FM calls for coordinated efforts to resolve Rohingya crisis

Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud has called for addressing the ongoing conflict in Rakhine state and taking coordinated international action to repatriate Rohingyas to Myanmar from Bangladesh.

The foreign minister, who is now in the United States on a three-day official visit, made the appeal during four separate meetings at the UN Headquarters in New York on Friday (31 May), a foreign ministry's press release said today (1 June).

During the meeting with United Nations General Assembly President Dennis Francis, Hasan Mahmud said when about one million people fled to Bangladesh to escape violence in Myanmar, the people of Cox's Bazar and Chattogram received them with compassion.

"But gradually the Rohingyas are getting employment in different places out of the camps and the camps have become a haven for various crimes including human trafficking, drug smuggling, and terrorism. As a result, the locals are having a very difficult time," he added.

During his meeting with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi, Hasan said apart from the Rohingyas, since last February, about 750 members of the Myanmar Border Guard Police and Army have fled to Bangladesh at various times.

Most of them have been sent back, and the rest are in the process of being returned.

"Not only that, the shells of the conflicting groups in Myanmar also caused casualties in Bangladesh. It is absolutely necessary to prevent the recurrence of these," Hasan said.

In a meeting with the UN secretary general's special envoy for Myanmar, the former foreign minister of Australia, Julie Bishop, Hasan Mahmud said that the ongoing conflict situation in Myanmar is not a new phenomenon and it should not be given an opportunity to be used as an excuse against Rohingya repatriation.

Earlier, Hasan addressed a session titled "Crisis, Conflicts, and Inter-Agency Collaboration: Nexus Approach" at the UN Headquarters.

The session was attended by heads of six UN agencies, including UNDP, UNFPA, UNOPS, UN Women, and deputy chiefs of UNICEF and WFP.

The foreign minister highlighted the benefits of a coordinated approach by UN agencies in conflict-affected regions.

He discussed the situations in Rakhine and Cox's Bazar, urging all UN agencies, funds, and programs to work together to resolve the refugee crisis and improve conditions for the Rohingya community.

The foreign minister was accompanied by Bangladesh's Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Muhammad A Muhith, and other ministry and mission officials.