The Daily Star, Bangladesh
Vol। 5 Num 1091, Tue। June 26, 2007
Vol। 5 Num 1091, Tue। June 26, 2007
10,000 Rohingyas to be shifted from Naaf riverbank
Porimol Palma
The government has finally decided to move some 10,000 illegal Rohingyas living on the bank of Naaf river in Cox's Bazar to some safer place on humanitarian grounds।
The decision was taken at an inter-ministerial meeting at the home ministry on May 30 where officials from foreign ministry, food and disaster management ministry, Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), intelligence agencies and Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) were present, a ministry official concerned said।
The home ministry has already sent a letter to the Refugee, Relief and Repatriation Commissioner and district administration in Cox's Bazar to find out a safe and high ground for the illegal Rohingyas to live। They have been living on the riverbank since 2004.
The Cox's Bazar district administration is looking for such a place for their shelter at Domdomia Kerontoli in Teknaf, but is yet to find the right one, he noted।
The number of the Rohingyas living in the makeshift camps in poor conditions was nearly 10,000, the official told The Daily Star yesterday।
The government took the decision following repeated requests from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and European Commission (EC), as they have been living in the low-lying areas that go under water during rain or high tide forcing the residents to take shelter on the streets।
"The situation has to be dealt with on a very urgent basis before there is any humanitarian disaster। The health of the children and women is very crucial at this camp. They have to be moved urgently to safer places," said Esko Kentrschynskyj, the then ambassador and head of the delegation of the EC to Bangladesh on his visit to the makeshift camp in July in 2005.
During the same visit, UNHCR's former representative to Bangladesh Christopher Beng Cha Lee had said, "The situation is really very bad। The area might be washed away any time and a large number of people will die."
The ministry official said that most of the illegal Rohingyas in the shanties do fishing, collect wood illegally from the nearby forests and are involved in petty crimes, smuggling and snatching or so for a living।
To escape repression by the Myanmar military junta, nearly 2।5 lakh Rohingyas had entered Bangladesh since 1991. About 2,36,490 were repatriated, according to official statistics.
Local authorities, however, claim that many of the Rohingyas who were sent home entered the Bangladesh territory again and had integrated with the local people। These 10,000 Rohingyas are a group identified as 'illegal Rohingyas,' but are not registered as refugees. The Myanmar government also does not want to take them back, the official noted.
Asked if these Rohingyas will be granted refugee status in future, the official said that no decision has been taken in this regard.
