World must find way to end crisis of Rohingya repatriation: PM
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has urged the international community to take measures to repatriate the forcibly displaced Rohingya to their homeland Myanmar and ensure their dignified life there.
She said the whole world should find a solution to this crisis, so that the citizens of Myanmar can go back to their motherland and live a good life.
She said these things when a parliamentary delegation of the British Cross Party led by Virendra Sharma went to meet the Prime Minister at Ganabhaban on Sunday (January 28).
After the meeting, Prime Minister's speechwriter M Nazrul Islam briefed the journalists.
Sheikh Hasina said that they had given shelter to the Rohingyas in 2017 after their mass exodus in the face of inhuman torture. Myanmar has agreed to take back its citizens, but six years have passed, so far no action has been taken to this end, she said.
The Rohingyas are now becoming a huge burden for a small country like Bangladesh, she said, citing a drop in global financial aid since the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war.
In 2017, Bangladesh sheltered more than 10 lakh Rohingya who fled their homes to escape brutal repression in Myanmar.
Sheikh Hasina said there were about 40,000 pregnant women among the forcibly displaced Myanmar citizens. She said that the government and people of Bangladesh initially gave them food and shelter.
Despite the passage of six years, Myanmar has done nothing practical to take back its citizens. As a result, Myanmar citizens are living subhuman lives in camps in Bangladesh.
She said, Rohingyas are now indulging in criminal activities. Due to which events such as blood-sheds are sometimes happening.
The Prime Minister said that we have arranged better accommodation for the Rohingyas in Bhasanchar Island. She said some Rohingyas have already been resettled in Bhasanchar. We have provided food, medical facilities, education and employment for them. They are very good there.
The delegation will visit the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar on January 30 to reaffirm Bangladesh's generous hospitality to the persecuted Rohingya and its support to resolve the Rohingya crisis.
The delegation that arrived in Dhaka on January 27 is scheduled to leave for London on January 31.
At this time, Prime Minister's Private Industry and Investment Advisor Salman Fazlur Rahman, Ambassador-at-Large M Ziauddin, Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Secretary M Salahuddin were present.