Interim govt’s efforts bringing Rohingya issue back in global negotiations: Alam

Chief Adviser’s Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam on Wednesday said the Rohingya crisis has returned to global discussions due to various efforts taken by the Bangladesh interim government.

“The Rohingya crisis, especially the 1.3 million Rohingyas who took shelter in Bangladesh, is a humanitarian crisis. This crisis could create a major regional crisis and could have become a security threat,” he told reporters on the sidelines of the Earthna Summit in Doha, Qatar.

The press secretary said the issue was about to be lost from global discussions, but the interim government, led by Prof Yunus, has brought the Rohingya issue back into global negotiations.

After assuming office, he said, the Bangladesh chief adviser placed the Rohingya issue at the United Nations General Assembly last year, reports BSS.

Responding to the request of Prof Yunus, the UN adopted a resolution, he said, adding that a separate conference on the Rohingya issue would be held at the UN headquarters in New York next September.

Representatives of about 170 countries are expected to participate in the meeting, Alam said.

He said in continuation of this, the Chief Adviser raised the Rohingya issue at the Earthna Summit in Doha on Wednesday.

The press secretary said during the recent BIMSTEC summit in Bangkok, Thailand, the High Representative on Rohingya Affairs, Dr Khalilur Rahman, held a fruitful meeting with the Myanmar authorities, where Myanmar agreed to repatriate 180,000 Rohingya refugees.

In the global context, Alam said, constant talks on the Rohingya crisis, initiated by the chief adviser, will help repatriate Rohingyas from Bangladesh to Myanmar.