Myanmar agrees to repatriate all Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh
The newly formed government of Myanmar has agreed to take back registered Rohingya refugees currently staying at two refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar but made no decision on the large number of unregistered Rohingyas living in Bangladesh.
The number of refugees in Nayapara and Kutupalong camps is now 28,000 and the Myanmar government agreed that a large number of the refugees are Myanmar nationals, said Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes on Saturday at a press briefing at the foreign ministry.
Apart from the refugees, there are a huge number of undocumented Myanmar nationals living in Bangladesh without refugee status, he said referring to the unregistered Rohingyas.
“Although they do not have refugee status, we are not forcing them out of the country on humanitarian ground,” Quayes said, adding that the Myanmar authorities have agreed to discuss the undocumented nationals.
The refugees at the camps had declined to return, he said hoping that they may have the confidence to go back now as Myanmar has a new government.
Bangladesh, Myanmar and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) took a fresh initiative to return the refugees to their homeland, said Quayes, who attended Foreign Office Consultations held in Myanmar on August 25.
Both governments are in discussion to launch synchronized patrol of the common border by border guards of the two countries to stop fresh influx of Myanmar citizens into Bangladesh, Quayes said.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to visit Myanmar soon to discuss this issue among others but the date of the trip has not been fixed yet, he added.
According to different sources, there are more than 300,000 unregistered Rohingyas living among the local population, in slums and villages mostly throughout Cox’s Bazar district but also in smaller numbers in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.
Rohingyas began fleeing Burma in the late 1970s, although the biggest influx was in 1992 when an estimated 250,000 fled to Bangladesh. Most of them were repatriated following agreement between Bangladesh and Myanmar with the UNHCR supervision.
Credit: Daily Star
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Dhaka, Oct 15 (UNB) - The elected government of Myanmar has agreed to take back all Rohingya refugees who are now staying in two camps in Cox’s Bazar, Foreign Secretary Mijarul Quayes said here today (Saturday).
Currently, some 28,000 Rohingyas are staying in Nayapara and Kutupalong camps in Cox’s Bazar.
Quayes, who had Foreign Office Consultation in Myanmar on August 25, said that apart from the refugees, there are a huge number of undocumented Mynamar nationals who intruded into Bangladesh without having any refugee status.
“Although they have no refugee status, we are not forcing them out of the country on humanitarian ground,” he told a regular press briefing at the Foreign Ministry.
The Foreign Secretary said since Myanmar has got a new elected government, a fresh initiative involving Bangladesh, Myanmar and UNHCR has been taken to see the refugees go back to their homeland of Myanmar.
He said both the governments are also in discussion to launch synchronized patrol of the common border by the border guards to stop fresh influx of Myanmar citizens into Bangladesh.
Quayes said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit Mynamar shortly, date of which has not been fixed yet. He hoped that during the visit, many bilateral issues including border haats and coastal shipping will be resolved.
The Foreign Secretary is leaving here this (Saturday) night for Beijing to hold the Foreign Office Consultations with China on October 17.
He said they would review the follow up actions on the decisions taken by the two countries during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to China.
In reply to a question, Quayes said Bangladesh’s proposal seeking Chinese assistance to build deep seaport in the Bay of Bengal would be discussed.
Asked about the transportation of the Indian goods from Ashuganj to Akhaura, he said apart from transportation of Over Dimensional Consignments (ODCs) for Palatana power plant in Tripura under special arrangement, other goods are being transported under the existing arrangements with India.
Asked about the government’s latest position regarding the recognition of Kosovo, the Foreign Secretary said the matter is under consideration of the government. “We are monitoring the ongoing global momentum about the issue.”
Currently, some 28,000 Rohingyas are staying in Nayapara and Kutupalong camps in Cox’s Bazar.
Quayes, who had Foreign Office Consultation in Myanmar on August 25, said that apart from the refugees, there are a huge number of undocumented Mynamar nationals who intruded into Bangladesh without having any refugee status.
“Although they have no refugee status, we are not forcing them out of the country on humanitarian ground,” he told a regular press briefing at the Foreign Ministry.
The Foreign Secretary said since Myanmar has got a new elected government, a fresh initiative involving Bangladesh, Myanmar and UNHCR has been taken to see the refugees go back to their homeland of Myanmar.
He said both the governments are also in discussion to launch synchronized patrol of the common border by the border guards to stop fresh influx of Myanmar citizens into Bangladesh.
Quayes said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit Mynamar shortly, date of which has not been fixed yet. He hoped that during the visit, many bilateral issues including border haats and coastal shipping will be resolved.
The Foreign Secretary is leaving here this (Saturday) night for Beijing to hold the Foreign Office Consultations with China on October 17.
He said they would review the follow up actions on the decisions taken by the two countries during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to China.
In reply to a question, Quayes said Bangladesh’s proposal seeking Chinese assistance to build deep seaport in the Bay of Bengal would be discussed.
Asked about the transportation of the Indian goods from Ashuganj to Akhaura, he said apart from transportation of Over Dimensional Consignments (ODCs) for Palatana power plant in Tripura under special arrangement, other goods are being transported under the existing arrangements with India.
Asked about the government’s latest position regarding the recognition of Kosovo, the Foreign Secretary said the matter is under consideration of the government. “We are monitoring the ongoing global momentum about the issue.”
