Why in news?
Bangladesh and Myanmar had signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) to begin the repatriation Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.
What is the MoA about?
- A joint working group including officials from Bangladesh, Myanmar and the UNHCR will be set up.
- Myanmar would begin to repatriate the refugees within two months.
What was the need?
- A military operation by Myanmar in Rakhine, resulted in more than 6,20,000 Rohingya fleeing the province to Bangladesh.
- This snowballed into a humanitarian crisis in Bangladesh.
- This further resulted in diplomatic cisis between Dhaka and Naypyidaw.
- Mediating the issue, China offered a “three-step” solution,
- comprising a ceasefire in Rakhine,
- a bilateral repatriation deal for the Rohingya to Myanmar and
- long-term solutions including the economic development of the Rohingya areas.
- China has deep interests in Rakhine, especially in the Kyaukpyu Port.
- It has oil and energy pipelines to Yunnan province forming part of a $10 billion economic zone in its Belt and Road Initiative.
Why did Myanmar change its stance?
- Myanmar government have denied any wrongdoing by the security forces and have thus far been not accepting more repatriation.
- In September, the Human Rights Council in Geneva voted to extend the mandate of an international fact-finding committee to investigate allegations of human rights violations in Myanmar.
- UN General Assembly’s Third Committee voted overwhelmingly in condemning Myanmar’s actions.
- International human rights agencies have also called for targeted sanctions and an arms embargo.
- Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi faced international criticism for not stopping the violence, and several honours given to her for her work in restoring democracy have been revoked.
- So the turnaround may be ascribed to growing international pressure as well as United Nations resolutions.
Source: The Hindu
