India rejected the United Nations statement that its
repatriation of seven Rohingya men violated the U.N. principle of “refoulement”
or “forcibly deporting people to a place they could be persecuted,” saying that
the men, who were handed over to Myanmar officials at the border on Thursday,
had gone voluntarily.
“Upon reconfirming their willingness to be repatriated
(on October 3, 2018), and with the full concurrence of the government of
Myanmar, in accordance with established procedures and laws, the government of
Assam has arranged for the repatriation of these seven individuals to Myanmar,”
a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs said.
The MEA also said that the men, who belonged to Rakhine
State had requested in 2016 the Myanmar government to issue them documents to
return to their country.
However, the UN High Commission for Refugees in Delhi
(UNHCR) that had appealed to India to stay the repatriation said that was prior
to the ethnic cleansing in Rakhine State in 2017 that saw nearly a million flee
to camps in Bangladesh.
Aid agencies said that more than 10,000 people had been
killed in retaliation by security forces after an attack by militant group ARSA
that killed 71 security personnel on August 24, 2017. The reprisal included
mass gang-rapes of women, the killing of babies and burning of Rohingya
villages, according to a UN report.
As a result, a UNHCR spokesperson said the seven men, who
had been imprisoned in Assam since 2012, and were recently moved to a detention
camp in Manipur, had been denied the “opportunity to make an informed decision
about their return to Myanmar in the current conditions and/or access their
right to seek safe asylum.” “UNHCR has expressed its view that the current
conditions in Rakhine State in Myanmar are not conducive for safe, dignified
and sustainable returns for Rohingya,” the spokesperson added.
The MEA did not respond to a specific question from The
Hindu on whether it had sought or received assurances from the Myanmar
government on the safety of the men once they returned to Rakhine.
Source: The Hindu