‘UN special envoy sees no immediate solution to Rohingya crisis’

The United Nations Secretary General’s Special Envoy on Myanmar Christine Schraner Burgener sees no immediate solution to the Rohingya crisis engulfing Bangladesh in the worst possible manner, Bangladesh’s Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) Mohammad Abul Kalam has said.

In an exclusive interview with Dhaka Tribune, Kalam, the top government man on the ground to deal with the Rohingya crisis, shed light on different aspects of the dire situation that has evolved from the influx of hundreds of thousands of Rohingyas due to unprecedented atrocities by the Myanmar security forces as well as their local collaborators in Rakhine State.

“I just met the special envoy. She also thinks that there is no immediate solution, although her office is trying,” he told Dhaka Tribune at his office in Cox’s Bazar on Monday.

“The political leadership (of Myanmar) wants a solution, but the military leadership does seem to want it,” he said, quoting Burgener.

“I told her that if the Myanmar government provides the Rohingyas with citizenship, all the problems will be solved,” he added.

This is the special envoy’s third visit to Bangladesh since she was appointed by the UN chief on April 26, 2018.

‘Bangladesh ready to begin repatriation any time, but Myanmar is unwilling’

Bangladesh is ready to begin the repatriation of the Rohingyas any time, but it is not possible due to the unwillingness of Myanmar to create a conducive environment for the return of its citizens to their homes in Rakhine, said Kalam, also an additional secretary of the Ministry of Disaster Management.

“Bangladesh is ready to begin Rohingya repatriation any time, but Myanmar is unwilling,” he said.

“We have an agreement with Myanmar under which it is obligated to take its people back home after creating a favourable condition. But Myanmar is not doing what it should do,” he added.

When asked about any further development after the failed repatriation attempt on November 15, 2018, Kalam said: “Nothing worth mentioning.”

“The November 15 repatriation attempt got the rest of the world to realize once again that it is Myanmar who is not living up to its pledge to take its people back,” he said when asked about the need to attempt beginning the repatriation.

When asked to mention a possible time-frame for the start of repatriation, which was supposed to begin by January 23, 2018, the RRRC said: “I really don’t know. I wish I knew. It is very tough to make any prediction when you deal with a neighbour like Myanmar.”

“I am optimistic as well as realistic. [But] as of now, I cannot say that the problem will be solved immediately,” he said.

When asked if he was happy with the role of the international community, including the UN, the senior government official said: “They could have done more.”

“Despite constraints of resources, Bangladesh has so far handled the crisis quite efficiently. But with time, the situation is all but certain to get worse. How long can you confine about a million people to several thousand acres of land? In the future, many issues including violence and radicalization may come up, and in a globalized world everything gets globalized,” he said.

“The international community should play a more proactive role to compel Myanmar to take its people back — in the interest of Bangladesh and Myanmar, the region and the rest of the world,” he added.

Responding to a question, Kalam said that till now, the law and order situation in the Rohingya settlements is under control, but it would get tougher for law enforcers to maintain peace if the crisis lingers.

About the increasing impatience of the local host community, he said: “We are aware of the significant inconvenience caused to them due to the presence of the Rohingyas. And we are trying our best to deal with it.”