DHAKA: Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed on early repatriation of more than 5,000 Rohingya refugees who have been living along the countries’ borders since being driven from their homes last year.
The agreement came during a two-day visit to Myanmar by Bangladesh Foreign Minister Mahmood Ali, who held talks with his Myanmar counterpart Kyaw Tint Swe in the capital Naypyitaw.
Ali ended his visit on Saturday with a journey to Mongduw township in Rakhine along with his 15-member delegation. He was accompanied by Win Myat Aye, Myanmar’s social welfare, relief and resettlement minister.
Rohingya refugees fled to Bangladesh in August last year after a military crackdown in Rakhine.
Myanmar state counsellor’s office announced the agreement on its official Facebook page.
The ministers’ meeting agreed to establish a hotline phone link between the foreign ministers to allow further discussion on the repatriation of refugees.
“Both ministers reiterated their commitment to closer consultation in resolving the issue of displaced persons from Rakhine state in the spirit of good neighborliness,” the Myanmar authority said.
No specific date has been set for the return of the refugees.
Both countries agreed to distribute verification forms to refugees at Cox’s Bazar. Signatures, fingerprints and photo IDs will be included to indicate voluntary return and help with Myanmar’s “verification process,” the authority said.
“Bangladesh has agreed to revise the language used in the ID cards being issued to those who are currently residing in Cox’s Bazar,” it said.
No further details are known in this regard and Bangladesh media is waiting for the return of its foreign minister to get the update of the changes in the ID cards issued to the Rohingya refugees.
According to the meeting, “any humanitarian aid given to those inhabiting the area on Myanmar’s territory should be given by the aid agencies from Myanmar,” the state counsellor’s office said.
Thein Swe, Myanmar minister for labor, immigration and population, also held a meeting with Win Myat Aye.
Myanmar signed an agreement with Bangladesh on Nov. 23 last year to repatriate the displaced Rohingyas of northern Rakhine. The agreement followed international criticism over the persecution of the Rohigyas, which the UN described as “a textbook example of ethnic cleansing.”
The Myanmar government has given two UN agencies, UNHCR and UNDP, access to 23 villages in Rakhine to conduct the preliminary assessment, according to the Myanmar Times, which quoted the country’s foreign ministry.
On June 6, Myanmar signed an MoU with UNHCR and UNDP regarding preparation for the repatriation of the Rohingyas.
Rohingyas’ hopes of return rise after ministers’ summit
Rohingyas’ hopes of return rise after ministers’ summit
- High-level ministerial meeting at Nay Pyi Taw agreed to establish hotlines between the foreign ministers of both countries to help talks on repatriation
- Myanmar government has issued order giving UN staff access to 23 villages in northern Rokhine to assess the need for rehabilitation
Protesters try to attack driver after truck speeds through anti-Iran demonstration in Los Angeles
LOS ANGELES: Los Angeles police responded Sunday after somebody drove a U-Haul box truck down a street crowded with marchers demonstrating in support of the Iranian people, causing protesters to scramble out of the way and then run after the speeding vehicle to try to attack the driver.
The U-Haul truck, with its side mirrors shattered, was stopped several blocks away and surrounded by police cars. ABC7 news helicopter footage showed officers keeping the crowd at bay as demonstrators swarmed the truck, throwing punches at the driver and thrusting flagpoles through the driver’s side window.
The police department confirmed its officers were on the scene but didn’t immediately say if anyone was arrested.
Two people were evaluated by paramedics and both declined treatment, the Los Angeles Fire Department said.
Several hundred people had gathered Sunday afternoon in the Westwood neighborhood to protest against the Iranian theocracy. The LA police department eventually issued a dispersal order, and by 5 p.m. only about a hundred protesters were still at the scene, ABC7 reported.
Activists say a crackdown on nationwide protests in Iran has killed more than 530 people. Protesters flooded the streets in Iran’s capital of Tehran and its second-largest city again Sunday.
