UNB, Dhaka :
Bangladesh on Saturday urged the UNHCR to ask the government of Myanmar to take ‘meaningful measures’ and ensure the return of all Myanmar nationals staying in Bangladesh to their homeland in Rakhine State.
Bangladesh also expressed concern over the ‘unilateral halt’ in the repatriation process by the government of Myanmar since 2005 even though 10,820 refugees had been cleared by both countries through a verification process.
Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali conveyed Bangladesh’s position to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi during his meeting.
Grandi arrived here on a three-day visit on Saturday afternoon to discuss the Rohingya issue with the government and see their situation in Cox’s Bazar camps.
During the meeting, the Foreign Minister apprised the UN Refugee Agency Chief of the measures taken by the government of Bangladesh to provide humanitarian assistance to Myanmar refugees and the undocumented Myanmar nationals. He also informed the High Commissioner that as many as 236,599 Rakhine Muslims had been repatriated till 2005. The Foreign Minister thanked the UNHCR
for providing valuable support throughout the process of repatriation of this huge number of Myanmar nationals.
He stressed that the constant presence of huge Myanmar nationals in Cox’s Bazar has created a number of adverse effects on the overall socio-economic, political, demographic, environmental, and humanitarian and security situation of Cox’s Bazar and adjacent districts.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees commended the government of Bangladesh for being benevolent to host a large number of Myanmar nationals for long time as well as for providing the humanitarian assistances to them. He underscored that the root cause of the instability in Rakhine State lies in the expropriation of citizenship of the Rakhine Muslims.
The Foreign Minister thanked the High Commissioner for undertaking the visit to Bangladesh and assured him of all sorts of cooperation during his mission to Cox’s Bazar.
The UNHCR chief will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Political Affairs Adviser HT Imam on Sunday, a senior foreign ministry official told UNB.
Grandi who visited Myanmar and Thailand will visit Cox’s Bazar on July 10 and leave Dhaka on July 11 completing his first visit to Bangladesh.
At least 74,000 Rohingya Muslims, out of 92,000, who fled indiscriminate killings, rape, arson and violence by Myanmar security forces in Rakhine State, entered Bangladesh since October 9, 2016.
The number of refugees from Myanmar rose to 490,300 by the end of last year, up from 451,800 in the previous year, with Bangladesh hosting the largest number of 276,200, according to the report published by UNHCR ahead of the World Refugee Day.
Out of the 276,200 refugees, 243,000 are in a refugee-like situation. The Bangladesh government, however, estimates the population to be between 300,000 and 500,000.
After concluding his visit to Myanmar, Grandi called for inclusive and sustainable solutions to protracted displacement and statelessness.
Bangladesh on Saturday urged the UNHCR to ask the government of Myanmar to take ‘meaningful measures’ and ensure the return of all Myanmar nationals staying in Bangladesh to their homeland in Rakhine State.
Bangladesh also expressed concern over the ‘unilateral halt’ in the repatriation process by the government of Myanmar since 2005 even though 10,820 refugees had been cleared by both countries through a verification process.
Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali conveyed Bangladesh’s position to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi during his meeting.
Grandi arrived here on a three-day visit on Saturday afternoon to discuss the Rohingya issue with the government and see their situation in Cox’s Bazar camps.
During the meeting, the Foreign Minister apprised the UN Refugee Agency Chief of the measures taken by the government of Bangladesh to provide humanitarian assistance to Myanmar refugees and the undocumented Myanmar nationals. He also informed the High Commissioner that as many as 236,599 Rakhine Muslims had been repatriated till 2005. The Foreign Minister thanked the UNHCR
for providing valuable support throughout the process of repatriation of this huge number of Myanmar nationals.
He stressed that the constant presence of huge Myanmar nationals in Cox’s Bazar has created a number of adverse effects on the overall socio-economic, political, demographic, environmental, and humanitarian and security situation of Cox’s Bazar and adjacent districts.
The UN High Commissioner for Refugees commended the government of Bangladesh for being benevolent to host a large number of Myanmar nationals for long time as well as for providing the humanitarian assistances to them. He underscored that the root cause of the instability in Rakhine State lies in the expropriation of citizenship of the Rakhine Muslims.
The Foreign Minister thanked the High Commissioner for undertaking the visit to Bangladesh and assured him of all sorts of cooperation during his mission to Cox’s Bazar.
The UNHCR chief will meet Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Political Affairs Adviser HT Imam on Sunday, a senior foreign ministry official told UNB.
Grandi who visited Myanmar and Thailand will visit Cox’s Bazar on July 10 and leave Dhaka on July 11 completing his first visit to Bangladesh.
At least 74,000 Rohingya Muslims, out of 92,000, who fled indiscriminate killings, rape, arson and violence by Myanmar security forces in Rakhine State, entered Bangladesh since October 9, 2016.
The number of refugees from Myanmar rose to 490,300 by the end of last year, up from 451,800 in the previous year, with Bangladesh hosting the largest number of 276,200, according to the report published by UNHCR ahead of the World Refugee Day.
Out of the 276,200 refugees, 243,000 are in a refugee-like situation. The Bangladesh government, however, estimates the population to be between 300,000 and 500,000.
After concluding his visit to Myanmar, Grandi called for inclusive and sustainable solutions to protracted displacement and statelessness.
