Govt out to use Rohingya crisis for political gain, says BNP's Gayeshwar

The ruling Awami League wants to use the Rohingyas issue for political gain, BNP leader Gayeshwar Chandra Roy has alleged.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 31 August 2019, 11:22 AM
Updated : 31 August 2019, 11:22 AM

“Today, we have to understand why the Rohingyas don't want to go back to their country. If they (Rohingyas) return, you (the government) will not be able to use the issue politically. They want to create a national crisis by keeping them here permanently,” he said at an event in Dhaka on Saturday.

The senior BNP leader made the remarks after the Awami League leaders blamed his party for complicating the Rohingya crisis.

The government made a fresh attempt to repatriate the Rohingyas to Myanmar last week but the efforts fell flat as the refugees were reluctant to return to their homeland.

A military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state that began in August 2017 drove more than 730,000 Rohingyas to flee to Bangladesh.

Bangladesh sheltered the Rohingyas on humanitarian grounds and earned plaudits from world leaders.

Now the government has been focusing its efforts on sending them back to their place of origin as the country's resources are being stretched by the efforts to shelter so many refugees over such a long time.

Pointing to the recent Rohingya rally at the refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Gayeshwar said, "The government itself is patronising the Rohingyas because they could not have taken out the rally if they did not get support from the ruling party.”

"Police in Bangladesh do not allow political parties to rally, but the Rohingyas are allowed to do so. I think the government is patronising them to take advantage of it by stirring up the situation."