Myanmar’s Union Minister Dr Pe Mynt has said that it is essential that, as neighbours, Bangladesh and Myanmar have “good relations,” going on to say that there should be frequent meetings between the countries to strengthen these relations.
If that were truly Myanmar’s intentions, why has it continued to drive out the Rohingya and make unreasonable demands regarding their return?
How long will Myanmar hide behind hackneyed statements and false promises?
Its army, the primary driving force behind the Rohingya exodus, has continued to undermine talks of Rohingya return, saying the Rohingya can only come back when Myanmar’s “real citizens” accept.
This is in addition to Myanmar’s demands to see papers for those who were driven out -- an even more unreasonable demand.
It is clear that this is nothing more than a ploy by Myanmar to make the process impossible for the Rohingya people, and to buy time until international interest in the issue wanes.
This is not neighbourly behaviour.
While Bangladesh has done everything in its power to both assuage the Rohingya’s needs and create dialogue with Myanmar to find a solution to the crisis, Myanmar has not been cooperative.
So much so that international interference has become almost necessary.
Moving forward, it is expected that, in the 13th Asia-Europe Foreign Ministers’ meeting, Myanmar will tackle the Rohingya issue and strive for a better solution to the crisis.
For there to be any sort of peace on our borders, Bangladesh needs Myanmar to be, first and foremost, honest. That is what good neighbours do.
