Rohingya repatriation: Dhaka expects Myanmar to initiate verification process
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Dhaka, Jan 20: Bangladesh's Secretary to Ministry of Foreign Affairs Masud Bin Momen said after a trilateral meeting with Myanmar and China that Bangladesh is expecting to start Rohingya repatriation in the second quarter of this year. Therefore, Bangladesh has urged Myanmar to expedite the verification of Rohingya refugees to facilitate their repatriation to the Rakhine province. According to the ministry, Dhaka had proposed starting the repatriation in the first quarter. However, Myanmar had acknowledged that logistical arrangement will take some more time, which is why Dhaka has agreed to execute the repatriation it in the second quarter. Myanmar too has agreed to it.
Reports provide that Bangladesh has handed over a list of 8 lakh 40 thousand Rohingya refugees to Myanmar out of which only 42 thousand have been verified with biometric data of the Rohingyas. Regarding the on ground repatriation process, the Foreign Secretary of Bangladesh Masud Bin Momen has said that "We are preferring village-based repatriation as they will feel safe and secure with mostly relatives and neighbours in a village or area." Momen added that both Myanmar and China have responded positively to Dhaka’s proposal of allowing the presence of international community including UN, India, Japan and ASEAN in the process of Rohingya repatriation to Rakhine province.
Bangladesh had proposed to begin the repatriation process on a village by village basis or cluster of villages basis mainly aiming for the Rohingyas to feel confident to return back home. However, Myanmar hasn't agreed to Bangladesh's proposal andhas stated that it prefers to start the repatriation only with verified Rohingyas. Momen has confirmed that Bangladesh favors voluntary return of Rohingyas, which is possible only if Myanmar ensures a safe and secure environment for the return of the refugees to their home.
At the meeting, Myanmar sought assurances that the Rohingyas will go by Myanmar's laws and regulation. They also mentioned about the presence of ARSA. The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), also known by its former name Harakah al-Yaqin, is a Rohingya insurgent group active in northern Rakhine State of Myanmar. The primary objective of the organization is to liberate Rohingyas from dehumanizing oppression perpetrated by all successive Burmese regimes. The Myanmar counterpart also mentioned at the meeting regarding ARSA that "We don't allow any insurgents on our soil. There are some criminal groups, but they don't have any religious or political identities" and indicated their vigilance about the militant aspect as well involved in repatriation process.
The first tripartite meeting among the Foreign Ministers of Bangladesh, China and Myanmar, in order to deal with the Rohingya issue, was held in New York in 2019. The last official level tripartite meeting was held in Jan 2020. Foreign Secretary Momen said that the next working group meeting between Bangladesh, Myanmar and China will take place in Feb, followed by a tripartite meeting at the Foreign Secretary level in the same month. The Ministerial tripartite meeting will be held in March or April to resolve the remaining issues.