Bangladesh leader: Prolonged Rohingya stay impacts stability

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh’s prime minister said Monday that the prolonged stay of more than 1 million Rohingya refugees in crowded camps in the country has become a serious security and stability concern.

“Apart from their own miseries, their prolonged presence is causing a serious impact on the economy, environment, security and sociopolitical stability of Bangladesh,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said at the opening ceremony of a three-day meeting of military officials from 24 countries in the Indo-Pacific region.

The United States is the co-host of the gathering, called the Indo-Pacific Armies Management Seminar, along with the Bangladesh army.

While the militaries of the participating countries are discussing disaster management, transnational crime, security issues and women's empowerment, Bangladesh is using the platform to highlight the issue of Rohingya refugees who have fled from violence in Myanmar.

Participants in the meeting, including the U.S., Canada, Australia, Japan, Indonesia, India, China and Vietnam, will visit the sprawling Rohingya refugee camps to see their plight firsthand, said Gen. S.M. Shafiuddin Ahmed, chief of Bangladesh army.

Ahmed said the military leaders are being taken to the camps in Cox’s Bazar district to give them “a clear perception” of the gravity of the refugee crisis and why their repatriation to Myanmar is necessary.

Last month, the refugees marked the fifth anniversary of a mass exodus of more than 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh who were fleeing a harsh crackdown by Myanmar’s military. In total, Bangladesh is hosting more than 1 million Rohingya refugees.

Hasina has said that repatriation is the only solution to the crisis, but that Bangladesh would not force them to go back to Myanmar.

Bangladeshi officials have...