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Human security denotes human dignity. The term human
security propagated by UNDP in the post-cold war era intends to focus on
individuals coming across values and goals such as dignity, equality and
solidarity. The Rohingya is an ethnic minority group in Myanmar that has due to
persecution, crossed into neighboring Bangladesh over decades, laying uneven
pressure on the scarce resources of Bangladesh. The Rohingya crisis has been
emerged as potential threat to Bangladesh’s internal stability. Bangladesh,
therefore, has been in a great fix struggling to realise the national interests
of the country, and uphold human security issues of Rohingya all at once.
The number of Rohingya refugees has crossed half a
million since the beginning of the crisis from August 24, 2017. According to
the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCR), the Rohingya
issue has been a textbook example of ethnic cleansing navigated by the
civil-military administration of Myanmar. There has been an Influx of Rohingya
refugees in Bangladesh since the 1970s and their number has surpassed 500,000.
Bangladesh is now hosting around one million Rohingya refugees and this
highlights the serious concern of human security.
Past and present experience suggests that the Myanmar
government has been very reluctant to take back their nationals, the Rohingya,
despite the robust diplomatic endeavors of Bangladesh government regarding
repatriation. It gives the impression that the repatriation of Rohingya to
their homeland might be resulted in uncertainty. What we could perceive,
providing basic provisions of their life like food, shelter, and healthcare
have been the utmost priorities at the moment and also for the rest of the
period until the return of Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to Myanmar.
Dilemma of human security
A prolonged stay will ultimately worsen the pitiable
human security condition of the Rohingya community. Rohingya refugees who are
particularly vulnerable such as those unaccompanied by relatives, are seriously
at the risk of human trafficking. This is evidenced by the fact that
international human trafficking gangs have been closely observing this
situation with the intent of abducting female Rohingya. Mentioning stubborn
Rohingya crisis as potential threat to human security, UN agencies working in
Bangladesh have been in appeal to the international community for adequate fund
to provide them basic supplies for survival. It is the experience of different
countries which hosted refugees during many humanitarian crises that
international supports lessen over time if the refugee crises continue. In this
kind of situations, the decisive economic affliction of humanitarian support to
the refugees falls on the host country.
Security concern, particularly human security, is another
challenge that Bangladesh is already facing and it will intensify further in
the future with the influx of the Rohingya refugees over the years. Bangladesh
government has been accredited for providing them with various facilities,
including shelter, food and medical care despite many limitations. Health
security and food security has been the evolving challenges in the makeshifts
where refugees are living. Apparently food insecurity within the displaced
Rohingya refugee population is turning out in Bangladesh. This has been
resulting in malnutrition with refugee population and if not the food situation
improves on an urgent basis, there is likelihood that more Rohingya children
could even meet life-threatening event. We should keep it in mind that, the
country has to rely on the food grains for domestic consumption. Meanwhile, the
government of Bangladesh took many steps for resolving the Rohingya crisis
while various forces, including the Armed Forces, police, Border Guard of
Bangladesh and Rapid Action Battalion along with the civil administration,
public representatives and general people are providing necessary services to
the Rohingya.
Given their living space mostly located in Teknaf-Cox’s
Bazar areas, the refugee earmarked areas are adjacent to the settlements of the
local citizens. Once, many awkward incidences happened between them causing law
and order situations. According to the media report, a total of seven dead
bodies had been found near Rohingya camps while local law enforcement agencies
have documented around 30 criminal activities there. At least 20 Rohingya
people were arrested in connection with criminal activities such as murder,
vandalism, yaba (drugs) smuggling, engaging in violence and attacking the
police. It is foreseen that, as the displaced Rohingya continue to arrive in
Bangladesh, the smugglers can take advantage of the situation to smuggle drugs
into the country.
In the future, with increasing number of the refugees and
sheltered close to the native citizens’ settlements there is the likelihood of
increasing happening of such incidences and aggravating the local social and
cultural harmony among the local citizens and the Rohingya refugees. The other
pertinent issue is the danger of environmental security as there is likelihood
of widespread environmental degradation due to the settlement of the refugees
in areas close to hills and forest lands. As regards economic security, the
bulk departure of Rohingya in Bangladesh would endanger the market balance.
This may result in unstable labour market as supply will be more than the
demand Bangladesh has at present. Jobless people will seek whatever means
necessary to make a living and this sort of unhealthy completion in the labour
market will seriously threaten the social cohesion.
New breadth of global interest
Bangladesh is making every effort in a professional
fashion to harness regional and global power to bring in an amicable solution
to this emerging crisis despite the position of China and India on the side of
Myanmar on Rohingya issue. Both countries have significant strategic and
economic interests in Myanmar and are therefore reluctant to intervene. Though
Myanmar holds no major importance in Russian policy – no geopolitical interests
are at stake there, while Moscow’s attitude to the issue in the UN could
potentially to upset its Muslim allies, for instance Iran.
The Bangladesh government has been making diplomatic
efforts in persuading Myanmar to repatriate the refugees over the months but in
reality, it is highly unlikely the Bangladesh government will succeed in
sending the refugees back to Myanmar in the near future. Myanmar and Bangladesh
agreed in late 2017 to complete the return of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya
refugees within two years, notwithstanding international doubts that they will
be held in forbidding detention camps that may result in another round of
cruelty both physically and psychologically. The Bangladesh government may
therefore have to consider possible long-term solutions to address this
additional population living in Bangladesh.
Looking for amicable repatriation
Considering the complex array of humanitarian, political,
and law and order issues facing Rohingya refugees, security, development and
environmental concerns must be prioritized rethinking different phases of
enforcement. Since the beginning of the crisis, the government of Bangladesh
set up a separate civilian authority to manage the refugee crisis. All domestic
and international aid agencies are duly coordinated by the government to ensure
maximum utilization of resources avoiding duplication of efforts. UNHCR, the
principal partner of Bangladesh government is coordinating with the
international community to leverage their efforts for ensuring minimum standard
of their living. The government of Bangladesh has attempted to ensure that
everyone gets provisions from the distribution sites and serve as the main
contact for any kind of issue, be it finding information, or resolving
disputes.
The recent visit of UNSC members in Bangladesh bears the
testimony of Bangladesh’s unyielding diplomatic efforts at various levels to
arrive at an amicable solution of the Rohingya crisis. Should repatriation
succeed however, the United Nations must coordinate and communicate with donors
and other relevant stakeholders to come forward to solve this problem
permanently by putting pressure on the Myanmar government to provide a safe and
secure environment. At the same time the UN must enforce the recommendation of
the Kofi Annan Commission by imposing diplomatic force on Myanmar. The
Bangladesh government should also continue with its efforts to encourage other
governments to become more engaged and continue to address the pressing needs
of these refugees- needs that will only grow as long as this situation remains
unresolved.