Bangladesh to raise Rohingya issue in UN General Assembly

Desk Report: Bangladesh will raise the Rohingya issue in the upcoming 72nd United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session highlighting the main causes of the long standing crisis and will put forward some proposals for solving the problem as early as possible.

"The Prime Minister will deliver speech in the UNGA session on September 21 when she will make Bangladesh's demand to implement Kofi Annan Commission's recommendations fully to resolve the Rohingya crisis," said Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali on Thursday.

Ali was addressing a media briefing on the Prime Minister's upcoming New York, USA visit to attend the 72nd UN General Assembly at State Guest House the Padma in the capital.

Describing the ethnic cleansing operation launched by Myanmar authority on the Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state as a total violation of human rights, the Bangladesh Premier will urge the world leaders to play an effective role to end the crisis for the sake of world humanity, he added.

He said Bangladesh along with raising the issue in the UNGA session would continue its efforts to put international pressure on Myanmar government to ensure secured repatriation of the Rohingya refugees, who took shelter in Bangladesh, by stopping the ongoing ethnic cleansing of Myanmar authorities.

"This year's the UN General Assembly would be a crucial one for Bangladesh as the assembly is being held at a time when thousands of innocent Rohingya people (Myanmar citizens) have been entering into Bangladesh crossing the border to save their lives," Ali added.

The foreign minister said nearly four lakhs Myanmar citizens have crossed the border and entered into Bangladesh in the last three weeks t creating humanitarian crisis for the country.

The fresh influx of Rohingya refugees is a huge burden on Bangladesh as the country has been hosting another four lakhs unregistered Rohingya in different camps of Cox's Bazar district for decades, he said.

Giving details, the foreign minister said apart from this, the Premier in her speech is expected to highlight different contemporary issues like democracy and good governance, women empowerment, rights of migrant workers, poverty alleviation, climate change and Bangladesh's success in combating terrorism and religion extremism.

The theme of this year's general debate is- "Focusing on People: striving for peace and a decent life for all on a sustainable planet".

The foreign minister said the Prime Minister will also attend separate high level meetings on the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuses, political declaration for UN reforms, follow-up meeting of global deal for decent work and inclusive growth, roundtable of the UN Secretary General's high-level panel on women's economic empowerment for leaving no one behind and high-level panel on water.

Ali said the Prime Minister, on the sidelines of the general debate and other high-level meetings, will hold bilateral talks with UN general secretary and heads of state and government of different countries.

The Prime Minister will attend the OIC contact group meeting scheduled to be held on September 19 in New York on Rohingya issue.

Besides, Sheikh Hasina will attend two high-level meetings- SDG Implementation, Financing and Monitoring: Sharing Innovations through South-South and Triangular Cooperation and Creating a Policy Vision for SDG Finance: Facilitating Private Sector Investment in the SDGs" as the chief guest on September 20.

She will join a heads of state and government level open debate to be organized by Ethiopia, the current chair of the UN Security Council, on September 20 where reconstruction of UN peacekeeping operations and reforms would be discussed.

Foreign Secretary Md. Shahidul Haque and other senior foreign ministry officials were present at the briefing.

--BSS

 

risingbd/Dhaka/September 14, 2017/A K Azad