Rohingya refugees and the Bangladeshi stance

Bangladesh is ready to discuss with Myanmar's new government about Myanmar's �illegal� nationals in Bangladesh

For the first time in the world after the Second World War, the number of displaced people has surpassed 60 million, which is the highest in the period.  Among them, there are refugees, asylum seekers and internally homeless people. But this number is escalating day by day.

    According to the UNHCR, in the middle of this year, the number of refugees worldwide has reached at   two crore 20 lakh. The position of the neighbour state Myanmar is the sixth from the aspect of the source of refugees all over the world. A few lakh Rohingyas  and their families being victims of oppression by Myanmar’s Army as well as ethnic conflicts were rendered homeless in Myanmar and they started to intrude  into Bangladesh since 1992. At present the number of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh stands at about 5, 50,000. They have been living in  the different places  of Chittagong region. The number of Rohingya refugees is continuing to rise in Bangladesh, which has become a major cause of concern for Bangladesh, and it is leaving an adverse impact on the country’s economy. 
   On the other hand, the Rohingya refugees coming from Myanmar  deprived of the minimum basic needs of life are involved in various illegal activities in Bangladesh. Some of them  are fleeing abroad on the sea routes  illegally for better living and are tarnishing  the image of Bangladesh in the world. 
In this context, the Government of Bangladesh  will have  to take initiative to resist the illegal activities of Rohingya refugees. Otherwise,  Bangladesh's image at home and abroad would be jeopardised. At present there is no exact data, actually, how many Rohingya refugees are staying in Bangladesh. 
According to the UNHCR data, some 32,975 registered refugees in Kutupalong and Nayapara, two government-run camps near Cox's Bazar, are relying on regular 
distributions of food rations and relief items such as shelter and clothing. Basic water, sanitation and health care services are provided by the government, UNHCR and its partners.
 In this regard, the UNHCR is always ready to extend all-out cooperation to the Government of Bangladesh. The UNHCR will take measures to give them protection including essential aid  on the basis of exact data after calculations of the Rohingya refugees.
“UNHCR would like to emphasize that the Rohingyas  are not illegal migrants; many, if not all faced discrimination rendering their lives intolerable in Myanmar. UNHCR, therefore,  considers the undocumented Rohingyas  as refugees falling within the mandate of UNHCR. We would appreciate if the Government of Bangladesh would recognize them as refugees or at least provide them with temporary protection. UNHCR has repeatedly appealed to the Government of Bangladesh to exempt all undocumented Rohingyas  from the jurisdiction of the Foreigners’ Act 1946 in accordance with Section 10 of the Act. 
As unregistered Rohingya, they fall under the application of the Foreigners Act and as such they are treated as “illegal immigrants” under the Bangladeshi legal system. This categorisation makes them extremely vulnerable to exploitation and human rights abuses as anyone can steal their property, abuse and rape them with virtual impunity. Should they report these crimes to the police, they will themselves be charged with illegal entry into Bangladesh and could be punished with imprisonment up to five years. As a result, they are unwilling to report the crimes and thus, even the most hideous crimes can be committed against the unregistered Rohingya with virtual impunity for the perpetrators. This situation is unacceptable and tragic for the concerned people but it is also in stark contrast to the rule of law which Bangladesh takes prides in.  
UNHCR has offered the Government of Bangladesh our assistance in dealing with the unregistered Rohingya population estimated to be at least 300,000-500,000. However, the Government of Bangladesh has not accepted UNHCR’s involvement with this population and has instead asked IOM to coordinate some basic humanitarian assistance for 
this population who they refer to as “undocumented Myanmar nationals”.  
UNHCR has also offered technical and financial support to the Government of Bangladesh for “listing” of the undocumented Rohingya. UNHCR has expressed hope that the listing will be carried out in accordance with international standards and that the “listed” persons will be issued some form of documentation and granted some form of legal residence. We have also encouraged the Government to sensitise the community through mass communications in order to explain the procedure and purpose of the “listing” ensuring that the concerned population comes  forward and provide information without fear.”
According to the State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Md. Shahriar Alam, not as refugee,  at present, as many as  5,50,000 unregistered Myanmar’s nationals are staying in Bangladesh though the government of Myanmar is    apathetic to recognise those as citizens  of Myanmar. Apart from those there are 32,975 registered refugees  in Bangladesh. Among them 2,300 people were confirmed by the Myanmar's government as citizens of Myanmar  and all of them were supposed to go back to Myanmar. But the reality is, now none of them wants to go back home anymore because of adverse circumstances. However, the bilateral talks between the two countries are still continuing for settlement of this problem.
He said, most of the unregistered Myanmar nationals in Bangladesh have already involved themselves in criminal activities. In addition to this, they are being used in various illegal activities. Bangladesh's government is  observing this issue very  carefully. He also said, meanwhile, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs have adopted several recommendations to prevent illegal activities of these illegal residents and to bring them under the law. The Government of Bangladesh has recently also taken a new decision that, any citizen of  Bangladesh will not be able to get married any illegal citizen of Myanmar.
He stated that, there is no responsibility of Bangladesh to the citizens of Myanmar. If the territory, population and economic condition of Bangladesh are considered, then it is very difficult to give shelter to this half a million illegal nationals of Myanmar in Bangladesh. However, considering Muslim people in trouble, they have been given shelter in Bangladesh. It can be said an emergency measure. Not only that, Bangladesh has been giving them all-out cooperation at the time of any natural disaster. At the same time, many NGOs are also working there to assist them by taking pre-permission from the government.
Though, the negotiation with Rohingya issue of Bangladesh is continuing with several other countries around the world, if any country wants to take these Rohingya nationals through a package deal, Bangladesh will welcome that country.
Welcoming the upcoming new government of Myanmar, he said that, Bangladesh is completely ready to discuss with Myanmar's new government about Myanmar's illegal nationals in Bangladesh. We are very optimistic that, we will discuss this issue in the new angle after taking office by Myanmar’s new government and be able to reach an agreement. Because,  both the countries, Bangladesh and Myanmar,  have been working for solving the long-term problem with the illegal residents of Myanmar in Bangladesh.   
He further said, there are many countries in the world that are financially much stronger than Bangladesh. They were not also able to show any sympathy to the Syrian refugees after refugee crisis in Syria. Despite   limited economic capacity of Bangladesh, Bangladesh has been showing its sympathy to the Myanmar’s Rohingya nationals.  
Nevertheless, Bangladesh has not become impatient with the residents of Myanmar. Rather, it is waiting patiently for a proper solution to this issue. State minister said, the activities of Bangladesh will be accelerated to put pressure on Myanmar through the international community. In addition to this, Bangladesh will give importance to hold more effective the bilateral meetings between Bangladesh and Myanmar regarding the Rohingya issue of Bangladesh in the days to come. 

The writer is Head of News , Gaan Bangla Television (GB) 

Rohingya refugees and the Bangladeshi stance

Bangladesh is ready to discuss with Myanmars new government about Myanmars �illegal� nationals in Bangladesh

For the first time in the world after the Second World War, the number of displaced people has surpassed 60 million, which is the highest in the period. Among them, there are refugees, asylum seekers and internally homeless people. But this number is escalating day by day. According to the UNHCR, in the middle of this year, the number of refugees worldwide has reached at two crore 20 lakh. The position of the neighbour state Myanmar is the sixth from the aspect of the source of refugees all over the world. A few lakh Rohingyas and their families being victims of oppression by Myanmars Army as well as ethnic conflicts were rendered homeless in Myanmar and they started to intrude into Bangladesh since 1992. At present the number of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh stands at about 5, 50,000. They have been living in the different places of Chittagong region. The number of Rohingya refugees is continuing to rise in Bangladesh, which has become a major cause of concern for Bangladesh, and it is leaving an adverse impact on the countrys economy. On the other hand, the Rohingya refugees coming from Myanmar deprived of the minimum basic needs of life are involved in various illegal activities in Bangladesh. Some of them are fleeing abroad on the sea routes illegally for better living and are tarnishing the image of Bangladesh in the world. In this context, the Government of Bangladesh will have to take initiative to resist the illegal activities of Rohingya refugees. Otherwise, Bangladeshs image at home and abroad would be jeopardised. At present there is no exact data, actually, how many Rohingya refugees are staying in Bangladesh. According to the UNHCR data, some 32,975 registered refugees in Kutupalong and Nayapara, two government-run camps near Coxs Bazar, are relying on regular distributions of food rations and relief items such as shelter and clothing. Basic water, sanitation and health care services are provided by the government, UNHCR and its partners. In this regard, the UNHCR is always ready to extend all-out cooperation to the Government of Bangladesh. The UNHCR will take measures to give them protection including essential aid on the basis of exact data after calculations of the Rohingya refugees. UNHCR would like to emphasize that the Rohingyas are not illegal migrants; many, if not all faced discrimination rendering their lives intolerable in Myanmar. UNHCR, therefore, considers the undocumented Rohingyas as refugees falling within the mandate of UNHCR. We would appreciate if the Government of Bangladesh would recognize them as refugees or at least provide them with temporary protection. UNHCR has repeatedly appealed to the Government of Bangladesh to exempt all undocumented Rohingyas from the jurisdiction of the Foreigners Act 1946 in accordance with Section 10 of the Act. As unregistered Rohingya, they fall under the application of the Foreigners Act and as such they are treated as illegal immigrants under the Bangladeshi legal system. This categorisation makes them extremely vulnerable to exploitation and human rights abuses as anyone can steal their property, abuse and rape them with virtual impunity. Should they report these crimes to the police, they will themselves be charged with illegal entry into Bangladesh and could be punished with imprisonment up to five years. As a result, they are unwilling to report the crimes and thus, even the most hideous crimes can be committed against the unregistered Rohingya with virtual impunity for the perpetrators. This situation is unacceptable and tragic for the concerned people but it is also in stark contrast to the rule of law which Bangladesh takes prides in. UNHCR has offered the Government of Bangladesh our assistance in dealing with the unregistered Rohingya population estimated to be at least 300,000-500,000. However, the Government of Bangladesh has not accepted UNHCRs involvement with this population and has instead asked IOM to coordinate some basic humanitarian assistance for this population who they refer to as undocumented Myanmar nationals. UNHCR has also offered technical and financial support to the Government of Bangladesh for listing of the undocumented Rohingya. UNHCR has expressed hope that the listing will be carried out in accordance with international standards and that the listed persons will be issued some form of documentation and granted some form of legal residence. We have also encouraged the Government to sensitise the community through mass communications in order to explain the procedure and purpose of the listing ensuring that the concerned population comes forward and provide information without fear. According to the State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Md. Shahriar Alam, not as refugee, at present, as many as 5,50,000 unregistered Myanmars nationals are staying in Bangladesh though the government of Myanmar is apathetic to recognise those as citizens of Myanmar. Apart from those there are 32,975 registered refugees in Bangladesh. Among them 2,300 people were confirmed by the Myanmars government as citizens of Myanmar and all of them were supposed to go back to Myanmar. But the reality is, now none of them wants to go back home anymore because of adverse circumstances. However, the bilateral talks between the two countries are still continuing for settlement of this problem. He said, most of the unregistered Myanmar nationals in Bangladesh have already involved themselves in criminal activities. In addition to this, they are being used in various illegal activities. Bangladeshs government is observing this issue very carefully. He also said, meanwhile, the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs have adopted several recommendations to prevent illegal activities of these illegal residents and to bring them under the law. The Government of Bangladesh has recently also taken a new decision that, any citizen of Bangladesh will not be able to get married any illegal citizen of Myanmar. He stated that, there is no responsibility of Bangladesh to the citizens of Myanmar. If the territory, population and economic condition of Bangladesh are considered, then it is very difficult to give shelter to this half a million illegal nationals of Myanmar in Bangladesh. However, considering Muslim people in trouble, they have been given shelter in Bangladesh. It can be said an emergency measure. Not only that, Bangladesh has been giving them all-out cooperation at the time of any natural disaster. At the same time, many NGOs are also working there to assist them by taking pre-permission from the government. Though, the negotiation with Rohingya issue of Bangladesh is continuing with several other countries around the world, if any country wants to take these Rohingya nationals through a package deal, Bangladesh will welcome that country. Welcoming the upcoming new government of Myanmar, he said that, Bangladesh is completely ready to discuss with Myanmars new government about Myanmars illegal nationals in Bangladesh. We are very optimistic that, we will discuss this issue in the new angle after taking office by Myanmars new government and be able to reach an agreement. Because, both the countries, Bangladesh and Myanmar, have been working for solving the long-term problem with the illegal residents of Myanmar in Bangladesh. He further said, there are many countries in the world that are financially much stronger than Bangladesh. They were not also able to show any sympathy to the Syrian refugees after refugee crisis in Syria. Despite limited economic capacity of Bangladesh, Bangladesh has been showing its sympathy to the Myanmars Rohingya nationals. Nevertheless, Bangladesh has not become impatient with the residents of Myanmar. Rather, it is waiting patiently for a proper solution to this issue. State minister said, the activities of Bangladesh will be accelerated to put pressure on Myanmar through the international community. In addition to this, Bangladesh will give importance to hold more effective the bilateral meetings between Bangladesh and Myanmar regarding the Rohingya issue of Bangladesh in the days to come. The writer is Head of News , Gaan Bangla Television (GB)