Return of Rohingyas

The Bangladesh government informed the UN Security Council this week that it will no longer be able to take-in any more refugees from Myanmar. A senior official of the Bangladesh government told the UN Security Council that the refugee crisis which has led to the influx of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar sheltering in his country had gone from bad to worse.  It is believed that an estimated 740,000 Muslim Rohingya are living in camps in Bangladesh after they were driven out of Myanmar’s northern Rakhine state during a military campaign in 2017 which the United Nations has described as ethnic cleansing. Under a UN administered plan, the refugees were supposed to be repatriated to Myanmar but only if it was safe for them to return. This has not happened so far. The Myanmar government continues to adopt delaying tactics in a bid to keep the Rohingyas out of their country. As things stand, while the influx into Bangladesh continues, the Myanmar government has asked for more time to make proper arrangements for the return of those who fled under persecution.

It is believed that politics is playing a part in this situation. Myanmar’s de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been criticised for failing to speak out to defend the Rohingya, is seeking to consolidate her position ahead of the general elections in 2020. Suu Kyi has consistently ignored the plight of the Rohingyas as she does not want to annoy her vote bank. It would also mean challenging the Myanmar military, which dominates politics in this Buddhist-majority nation, holding a quarter of seats in parliament and controlling three ministries, making its grip on power firm despite political reforms which began in 2011. It is only international pressure that will force the Myanmar government to take back the Rohingyas. More needs to be done on this account.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, March 4^th, 2019.

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