Staff Reporter :
Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Julia Niblett on Tuesday said they will continue to work with Bangladesh, Myanmar, other regional partners and the broader international community towards a long-term and durable solution to Rohingya crisis. We’ll stand by Bangladesh the Rohingya issue.
She made the remarks while delivering the keynote at a symposium titled “Bangladesh-Australia Relations: Prognosis for the Future” under the Cosmos Foundation’s Ambassador Lecture Series at Six Seasons Hotel in the city.
Cosmos Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bangladeshi conglomerate Cosmos Group, hosted the symposium chaired by Principal Research Fellow of the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.
Economist Dr Zaidi Sattar, British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Chatterton Dickson, Canadian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Benoit Prefontaine, Brazilian Ambassador to Bangladesh Joao Tabajara de Oliveira Junior, former foreign secretaries Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury and
Md Touhid Hossain, prominent businessman Salahuddin Kashem Khan and former and current diplomats were, among others, present. Cosmos Foundation Chairman Enayetullah Khan delivered the welcome speech.
The High Commissioner said, Australia will continue to pursue accountability for the abuses, and justice for the Rohingya through strong support for UN resolutions and accountability mechanisms.
Niblett said, Australia continues to encourage Myanmar to implement the Rakhine Advisory Commission’s recommendations.
Responding to a question, the High Commissioner said, actions have to be taken in Myanmar to build trust among Rohingyas and ensure their rights on their return.
She said, they are using many tools available to them “diplomatically, bilaterally, regionally and internationally” to try and help find a sustainable solution to the Rohingya crisis.
Niblett said, they recognise the risk of radicalisation, exploitation and transnational crimes due to the longer stay of Rohingyas here and mentioned that these areas need to be addressed. “My view is that prevention is the best way to tackle these issues.”
The High Commissioner said, Australia recognises the generosity of Bangladesh in hosting over one million Rohingyas and has been actively supporting the humanitarian needs of those people affected by the Rohingya crisis, including the host community, providing over $122 million in humanitarian assistance since August 2017.
“But, our assistance in providing food to Rohingyas and the host community of Cox’s Bazar goes back long before that most recent influx,” she said.
On Myanmar, the High Commissioner said, Australia has acted and continues to act in response to the atrocities committed in Myanmar.
“We’re deeply disturbed by the UN Fact-finding Mission’s conclusion that war crimes, and likely, genocide, have occurred in Rakhine State. We’ve strongly condemned the atrocities committed in Myanmar,” she said.
Asked about specific areas of collaboration in the era of blue economy, the Australian High Commissioner said, initially they are looking at what is the scope and what are the possibilities.
The High Commissioner said, Australia’s guiding principles for its foreign policy is that they support an open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific in which the sovereign rights of all states are respected.
These principles, she said, underpin their engagement with all countries in the Indo-Pacific, including Bangladesh.
The High Commissioner said the Indo-Pacific is not just a geographic description — it reflects strategic and economic reality, embracing India, Bangladesh and the nations of the Asia Pacific region, and it is where Australia’s interests lie.
She said, Australia and Bangladesh have very close people-to-people links, through many years of migration, sporting links and education.
Almost 50,000 people of Bangladeshi origin are settled in Australia, and there are around 7,000 students in Australia, she said adding that she wants to see the number of students grow.
The High Commissioner said the trade between Bangladesh and Australia has grown by 550 percent over the last decade, with almost $2.5 billion in two-way trade in 2018-19, including in goods and services.
Significant trade in the readymade garment industry and agricultural commodities is the cornerstone of the two-way trade relationship, she said mentioning that Bangladesh benefits from duty- and quota-free access to the Australian market.
Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Julia Niblett on Tuesday said they will continue to work with Bangladesh, Myanmar, other regional partners and the broader international community towards a long-term and durable solution to Rohingya crisis. We’ll stand by Bangladesh the Rohingya issue.
She made the remarks while delivering the keynote at a symposium titled “Bangladesh-Australia Relations: Prognosis for the Future” under the Cosmos Foundation’s Ambassador Lecture Series at Six Seasons Hotel in the city.
Cosmos Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Bangladeshi conglomerate Cosmos Group, hosted the symposium chaired by Principal Research Fellow of the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury.
Economist Dr Zaidi Sattar, British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Chatterton Dickson, Canadian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Benoit Prefontaine, Brazilian Ambassador to Bangladesh Joao Tabajara de Oliveira Junior, former foreign secretaries Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury and
Md Touhid Hossain, prominent businessman Salahuddin Kashem Khan and former and current diplomats were, among others, present. Cosmos Foundation Chairman Enayetullah Khan delivered the welcome speech.
The High Commissioner said, Australia will continue to pursue accountability for the abuses, and justice for the Rohingya through strong support for UN resolutions and accountability mechanisms.
Niblett said, Australia continues to encourage Myanmar to implement the Rakhine Advisory Commission’s recommendations.
Responding to a question, the High Commissioner said, actions have to be taken in Myanmar to build trust among Rohingyas and ensure their rights on their return.
She said, they are using many tools available to them “diplomatically, bilaterally, regionally and internationally” to try and help find a sustainable solution to the Rohingya crisis.
Niblett said, they recognise the risk of radicalisation, exploitation and transnational crimes due to the longer stay of Rohingyas here and mentioned that these areas need to be addressed. “My view is that prevention is the best way to tackle these issues.”
The High Commissioner said, Australia recognises the generosity of Bangladesh in hosting over one million Rohingyas and has been actively supporting the humanitarian needs of those people affected by the Rohingya crisis, including the host community, providing over $122 million in humanitarian assistance since August 2017.
“But, our assistance in providing food to Rohingyas and the host community of Cox’s Bazar goes back long before that most recent influx,” she said.
On Myanmar, the High Commissioner said, Australia has acted and continues to act in response to the atrocities committed in Myanmar.
“We’re deeply disturbed by the UN Fact-finding Mission’s conclusion that war crimes, and likely, genocide, have occurred in Rakhine State. We’ve strongly condemned the atrocities committed in Myanmar,” she said.
Asked about specific areas of collaboration in the era of blue economy, the Australian High Commissioner said, initially they are looking at what is the scope and what are the possibilities.
The High Commissioner said, Australia’s guiding principles for its foreign policy is that they support an open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific in which the sovereign rights of all states are respected.
These principles, she said, underpin their engagement with all countries in the Indo-Pacific, including Bangladesh.
The High Commissioner said the Indo-Pacific is not just a geographic description — it reflects strategic and economic reality, embracing India, Bangladesh and the nations of the Asia Pacific region, and it is where Australia’s interests lie.
She said, Australia and Bangladesh have very close people-to-people links, through many years of migration, sporting links and education.
Almost 50,000 people of Bangladeshi origin are settled in Australia, and there are around 7,000 students in Australia, she said adding that she wants to see the number of students grow.
The High Commissioner said the trade between Bangladesh and Australia has grown by 550 percent over the last decade, with almost $2.5 billion in two-way trade in 2018-19, including in goods and services.
Significant trade in the readymade garment industry and agricultural commodities is the cornerstone of the two-way trade relationship, she said mentioning that Bangladesh benefits from duty- and quota-free access to the Australian market.
