Myanmar must be forced with global pressure to take back Rohingyas: President Hamid

President Md Abdul Hamid has said Myanmar must be made to take back the Rohingyas who have fled into Bangladesh for fear of their lives.

He also urged everyone to come together to help the Rohingya refugees in a speech during a Durga Puja programme at Dhaka’s Ramkrishna Mission on Wednesday.

Roughly 475,000 Rohingyas have fled across the border since the Myanmar military began a crackdown in Rakhine State on Aug 25.

Approximately 400,000 other Rohingyas, who had fled to Bangladesh in the past few decades, have been living here as refugees.

President Hamid had brought the Rohingya issue up at a meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, or OIC, in Kazakhstan.

The OIC member states and other organisations have called upon Myanmar to repatriate the Rohingya refugees.

The issue was also raised by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina during the 72nd United Nations General Assembly in New York.

She called upon Myanmar’s de-facto leader, State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, to return the Rohingyas to Myanmar once they were verified.

The president called for more diplomatic pressure on Myanmar on Wednesday.

“Every country and international organisation in the world has to come forward to ensure the safe return of the Rohingyas to their homeland and their right to citizenship. We must make Myanmar return its people to their home.”

Many Hindus from Myanmar had fled to Bangladesh alongside the Muslims, the president said.

“They must also have our sympathy. We must stand by them and extend our hands in support.”

Many Hindus in Haor or backswamp areas are finding it difficult to properly celebrate Durga Puja because of the damage caused by the recent floods, Hamid noted.

“You must take the initiative to ensure that none is left out of the joy of this festival,” he said.

Hamid urged the people to avoid religious divisions.

“Nowadays, across the world, we see violence, animosity and destruction. To prevent these killings and violence, we must hold up our religions’ message of peace to the people of the world.”

Everyone must work together to safeguard a secular Bangladesh, he said.

Earlier in the day, the president visited the capital’s Dhakeshwari National Temple.

At the Ramkrishna Mission, he was greeted by the monastery principal, Dhrubeshananda Maharaj.

Local MP Kazi Firoz Rashid and leaders of the Bangladesh Puja Udjapan Parishad and the Mahanagar Sharbajanin Puja Udjapan Parishad were also in attendance.