THE much anticipated Bangladesh and Myanmar foreign secretary-level talks will be held today for establishing a joint working group to supervise all aspects of the return of Rohingyas to Rakhine State. However, the meeting is happening a week after the promised deadline as laid out in the ‘bi-lateral arrangement’ between the government of Bangladesh and Myanmar. Amid global pressure and protest against the ongoing persecution of Rohingya community in the Rakhaine state of Myanmar, an ‘Arrangement on Return of Displaced Persons from Rakhine State’ was signed on November 23 between the two countries. According to the Arrangement, a foreign secretary level meeting was expected to be held within three weeks of the signing to lay out the guideline, setting out the jurisdiction and mandate of the joint working group and the ways it would function. While the signing of the arrangement is a step towards systematic repatriation of Rohingya community who fled genocidal pogrom of Myanmar military, the fact that it has failed to form the joint working group in a timely manner raises concern about the diplomatic sincerity of parties involved.
Since August 25, over 6,55,000 Rohingyas, mostly women, children and aged people, entered Bangladesh fleeing unbridled murder, arson and rape during ‘security operations’ by Myanmar military in Rakhine, what the United Nations denounced as ethnic cleansing. Several international authorities denounced the operations as genocide. The Arrangement came in the context of mounting global criticism and pressure on Mynamar government for approving indiscriminate military violence. However, many international bodies termed the ‘arrangement’ as false diplomatic gesture on part of Myanmar, because without ensuring safe environment for return, talk of repatriation is futile. They even termed it an attempt on Myanmar’s part to deflect international pressure. Civil society bodies in Bangladesh too have suggested the same considering the failed history of the repatriation agreements with Myanmar. The Rohingya community from the Rakhaine state has been crossing the border to escape persecution in their homeland since 1980s and even earlier. In past decades, about 400,000 Rohingyas have entered Bangladesh, yet the arrangement aims to cover only the Rohingyas who have crossed the border into Bangladesh after October 2016. A diplomat in Bangladesh is reported to have said that Myanmar was trying to narrow the scope for the return of the Rohingyas. Therefore, it is of utmost importance that the government of Bangladesh sits in this foreign secretary level meeting historically informed of the past failures and false diplomatic gesture of Myanmar and negotiate the terms of the joint working group accordingly.
Be that as it may, bilateral engagement with Myanmar is important, for without some bilateral diplomatic instrument, Bangladesh would not be able to send a million Rohingyas to their homeland. Therefore, it is expected that Bangladesh engages in this process with diplomatic foresight and historically of Mynamar past betrayal in this regard. Meanwhile, international community must continue to mount pressure on Myanmar for immediate end of the military persecution of Rohingyas.
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