Rohingya issue: Bilateral talks with Myanmar won't lead to any result, says foreign adviser

Highlights:

• Holding bilateral talks with Myanmar on Rohingya issue won't bring results
• Rohingyas will not return until their safety is ensured
• Any change in Rakhine state has to be acknowledged internationally
• Prospect of Rohingya repatriation grim due to civil war

Holding bilateral talks with Myanmar on the Rohingya issue will not bring any result, Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain said today (4 May).

"The Rohingya people will not return to Myanmar until their rights and security are ensured. Rohingyas need to return to their own country, but that should not happen forcibly. They will go back after their safety is ensured," he said, according to media reports.

Touhid made the remarks at a seminar held at the Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP) in the capital this morning.

"We are not having any unreasonable expectations. Will we send them back to the same place where they had experienced torture?" he questioned.

Stating that an internationally recognised real change has to be brought in Myanmar, the foreign adviser added, "It is a tough and long-term process. This cannot be achieved without unity."

He further said there must be a roadmap regarding the return of the Rohingyas.

"The prospect of Rohingya repatriation remains grim due to Myanmar's ongoing civil war, and the continued absence of security guarantees for the displaced population," Touhid added.

At the seminar, the adviser also talked about Myanmar's fractured power structure, identifying the military junta, the Arakan Army, and the National Unity Government (NUG) as key stakeholders.

He stressed that any lasting resolution will come through the involvement of all three, particularly the Arakan Army, which now controls large parts of Rakhine.