After attaining a positive impression from 26th ASEAN Regional Forum, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen hoping for a swift repatriation of Rohingyas which will probably begin this month preliminary on a small number.
“I’m very positive. I’m expecting that we can start this month,” he said while talking to a small group of reporters at his Dhaka office.
Referring to his meeting with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, he said both India and China built houses in Myanmar where returnees (Rohingyas) can stay. They felt that it is good time to resume the repatriation of Rohingyas.
Apparently, Bangladesh and Myanmar signed a repatriation deal on 23rd November 2017 but not a single person has so far been repatriated due to precarious and unsustainable prevailing condition there.
On January 16, 2018 Bangladesh and Myanmar signed a document on “Physical Arrangement”, which was supposed to facilitate the return of Rohingyas to their homeland. The “Physical Arrangement” stipulates that the repatriation will be completed preferably within two years from the start of repatriation.
The first batch of Rohingyas was scheduled to return on 15th November last year but it was halted amid unwillingness of Rohingyas to return for lack of a congenial environment in Rakhine and an ongoing war between Tatmadaw and Arakan Army.
