COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh (Reuters) - Bangladesh's plans to
tackle the Rohingya refugee crisis have been stalled until the New Year with
repatriation and relocation programs only likely to be revisited following
year-end general elections, a top Bangladeshi official said on Sunday.
Abul Kalam, Bangladesh's refugee relief and repatriation
commissioner, told Reuters "a new course of action" needed to be
adopted on repatriation that took into account refugees' key demands.
More than 720,000 Rohingya fled a sweeping army crackdown
in Myanmar's Rakhine state in 2017, according to U.N. agencies. The crackdown
was launched in response to insurgent Rohingya attacks on security forces.
Rohingya refugees say soldiers and Buddhist civilians
killed families, burned many villages and carried out gang rapes. U.N-mandated
investigators have accused Myanmar's army of "genocidal intent" and
ethnic cleansing. Myanmar has denied almost all the accusations, saying its
forces engaged in a counter-insurgency operation against
"terrorists".
In late October, Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed to begin
to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled, but
the plan has been opposed by the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and the U.N.
refugee agency and aid groups, who fear for the safety of Rohingya in Myanmar.
The repatriation of the first batch of 2,200 refugees was
to begin officially on Nov. 15, but it stalled amid protests at the refugee
camps. None of those on the list agreed to return if their demands for justice,
citizenship and the ability to go back to their original villages and lands
were not met.
"I don't think anyone's agreeing to go back without
these," said Kalam, who last week called on the international community to
pressure Myanmar to accept certain "logical and acceptable" demands
in order for any repatriation to take place.
Myanmar does not consider the Rohingya a native ethnic
group and calls them "Bengalis", suggesting they belong in
Bangladesh. It has agreed to take the Rohingya back and said they would need to
accept the National Verification Card, which it says would allow Rohingya to
apply for citizenship. The Rohingya reject the card, saying it brands them
foreigners.
Kalam said he believed Myanmar needed to propose a
"clearer path" to citizenship for the Rohingya if any returns were to
take place, adding he would raise the matter at the next bilateral meeting on
repatriation, likely to take place next month.
Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay was not reachable
on Sunday for comment.
With Bangladesh now set to go to the polls on Dec. 30,
any decision either to repatriate people, or relocate refugees from the crowded
camps to Bangladesh's Bhasan Char island will not proceed until 2019, Kalam
said.
"Elections are coming up now, so the government will
only finalize a future course of action after the elections," said Kalam,
adding that Bangladesh remained ready to repatriate refugees if any volunteered
to return.
Bangladesh has vowed not to force anyone to return.
Kalam said construction work on alternative housing on
Bhasan Char was "nearly complete." He said he was hopeful some
refugees would agree to move, given the island's "livelihood
opportunities" such as fishing and farming. Aid agencies express caution
as the island is prone to flooding.