‘How can I leave?’- Bangladeshi cries for Ukraine
Palash Ahmed, a non-resident Bangladeshi in Ukraine, was in tears when the correspondent called him in the afternoon yesterday.
By then, he had reached the Polish border from Kyiv.
"I am feeling very emotional for this country, bhai -- I don't feel like crossing the border. I am just 50 kilometres away," said the 35-year-old naturalised Ukrainian.
Ahmed, who hails from Shariatpur, migrated to Ukraine when he was only 19. After working a few years, he started his own business.
"I spent my whole youth in this country. I am so attached to the people here -- the Ukrainians are such good people. How can I leave during such a critical time?"
Soon after Russian President Vladimir Putin declared war on Ukraine on Thursday, hundreds of thousands of foreigners and Ukrainians began pouring into the border areas to flee to neighbouring Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Hungary and Moldova.
The road leading to the Ukraine-Poland border saw huge gridlock, with many facing fuel and food shortages.
"People from the surrounding communities are cooking and supplying food to those stuck on the road. These Ukrainians are so kind-hearted. You cannot believe the emotional scenes unless you see for yourself."
The Ukrainian men are giving car keys to their wives and staying back to fight the Russians, said Ahmed, whose wife and son had gone to Bangladesh to visit a few weeks back and have decided to stay put for now.
"The Ukrainians are fully united now –- they are doing their best to protect their country," he said, adding that many civilian Ukrainians are joining the military and has been able to resist the Russians in many places. He knows some Ukrainians of Bangladeshi origin joining the fight.
Some of the 2,500 Bangladeshis in Ukraine have decided to stay back.
So far, about 400 Bangladeshis have reached Poland, with many hundreds waiting to cross the border.
Of those who have reached Poland, 46 are in temporary shelter arranged by the Bangladesh Embassy in Warsaw, said the foreign ministry in a statement. The rest of them are living in their own arrangement.
The Bangladesh Embassy in Poland is working to rescue and relocate 28 Bangladeshi nationals through the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Ukraine and also working to evacuate those who are in jail or detained through the International Organisation for Migration, Ukraine.
Besides, 15 Bangladeshi students have arrived in Hungary and seven entered Romania. The Bangladesh embassies respectively are looking after them.
In a statement yesterday, the Bangladesh Embassy in Poland said it has already taken an initiative to repatriate the Bangladeshis who reached Poland from Ukraine.
It also asked them to send their passport numbers, mobile numbers and address via WhatsApp to embassy official Touhid Imam at +4915778676376 or e-mail at [email protected] immediately.
Also, the embassy said those stranded in Ukraine should send their names, mobile numbers and full address to the same WhatsApp number.
"Please stay wherever you are. Considering the situation, the ICRC will contact and rescue you and reach you to the border," the embassy said.
Two teams of the Bangladesh embassy are working at the Ukraine-Poland border to provide consular services.
Comments