Yunus seeks UN assistance to protect Bangladesh from disinformation聽
Visiting United Nations secretary general Antonio Guterres said on Saturday that the return of Rohingyas to their homeland Myanmar in the present situation was extremely difficult.
鈥極bviously, in these circumstances, an immediate and dignified return will be extremely difficult,鈥� he told a joint press conference in Dhaka.
鈥業f circumstances allow to have a humanitarian channel from Bangladesh that is obviously a matter. That would require authorisation and cooperation,鈥� he said.聽
Responding to a question, foreign adviser Md Touhid Hossain, however, said that the issue of giving a 鈥榟umanitarian corridor鈥� from Bangladesh to the bordering Rakhine state of Myanmar was not discussed with the UN secretary general during the visit.
He said that Bangladesh also believed that the solution to the protracted Rohingya crisis must be found in Myanmar, and its primary solution was the return of Rohingyas to their homeland in a safe, dignified, and voluntary manner as over 1.2 lakh displaced people from the Rakhine state of Myanmar were sheltered in Cox鈥檚 Bazar camps.
There was heavy fighting between the Myanmar Army and the Arakan Army, said Guterres, who arrived in Dhaka on Thursday on a four-day visit to Bangladesh,聽 responding to the issue of Rohingya repatriation from Bangladesh.
He said that it was absolutely essential to mobilise the whole international community and all the neighbours of Myanmar to put pressure to make things move to find a solution starting by ceasing the violence and creating a mechanism for dialogue leading to a true democratic solution in Myanmar.
The UN secretary general said that they needed to intensify humanitarian aid inside Myanmar to create a condition for that return to be successful.
鈥榃e know that the situation there continues to deteriorate. The escalation of violence and human rights violations across Myanmar, including in Rakhine State, are causing civilian casualties and driving displacement internally and across borders,鈥� said the UN secretary general, who concludes his visit today.
Without giving further details, he said that dialogue must be held with the Arakan Army.
He said that the UN was fully committed to working with Bangladesh and others in finding a lasting solution to the Rohingya crisis that would enable their safe, voluntary, dignified, and sustainable return to Myanmar.
At an iftar in honour of Antonio Guterres at a city hotel, chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus called upon the UN chief to help protect Bangladesh from disinformation and support his government鈥檚 reform initiative for building a new Bangladesh.
At the press conference, the UN chief, however, said that he wanted to assure the people that 鈥榯he UN stands ready to assist in fostering peace, national dialogue, trust and healing鈥� as the country was experiencing important reforms and transitions.
鈥楾his is a pivotal moment for Bangladesh, and the international community must play its part in supporting your efforts toward a just, inclusive, and prosperous future,鈥� he said.
Asked whether the government sought UN support in bringing back deposed Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina to ensure justice for her crimes committed against humanity during the July protests since India was not responding to Bangladesh鈥檚 request for her extradition, the foreign adviser said that the issue was not discussed with the UN secretary general.
The UN secretary general held a roundtable with political leaders and members of the National Consensus Commission and another discussion with civil society members at a Dhaka hotel earlier in the day.
While addressing the press during his visit to Cox鈥檚 Bazar camp, the UN chief on Friday urged the international community to step up support for Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh and warned of a 鈥榙eep humanitarian crisis鈥� following cuts in assistance for the forcibly displaced Myanmar nationals.
He last visited Cox鈥檚 Bazar Rohingya camp in 2018 just a year after the massive outflow of Rohingyas following the massacres in Rakhine state.
The UN has already decided to halve its per-person monthly allocations for food for Rohingyas in Bangladesh from $12.50 to $6, effective from April 1, which is likely to intensify the food crisis in the Rohingya camps.
The Bangladesh government has continued efforts to send back Rohingyas to their homeland Myanmar without any progress, with the number of displaced people sheltered in Bangladesh camps increasing every year since the 2017 influx of Rohingyas amid the military crackdown on them in the Rakhine state.
The number of Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh camps is increasing with an average new births of 30,000 every year, according to the government data.
