The Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar need to have sufficient confidence before their repatriation can start "in a voluntary, safe and dignified way'', said Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in Parliament yesterday. He made the point when explaining why it was not possible for Singapore or Asean to impose a deadline to start the process for repatriation.

But when it happens, Asean will stand ready to support the refugees, in providing or helping to provide healthcare and education facilities, and the promotion of interfaith dialogue, he added. But the more difficult and fundamental issues in the Rohingya crisis involve such challenges as citizenship and political rights, said Dr Balakrishnan in his reply to Nominated MP Anthea Ong.

Again, these are issues that Asean cannot decide or debate on. "We cannot do so on behalf of Myanmar and, ultimately, Myanmar has to sort out its own political challenges," he told the House. More than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims fled a sweeping army crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state in 2017. Many now live in cramped conditions in camps in Bangladesh.

In October 2018, Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed to repatriate hundreds of thousands of refugees. But the plan has been opposed by the Rohingya as well as the United Nations refugee agency and aid groups, all fearing for their safety. The repatriation planned for November 2018 also stalled amid protests at the refugee camps. Dr Balakrishnan said that at the recent Asean Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in January, the subject of the Rakhine state came up for extensive, informal discussions among the leaders.

“We focused on efforts by Asean to support the refugees as well as Myanmar, and, in particular, focused on the safe and voluntary repatriation of these refugees,” he noted.

“We welcome the finalisation of the terms of reference of the needs assessment team, that will be dispatched by the Asean Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance,” he said. Dr Balakrishnan said the team will help identify theareas through which Asean can provide supportand also enhance the trust and confidence of the refugees on the ground.

But the deployment of the needs assessment team has had to be postponed, owing to the recent outbreak of violence involving the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, which is a militant group calling for greater autonomy for Rakhine state.

“It’s important for the refugees, ultimately, to return home so that they can rebuild their lives, but I would emphasise it is just as important that the manner of the repatriation be voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable.

“I have met the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and also the State Counsellor of Myanmar just two months ago, and I am absolutely certain that the leadership of both countries is committed to the ultimate repatriation of the refugees,” Dr Balakrishnan said, referring to Ms Sheikh Hasina and Ms Aung San Suu Kyi, respectively.  Mr Louis Ng (Nee Soon GRC) asked if the issue of citizenship for the refugees could be discussed by Asean at a deeper level. Dr Balakrishnan replied: “Simple answer - no.”

He added: “Citizenship is a fundamental political right. It goes to the heart of sovereignty. It goes to the heart of the construction of how a country looks at itself and identifies who is in and who is out... This is not something that foreigners should get involved in.”

Six Rohingya detained in Assam

Six Rohingya, including four minor girls, were detained for not having valid travel documents by police in Assam’s Cachar district on Monday. The group was travelling with a Bangladeshi couple, who told the police that they had been living in India, in a border village in Tripura, for the last ten years.

Police recovered two Aadhaar cards from the group. Additional Superintendent of Police (Border), Cachar, Gaurav Agarwal, told The Indian Express that the cards were “probably fake”.

Agarwal said that there was a man, a woman and four minor girls in the Rohingya group. The group has told police they were headed to a Rohingya camp in Jammu and were travelling from Tripura. It is suspected most of the Rohingya entered India through Bangladesh. On February 3, seven minor Rohingya — six girls and one boy, all aged around 15 — were detained and sent to a juvenile home in Tripura.