Stronger Boarder Security and Armed Force as Pre-Condition for Dignified Rohingya Repatriation

If anyone consider China, India, Russia, the US, or Malaysia will come forward to solve this problem, then we are living in the heaven of foul. We must stand on our own feet

Rezaul Karim Chowdhury 

There hardly instance that UN has negotiated and successfully liberated any nation. They are only so-called successful in fundraising and humanitarian response. But these has a bad impact they make the struggle nation as relief oriented not liberation-oriented.

In Rohingya response, we have passed around 8 years, still the discourse is UN dominated, ie, they need more money for relief, but they have never given accounts of fund raising and transparency, they talk to reduce NGO management cost, but hardly talk about on what they do on their management cost reduction.

In Coxsbazar, we have gone behind UN since 2017, to convince them on localization (localization of humanitarian response is the official policy of UNHCR and UN agencies). COAST and CCNF (please see those in www.coastbd.net and www.cxb-cso-ngo.org) organized around 50 events, but they hardly funded local NGOs (NGOs who is locally originated and whose leadership is by born from Coxsbazar).

But nowadays, this UN organization has concentrated funded to two single NGOs, there are 34 funding projects in one NGO whose leadership is from outside of Coxsbazar, and whose top policy management composition is debatable in respect of social cohesion.

Historically, Bengali Muslim was driven out from Myanmar (the then Burma), British govt deployed Captain Cox especially in Coxsbazar to oversee rehabilitation of those Bengali Muslims. And we have 2017 influx, in first 40 days it is the local NGOs and local people given shelter and food to Rohingyas, UN, INGOs (International NGOs) and National Big NGOs came afterwards.

Now UN agencies giving partnership to INGO, who hardly have any position on dignified repatriation and accountability of the genocide happened on Rohingya community. There are around 60 INGOs working in Rohingya camps, who could have campaign in this regard in the capital of their country of origin. But hardly have it, they compete with local NGOs, and snatch space of local NGO leaderships.

Two issues, UN demanding more land from the government, historically we did not find our government so strong in negotiation with UN, UN hardly has any repatriation negotiations. Among the Rohingyas most popular demand is they are looking for a safe zone in the Myanmar boarder. In this situation, may be the best option, government to strengthen border security in between Myanmar and Bangladesh, and strengthen our army. I want to recall one statement by our army chief is that, if we could have strong air force, then we could not have this Rohingya influx.

There is a lot of ethnic conflict in Myanmar, even some ethnic communities have their own army like the Arakan army. But even though the Myanmar central government strengthen their army, as reported, which is powerful then Bangladesh army. There is a theory that the Myanmar army facilitated the Yaba factory in our border just to earn money, which has given them dollars to purchase arms from international markets. Amid ethnic war, Myanmar has installed a costly oil and gas exploration rig in the Bay of Bengal.

Now, it has become an indispensable truth for us in respect of the South Eastern border that we must have strong boarder security and strong air force and navy. Then, the Myanmar army and Arakan Army will care for Bangladesh and accept dignified repatriation. Rohingya community/refugees review themselves must develop themselves as freedom fighters. They should organize themselves, should not depend on anyone, and they must have their own leadership for their liberation.

If anyone consider China, India, Russia, the US, or Malaysia will come forward to solve this problem, then we are living in the heaven of foul. We must stand on our own feet.