Bangladesh Says Deal Reached on Rohingya Repatriation to Myanmar
Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed to begin the repatriation of Rohingya refugees within two months. Yet many questions remain about their return to Myanmar following what the U.S. and U.N. describe as “ethnic cleansing.”
More than 600,000 members of the Rohingya minority have fled a military campaign in Rakhine state into Bangladesh since late August. They described mass killings and rapes, as well as wholesale destruction of communities.
Bangladesh has been pushing for Myanmar to readmit the refugees. The country’s foreign minister said the repatriation would be voluntary and the details will be worked out in the coming weeks.
Under the deal, returning Rohingya refugees will be housed temporarily in camps in Myanmar, as most of their homes were destroyed. Myanmar will then build “model villages” in which the Rohingya can resettle and it will issue them identity cards. It is not clear whether Rohingya refugees will deem it safe to return or trust the terms of the deal.
Bangladesh said both countries agreed to accept help from the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) to conduct the repatriation. But Myanmar only committed to work with UNHCR “as needed and at the appropriate time.”
Thousands Flee to Crowded Somali Camps
More than 10,000 people have fled fighting in Somalia in the past month, taking shelter in overflowing internal displacement camps, according to the Norwegian Refugee Council.
“We’re seeing a spike in families fleeing fighting that are arriving in overcrowded camps in Mogadishu. The camps are already overfilled with drought-stricken people, barely surviving in flimsy shelters,” said the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Victor Moses.
They are fleeing fighting between Somali forces and militant group al-Shabab, including aerial bombardments. The Norwegian Refugee Council also reported an increase in extortion, torture and sexual abuse at checkpoints established amid the conflict in the Middle and Lower Shabelle regions.
More than 1 million people have been internally displaced by fighting and drought in Somalia this year, according to the U.N.
German Mayor Stabbed by Opponent of His Refugee Policy
A German mayor who welcomed refugees to his town has been stabbed in the neck in an attack authorities believe was politically motivated.
Mayor of Altena Andreas Hollstein was seriously wounded but later discharged from hospital. The attacker, a 56-year-old German, asked Hollstein if he was the mayor before lunging at him with a knife in a kebab restaurant.
The man allegedly said he attacked Hollstein because the mayor, a member of Angela Merkel’s party, took in more refugees to Altena than the federal quota required, according to the Associated Press.
Recommended Reads
- Amnesty: Mexico/Central America: Authorities Turning Their Backs on LGBTI Refugees
- IRIN: In Bangladesh Refugee Camps, the Nascent Rohingya Insurgency Commands Support and Sows Fear
- Refugee Studies Centre: Local Politics and the Syrian Refugee Crisis
- Al Jazeera: Is It Safe for Rohingya Refugees to Return to Rakhine?