Dhaka, September 6 (BDNews24): Bangladesh summoned Myanmar’s envoy on Wednesday over the ongoing violence in the Rohingya-majority northwestern Rakhine state.
Aung Myint, chargé d’affaires of Myanmar Embassy in Dhaka, was handed a protest note on Wednesday by the foreign ministry’s Southeast Asia Wing chief Manjurul Karim Khan Chowdhury.
The foreign ministry said it lodged strong protest against “unprecedented level of influx” of Myanmar nationals into Bangladesh since Aug 25.
Bangladesh expressed deep concern at the escalation of violence in the Rakhine State, resulting in the huge influx of affected civilian population entering into its territory to escape from violence and save their lives.
It urged Myanmar to take immediate measures to take back all its nationals who crossed over.
As per estimate of the UN agencies, around 125,000 affected Myanmar nationals have taken shelter in Bangladesh and tens of thousands are on their ways.
A local man carries an old Rohingya refugee as she is unable to walk after crossing the border, in Teknaf on Sept 1. Reuters
“This new influx is unbearable additional burden on Bangladesh who has been hosting around four hundred thousand of Myanmar nationals who had to leave Myanmar in several rounds in the past owing to communal violence and repeated military operations,” the foreign ministry said in the protest note.
The government stressed that Bangladesh “must not be the victim of repeated violence and instability in the Rakhine State”.
In the diplomatic note, Dhaka demanded immediate measures from Myanmar to de-escalate the ongoing violence in the northern Rakhine State and immediate effective measures from the Myanmar authorities to stop the ongoing influx of Myanmar nationals into Bangladesh.
Dhaka also requested Naypyidaw to address the real cause of such unprecedented exodus.
The government regretted that appropriate measures for protection of civilian population have not been ensured during the military operation that compelled a huge number of desperate people to seek shelter in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh emphasised taking immediate and appropriate measures of protection by Myanmar for unarmed civilians of all communities in the Rakhine State regardless of ethnicity and religion so that affected civilians do not need to make desperate attempts to seek shelter in Bangladesh.
During the meeting with the Charge’d Affaires, the ministry also expressed concern at the reported planting of anti-personnel land mine close to the zero line of the border by Myanmar security forces.
(The featured image shows an aged Rohingya woman being carried by her son into Bangladesh.Photo: BDNews24)
