UNHCR: Rohingya crisis needs lasting solutions
Hossen Sohel for DOT
[2] UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is calling for renewed support and solutions for displaced and stateless Rohingya communities both within and outside of Myanmar yesterday, reported The Daily Sun, The Business Post.
[3] Three years on from the latest exodus of Rohingya population, who fled Myanmar and sought sanctuary in Bangladesh from August 2017 onwards, challenges persist and continue to evolve, said the UN agency.
[4] “The COVID-19 pandemic has added additional complexities. The international community must not only maintain support for refugees and their host communities, but also adapt to critical needs and expand the search for solutions,” said UNHCR spokesperson Andrej Mahecic at a briefing in Geneva on Friday.
[5] He said Rohingya communities estimate that up to three-quarters of the Rohingya people are today living outside of Myanmar. UNHCR and the Government of Bangladesh have individually registered over 860,000 Rohingya refugees in the refugee settlements in Cox’s Bazar.[6] Bangladesh has demonstrated a profound humanitarian commitment to Rohingya refugees, the UNHCR official said adding that Bangladesh has ensured their protection and extended life-saving humanitarian support, and now hosts nine out of ten Rohingya refugees registered in the Asia-Pacific region.[7] This generosity must be acknowledged through continued investment in both Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi host communities, he added.
[8] Ultimately, the solution to the plight of the Rohingya lies in Myanmar, and incomprehensively implementing the recommendations of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State, to which the Government of Myanmar has
committed.
Creating conditions that are conducive to the Rohingya people’s safe and sustainable return will require whole of society engagement, resuming and enhancing the dialogue between the Myanmar authorities and Rohingya refugees, as well as other measures that help inspire trust.
[9] These include lifting restrictions on freedom of movement, reconfirming that internally displaced Rohingya can return to their own villagesand providing a clear pathway towards citizenship, , said the UNHCR spokesperson.