The government will continue dialogue with Myanmar for an early repatriation of Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam said on Monday.
He said this when the visiting United States Senior Advisor for Myanmar Judith Beth Cefkin called on him at the Foreign Ministry.
Officially there are about 30,000 Rohingya refugees awaiting repatriation to Myanmar, while the number is close to half a million according to unofficial estimates.
Alam said Bangladesh is interested in contributing to the socio-economic development of Rakhaine State of Myanmar to create an enabling environment and livelihoods for the voluntary return of the Rohingya refugees – both documented and undocumented.
He said, “The newly elected government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will continue with its pro-active foreign policy towards strengthening every facet of its relations with the immediate neighbor Myanmar for reaching higher trajectories of bilateral as well as regional trade, economy and connectivity.”
He also thanked the US government for its continued engagement with Bangladesh on the question of Bangladesh-Myanmar relations, and for its humanitarian support for the long pending caseload ‘Myanmarese Muslim’ refugees in Bangladesh.
The US official thanked Bangladesh for its continued support to the refugees fleeing violence in Myanmar.
“The US thanks Bangladesh for its generous refuge provided to the Myanmar refugees and other undocumented Muslim population from Myanmar over the decades, and appreciates Bangladesh socio-economic constraints and challenges in dealing with this protracted humanitarian situation,” she said.
Cefkin reaffirmed that her government will continue to attach high priority to addressing the situation of the Myanmar Muslims in Rakhaine State and elsewhere.
The US government will continue to urge the Myanmar authorities to support inter-faith dialogue to promote reconciliation between the Buddhist and Muslim communities in the Rakhine State, she added.
