Rohingya: Far from home

 

Without cooperation, any attempts at the repatriation would simply not work

File Photo: Over one million Rohingyas live in Bangladesh now since fleeing a military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state in 2017 Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune

By Tribune Editorial

January 5, 2022 11:36 AM

 

The Rohingya exodus has been one of the longest-lasting humanitarian crises in recent history, with Bangladesh currently hosting over a million of the ethnic refugees fleeing persecution at the hands of their homeland’s brutal military junta. 

While the sheer goodwill of our government and the people of Bangladesh in providing shelter to the Rohingya has not gone unnoticed in the global stage, with our nation allocating every possible resource to ensure the safety and security of the refugees, the situation is untenable unless immediate steps are taken towards their repatriation.

To that end, we hope the Bangladeshi government’s recent call for the safe, voluntary, and early repatriation of the Rohingya refugees is heeded by its Myanmar counterpart as this is the natural next step to strengthening ties between our two countries.

Diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and Myanmar have always been relatively stable, and, instead of viewing the Rohingya crisis as an impediment, we need to treat it as an avenue for further improving on them.

Of course, this all hinges on the safe and voluntary return of the Rohingya back to their homeland. Without ensuring their safety during and after repatriation, any attempts to improve bilateral relations simply falter.

But Myanmar has to express its own willingness first, to that end. Without cooperation, any attempts at the repatriation of the Rohingya would simply not work.

With Myanmar recently celebrating its day of independence, we hope their government finally starts to see the opportunity in solidifying its plans for the repatriation of the Rohingya. They have suffered long enough.