Dhaka fails to persuade China, India, Japan
to vote for the resolution introduced by Pakistan
The September 26 vote on a resolution titled
“Situation of human rights of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar”
at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) has once again exposed
Bangladesh’s failure in diplomacy.
The draft of the resolution was introduced by
Pakistan on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and the European
Union. The resolution expressed grave concern at continuing reports of serious
human rights violations and abuses in Myanmar, against Rohingya Muslims and
other minorities.
The violations include arbitrary arrests,
torture, forced labour, socioeconomic exploitation, the forced displacement of
more than a million Rohingya Muslims to Bangladesh, and sexual and gender-based
violence against women and children, among others. The resolution urges Myanmar
to take concrete steps towards the creation of an environment conducive to the
voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return of the forcibly displaced
Rohingya refugees residing in Bangladesh.
The 47-member UNHRC adopted the resolution by
37 votes in favour, two against, and with seven abstentions. The two countries
who voted against the resolution were China and The Philippines, while the
abstentions were India, Nepal, Japan, Brazil, Ukraine, Angola and Cameroon.
Also Read- A historical overview of the
Rohingya crisis https://t.co/2sGJfucj9O
The lack of support from China, India, and
Japan is particularly alarming, as Dhaka has repeatedly maintained that these
countries are with Bangladesh on the Rohingya issue. Does the voting pattern of
the said countries support Dhaka’s claim? Many will disagree.
China, the staunchest ally of Myanmar and now
officially engaged with the repatriation process, is the only country with
which Bangladesh has a strategic partnership. However, Bangladesh has still
failed time and again to prove itself more important to China than Myanmar. It
is high time Dhaka uses its leverage wisely to obtain the support of Beijing
for a just cause.
Leaders of Bangladesh and India often say the
relationship between the two countries is beyond the need for a strategic
partnership. There are numerous engagements between the two countries in
various sectors, and it is widely perceived that Dhaka does more for Delhi.
However, Bangladesh has been unable to gain India’s support on the Rohingya
issue by failing to play its cards right.
Japan is one of the largest development
partners of Bangladesh and also has a great deal of economic interests in the
country. Tokyo’s activities to aid the Rohingya repatriation have recently been
noticed, which is positive, but Japan’s failure to support Bangladesh on a just
resolution raises questions over the extent of its support.
All in all, it can be safely said the least
that so far Bangladeshi diplomacy has not performed as the people of the
country wanted it to. The country has to use the leverage at its disposal to
earn the support of strategic partners and neighbours, or the Rohingya crisis
may linger on and have devastating effects.
Source: DT
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Don’t forget to read more below:
PM places 4-point proposal to end Rohingya
crisis https://t.co/5wtsFodT2l
UN FFM Report: 600,000
Rohingya still in Myanmar at 'serious risk of genocide': https://lnkd.in/grp4Gvg