UNHCR sceptical on Bangladesh's proposal for a ‘safe zone’ inside Myanmar

The UNHCR says it agrees with Bangladesh's proposals to resolve the Rohingya crisis, but is sceptical on a safe zone inside Myanmar for the Rohingyas.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 25 Sept 2017, 11:01 AM
Updated : 25 Sept 2017, 12:35 PM

The UN refugee agency's chief Filippo Grandi said on Monday it has to be decided by the Myanmar government. 

Otherwise, the Security Council's intervention will be required, which he describes as a "complex exercise".

“We want safety in general in Rakhine State. Without that, the people will not be able to go back. People have lost everything. If there is no such guarantee of safety, they will not go back,” he told the media in Dhaka.

Grandi thanked Bangladesh for keeping its border open during the crisis and called the international community to step up support for the Rohingyas.

His visit follows a massive influx of Rohingyas into Bangladesh following the Aug 25 violence in Rakhine State. The UN agencies said 436,000 Rohingyas entered Bangladesh and the trend has slowed down.

Rohingya refugees queue for aid in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, Sept 21, 2017. Reuters

Grandi said he arrived in Bangladesh on Saturday to see conditions for himself after discussing the situation with the prime minister on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.

“I thanked Sheikh Hasina and I thank Bangladesh for keeping its borders open to these refugees,” he said. “In today’s world that is something that cannot be taken for granted and should be appreciated.”

At the UN, Hasina floated a five-pronged proposal, including an end to violence, implementation of Kofi Annan Commission’s report and creating safe zones inside Myanmar to thrash out a permanent solution to the crisis.

Grandi said Hasina told him that the solution lies with Myanmar.

“I agree with her,” he said, adding that the solution is their return to Myanmar, but it has to be “voluntary, safe and with dignity”.

“In order to make that happen, the condition has to be changed in Rakhine, violence has to be stopped and access of humanitarian agencies has to be restored.”

A Rohingya refugee girl reacts as people scuffle while waiting to receive aid in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, Sept 25, 2017. Reuters

On the safe zone, he said a safe zone needs to be defined, and how it can be kept safe.

“This is not something UNHCR can determine. It is for the international community to discuss,” he said, but adding that there are two choices for creating that safe zone.

“Either the government of that country decides a safe zone and ensures safety or the international community intervenes.”

“To intervene in another country and create a safe zone if the country does not agree you have to do it by force and it requires a process that is far beyond what I can say. It requires the Security Council to make a resolution. It’s a very complex exercise.”

He said how safety can be ensured is a political and military operation and that responsibility lies with the government of Myanmar.

“We want safety in general in Rakhine State and ensuring that safety can be achieved as it has been in other places [in the world] in so many ways you have options like monitors and observes, but first and foremost grant access to humanitarians agencies to do their work,” he said.

He said this is a situation which is “probably the fastest growing refugee movement” in the world.

Rohingya refugees walk to a refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, Sep 24, 2017. Reuters

During his visit to Cox’s Bazar, Grandi said he met the refugees and heard horrifying stories of physical and sexual violence and serious acts of brutalities.

They are stateless, a condition that he identified as the “root cause” of their plight. “This is a refugee crisis of major proportions,” he said.

Asked about whether they get the refugee status, he said it is the host government to certify that.

“From our point of view, it’s very clear that they flee from discrimination, persecution, violence, conflicts, and these are all causes that qualify somebody who flees as refugees. This is our point of view. The determination of that status belongs to the sovereign government of the country.”

But whether officially refugee or not, “this does not prevent us or government and anybody form providing assistance to what they need. That is the most important.”

Grandi also thanked the government for starting the registration process even before international support.

He said the UNHCR later provided assistance to the registration process. “Proper registration is crucial to ensure everyone is eventually able to exercise the right to return when the time is right.”