecution by the Myanmar army, have been residing temporarily in makeshift shelters.
More than 69,000 Myanmar nationals fled to Bangladesh since the persecution began in Rakhine State on October 9 last year. In addition, more than 400,000 Rohingyas have been living in Bangladesh for years.
At the meeting, the foreign minister apprised the UN special rapporteur of the steps Dhaka has taken regarding Myanmar refugees and the undocumented Myanmar nationals, who entered Bangladesh over the years, said the press release.
Mahmood also informed her about the repatriation status of the refugees under an agreement negotiated in 1992, and said as many as 236,599 Rakhine Muslims had been repatriated under that agreement until the process came to a halt in 2005.
The minister talked about Bangladesh's initiatives to engage with Myanmar bilaterally through establishment of border liaison offices, and dialogue on security cooperation.
Mahmood also highlighted the endeavours to foster regional connectivity involving Myanmar through BCIM and BIMSTEC, and thus ensure sustainable development of the region.
The special rapporteur thanked the foreign minister for allowing her to undertake the visit and the minister assured her of all sorts of cooperation.
“The announcement that the military security operations in the north of Rakhine has ceased is welcomed. However, we cannot forget the numerous allegations of grave human rights violations recorded by the team deployed by the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights [OHCHR] in Cox's Bazar last month,” Lee said, recalling its February 3 flash report based on the testimonies of over 200 individuals.
In a press statement issued from Geneva on February 17, the UN said the human rights expert would focus on the situation of the specific population who had crossed into Bangladesh from Myanmar in the past four-five months, and the events which led to their crossing over into the country.
After her four-day Bangladesh visit, Lee would share her findings in a report to the UN Human Rights Council on March 13. The report would be posted on the UN website.
Lee, who is from South Korea, is a professor at Sungkyunwan University. She is highly regarded globally for her expertise in human rights.
She served as chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child and also as its member. She was also chairperson of the Meeting of Chairpersons of Treaty Bodies.
NORWEGIAN FM HOPEFUL
Speaking at a programme in Dhaka yesterday, visiting Norwegian Foreign Minister Børge Brende said he was hopeful that the Myanmar government would allow its Rohingya nationals stranded in Bangladesh to return home in Rakhine State.
Bangladesh has shown respect to the international commitment regarding refugees, as the country has received Rohingyas crossing into it, added Brende.
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