Government officials, researchers, humanitarian actors and Rohingya representatives discussed the conditions required for a voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return.
by Hafizur Rahman
Cox’s Bazar, 21 August 2026: Government officials, researchers, humanitarian workers and Rohingya representatives gathered in Cox’s Bazar on August 20 for a roundtable discussion on the future of Rohingya repatriation.
The discussion, titled “How Far is the Future of Rohingya Repatriation?”, focused on the continuing obstacles to return and the conditions needed for Rohingya refugees to return voluntarily, safely and with dignity to their homeland.
Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner, attended the event, while Professor Rahman Nasir Uddin of the University of Chittagong delivered the keynote address.
Rahman Nasir Uddin, an anthropologist who has researched Rohingya displacement and refugee issues for more than two decades, discussed the broader challenges surrounding repatriation.
Representatives of the United Council of Rohingya, or UCR, also participated in the roundtable, providing Rohingya perspectives on the future of repatriation.
The discussion included concerns over the conditions that would need to be established before a sustainable return could take place, including security, rights and the participation of Rohingya themselves in decisions affecting their future.
For Rohingya refugees, repatriation remains a central demand, but community representatives have repeatedly argued that return cannot be reduced to physically crossing the border into Myanmar. They have called for recognition of Rohingya identity, citizenship rights, security, freedom of movement and international guarantees as essential conditions for return.
Those concerns have gained renewed attention following a statement issued on August 15 by Myanmar’s junta-controlled Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the verification and possible repatriation of Rohingya refugees.
Rohingya representatives have rejected parts of that statement, particularly the junta’s refusal to recognize Rohingya identity and its conditions surrounding return.
The August 20 roundtable was organized by Bay Insight and Embolden Bangladesh as a forum for discussion among policymakers, researchers, humanitarian actors and Rohingya representatives on possible pathways toward repatriation.
