International

Bangladesh’s Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) yesterday approved a project to improve security along the border with Myanmar in Cox’s Bazar and prevent intrusion from Myanmar. The project titled ‘Rehabilitation of Polders along Naf at Ukhia and Teknaf sub-districts for improving security on Bangladesh-Myanmar border in Cox’s Bazar’ will be implemented at an estimated cost of 1,416.5m taka by  June 2020. The approval came from the regular meeting, held at the NEC Conference Room, with Ecnec chairperson and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair. Briefing reporters after the meeting, Planning Minister Mustafa Kamal said the entire cost of the project will come from the national exchequer. He said controlling flood and improving water extraction system in the project area are also the main goals of the project. The minister said there are a 47.60km flood control dam and 46 water extraction infrastructures under polders 67/A, 67, 67/B and 68 built by the Bangladesh water development board along the right bank of the Naf river. The flood control dam and water extraction infrastructures were damaged by natural disasters, including cyclone, flood and excessive rain, in 1991, 2007, 2008  and 2010. “Border Guard Bangladesh has been using the flood control embankment to resist the influx of Rohingya. It has become difficult for BGB members to continue their border patrolling works as the dam remain damaged,” he said. The project was taken following the proposal of a technical committee formed in this regard by the Bangladesh water development board formed in 2015, he added.

Bangladesh security forces have detained a Rohingya leader during a sweep in a refugee camp, police said yesterday, as tension grows over plans to repatriate the displaced Muslims to Myanmar. The Rohingya representative, Mohibullah, was held in Cox’s Bazar district as local authorities broke up a protest on Monday against the controversial repatriation deal signed by Bangladesh and Myanmar. He was handed over to Bangladesh’s elite security force and then local police who are still holding him for questioning, Cox’s Bazar police chief Abul Khair said  yesterday. Two other Rohingya men were also detained for their role in the protests, another officer added. Mohibullah, who goes by one name, has mobilised Rohingya in recent weeks to protest against returning the persecuted Muslims to Myanmar. Bangladesh had been due to start the huge process of repatriating hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees from yesterday, after agreeing a two-year timescale with Myanmar. But the process was delayed when Bangladesh said neither side was ready for the huge undertaking. Myanmar later blamed its neighbour for its lack of preparation.  Nearly 690,000 Rohingya have fled a campaign of violence in Myanmar since August, and many of the displaced Muslims living in Bangladesh fear returning to their conflict-scarred  homeland in Rakhine state. Bangladesh insists the repatriation process will be voluntary but Rohingya have erected banners, chanted slogans and staged angry rallies in crowded camps near the border in Cox’s Bazar. Police are also investigating the murder of two Rohingya representatives in the past week. Local media suggested one man was targeted for his support for the repatriation process. “We are conducting raids in the camps every day,” Cox’s Bazar deputy police chief Afrujul Haq Tutul said. Seven Rohingya men had been arrested in the police investigation into the murders, he added. A Rohingya leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said those considered “pro-repatriation” were coming under suspicion as hostility to the plan snowballed in the refugee camps.

Bangladesh security forces have detained a Rohingya leader during a sweep in a refugee camp, police said on Tuesday, as tension grows over plans to repatriate the displaced Muslims to Myanmar. The Rohingya representative, Mohibullah, was held in Cox's Bazar district as local authorities broke up a protest on Monday against the controversial repatriation deal signed by Bangladesh and Myanmar. He was handed over to Bangladesh's elite security force and then local police who are still holding him for questioning, Cox's Bazar police chief Abul Khair told AFP on Tuesday. Two other Rohingya men were also detained for their role in the protests, another officer added. Mohibullah, who goes by one name, has mobilised Rohingya in recent weeks to protest against returning the persecuted Muslims to Myanmar. Bangladesh had been due to start the huge process of repatriating hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees from Tuesday, after agreeing a two-year timescale with Myanmar. But the process was delayed when Bangladesh said neither side was ready for the huge undertaking. Myanmar later blamed its neighbour for its lack of preparation.  Nearly 690,000 Rohingya have fled a campaign of violence in Myanmar since August, and many of the displaced Muslims living in Bangladesh fear returning to their conflict-scarred homeland in Rakhine state. Bangladesh insists the repatriation process will be voluntary but Rohingya have erected banners, chanted slogans and staged angry rallies in crowded camps near the border in Cox's Bazar. Police are also investigating the murder of two Rohingya representatives in the past week. Local media suggested one man was targeted for his support for the repatriation process. "We are conducting raids in the camps every day," Cox's Bazar deputy police chief Afrujul Haq Tutul told AFP. Seven Rohingya men had been arrested in the police investigation into the murders, he added. A Rohingya leader, speaking on condition of anonymity, said those considered "pro-repatriation" were coming under suspicion as hostility to the plan snowballed in the refugee camps.

Tensions mounted yesterday at refugee camps in Bangladesh holding hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims over an operation to send them back to Myanmar, from where they have fled following a military crackdown. Dozens of refugees stood holding cloth banners opposing their transfer as United Nations Special Rapporteur Yanghee Lee visited camps along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border over the weekend. Some refugee leaders said Bangladesh military officials had threatened to seize their food ration cards if they did not return. Under an agreement signed last week, Myanmar is set to receive Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh at two reception centres and a temporary camp near their common border starting tomorrow and continuing over the next two years. The refugees refuse to go back unless their safety can be guaranteed and Myanmars grant their demands to be given citizenship and inclusion in a list of recognised ethnic minorities. They are also asking that their homes, mosques and schools that were burned down or damaged in the military operation be rebuilt. Over 655,500 Muslim Rohingya fled to Bangladesh after the Myanmar military cracked down in the northern part of Rakhine state in response to militant attacks on security forces on August 25. The United Nations described the operation as ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, which Myanmar denies. Rohingya elders said that Bangladeshi army officials have called or met them over the last two days, asking them to prepare lists of families from their camps for repatriation. Four of them said they were among more than 70 camp leaders – representing thousands of refugees – who met army officers at the Gungdum camp on Saturday. “When we said we cannot provide the lists because people are not ready to return, they asked us to bring their WP cards,” said Musa, a leader at the Gungdum camp, referring to relief cards provided by the UN’s World Food Programme. Rashedul Hasan, a spokesman for the Bangladesh army, said he was not aware of army men threatening to take away food cards. Hundreds of refugees queue up at relief centres across the camps each morning to collect food using the cards. These centres are managed by the Bangladesh army. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has repeatedly said Rohingya returns need to be voluntary. “UNHCR has not been part of discussions (on repatriation) to date, but has offered support to engage in the process to ensure that the voices of refugees are heard,” Caroline Gluck, a senior protection officer for the agency, said by e-mail on Saturday. “The pace of returns should be determined by the refugees themselves.”

Bangladesh on Sunday sought to reassure the international community that a planned repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims to conflict-scarred western Myanmar would be "voluntary" and in coordination with the United Nations. In a briefing to foreign diplomats, Bangladesh Foreign Minister A H Mahmood Ali insisted that the operation to return some 750,000 refugees who fled unrest and a military crackdown in Myanmar would involve the UN's refugee agency. "In order to ensure that the return is voluntary, Bangladesh has incorporated provisions for involvement of UNHCR and other relevant international organisations in the entire return process," he said at the meeting in Dhaka. Plans by Bangladesh and Myanmar to repatriate the refugees, who face desperate conditions in overcrowded camps near the countries' shared border, are due to begin within days and last for two years. But they have been met by angry protest among the Rohingya refugees, with many left traumatised by atrocities including murder, rape and arson attacks on their homes. Rights groups and the UN have said any repatriations must be voluntary. They have also expressed concerns about conditions in Myanmar, where many Rohingya settlements have been burned to the ground by soldiers and Buddhist mobs. UN special rapporteur Yanghee Lee is currently visiting the camps in southeastern Bangladesh where around a million of the Muslim minority are now living. Ali said Bangladesh wanted to "ensure that the agreements facilitate safe, voluntary, dignified and sustainable return", the minister said, according to a statement. He said Myanmar would involve the Red Cross in the repatriation process, adding that it has agreed to allow India, China and Japan to help rebuild homes and villages in Rakhine.  Western diplomats attending the briefing emphasised safe conditions for the repatriation. "The Rohingya that I have met in the camp do not want to go back to a situation that will be dangerous to them," US ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Bernicat told reporters after the briefing. "They do not want to go back to uncertainty. And why would any of us want them to go back to uncertainty. Again the conditions have to be safe and acceptable," she said. The repatriation deal does not cover the estimated 200,000 Rohingya refugees who were living in Bangladesh prior to October 2016, driven out by previous rounds of communal violence and military operations.

People attend the second phase of annual Muslim congregation Biswa Ijtema on the bank of the Turag river at Tongi, on the outskirts of Dhaka, yesterday. Thousands of Muslims from home and abroad took part in the religious event.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said yesterday Bangladesh wants a peaceful solution to Rohingya crisis with its next-door neighbour Myanmar. “Bangladesh and Myanmar have already signed an agreement for the repatriation of Rohingya refugees. As a next-door neighbour,  Bangladesh always wants a peaceful solution to the problem,” she said. The Prime Minister said this when Director-General and CEO of Opec Fund for International Development (OFID) Suleiman Jasir al-Herbish met her at her office. PM’s press secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters after the meeting. He said Suleiman highly praised the Prime Minister for giving shelter to Rohingya refugees saying she has accomplished a huge humanitarian obligation by giving them shelter. He enquired about the progress of the Rohingya repatriation, the press secretary said. Al-Herbish said Opec wants to explore new areas of co-operation with Bangladesh. “Bangladesh is a major partner of Opec and has a good relation of the last 32 years. Now we want to explore new areas of cooperation with Bangladesh,” he said. Ihsanul Karim said the prime minister and the OFID DG discussed the issues related to mutual interests, particularly the energy issues and the ways for eradication of energy poverty. The OFID DG informed the Prime Minister that about 1.3bn people in the world are deprived of electricity. Opec gives priority to water and food as well as energy, he said. Referring to the discussion with the state minister for power, energy and mineral resources, the Opec DG said he would place a report at the council meeting of the organisation in June next to do more for Bangladesh. The Prime Minister informed the DG about Bangladesh’s endeavour to meet the energy demand. Hasina said she had taken office in 1996 when the country’s electricity generation was only 1,600 megawatt, and then her government raised it to 4,300MW in its five-year tenure. But the capacity declined to 3,200MW during the next BNP regime. Now Bangladesh’s total electricity capacity is 16,350MW, she said. The Prime Minister also mentioned that it was possible mostly due to an epoch-making decision of her government in 1996 to involve private sector in the electricity generation. The Prime Minister said she is glad to know that women are holding important positions in the Opec. Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister Md Nojibur Rahman was present during the meeting.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday urged the developed countries to come forward with financial and technical assistance to implement development goals for achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs). “To ensure disbursement of funds is a big challenge to achieve SDGs. For this, the developed countries will have to come forward with financial and technical assistance to implement the development goals,” she said. The Prime Minister was speaking at the inaugural session of the two-day Bangladesh Development Forum in Dhaka. The slogan of this year’s forum is “Partnership for  Development”. She also said that in addition to traditional financial assistance in dealing with environmental and climate change, the international community will have to be more attentive to the world trade system. “This can contribute to overall global development, including poverty alleviation and employment generation,” she said. Hasina said in ongoing progress, Bangladesh considers private partnerships, including international partner countries and organisations as important. She mentioned that her government has initiated establishment of 100 economic zones in different areas of the country for foreign direct investment, working in other infrastructure development and implementing necessary reform programmes to create a more foreign investment-friendly environment. “In this regard, recently the Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (BIDA) has been formed by merging Board of Investment and Privatization Commission,” she said. “Increasing productivity by geometric rates can solve investment limitations partly. Due to proper use of education and skill, improvements in skills of workers of Bangladesh abroad will increase remittance and encourage innovative  initiatives,” she said.  Hasina said her government has undertaken three different five-year plans to implement SDGs 2030 and the main goal of the 7th Five Year Plan is to ensure socio-economic development through  sustainable growth. She said that for the first time Bangladesh will achieve the qualification of graduation from least developed country (LDC) category at United Nations Committee for Development Policy’s triennial review meeting to be held in March next. The prime minister mentioned her government’s confidence that it has all materials to highlight Bangladesh as a dynamic economy before the world though a number of benefits will be discontinued after graduation from the LDC. She said Bangladesh has taken strategic preparations to face its impact saying it would be possible to make up the impact by increasing economic mobility and work preparation.  In her speech, the prime minister also elaborated her government achievements in various sectors in last nine years. She said in all economic activities, the government emphasized on creating regional communication and infrastructure, increasing efficiency and employment, using technology and ensuring economic and social equality, woman empowerment and ensuring equal opportunities for everyone.  Hasina hoped that the meeting of Bangladesh Development Forum will play an important role in determining collective action strategies and formulating necessary recommendations for building a poverty-hunger-free and prosperous Bangladesh. About 700 delegates representing Bangladesh government and various development partners are attending the event.  The forum comprises Bangladesh and its development partners and is seen as a platform to discuss the country’s development process.

India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj meets Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Abul Hassan Mahmood Ali in New Delhi yesterday.

Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed yesterday to complete within two years the return of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims who had fled an army crackdown last year in Myanmar. The UN Refugee Agency, responding to the plan, raised a concern about forcibly repatriating over 650,000 Rohingya who fled to neighbouring Bangladesh after a conflict erupted in western Rakhine state in August. Statements from both the Myanmar and Bangladesh foreign ministries said Bangladesh would set up five transit camps on its side of the border. Those camps would send Rohingya to two reception centres in Myanmar. The repatriation process would start next Tuesday, the statements said. Myanmar said it would build a transit camp that can house 30,000 returnees. The Bangladesh statement said, “Myanmar has reiterated its commitment to stop (the) outflow of Myanmar residents to Bangladesh”. Myanmar stressed the need for both sides to take preventive measures against possible Rohingya attacks and said it gave Dhaka a list with the names of 1,000 alleged militants. The crisis erupted after Rohingya insurgent attacks on security posts on August 25 in Rakhine triggered a fierce military response that the United Nations denounced as ethnic cleansing. Some 650,000 people fled the violence. The military denies ethnic cleansing, saying its security forces had mounted legitimate counter-insurgency clearance operations. The Bangladesh statement called for repatriating orphans and “children born out of unwarranted incidence”, a reference to cases of rape resulting in pregnancy, said a Bangladesh foreign ministry official who declined to be identified. The rape of Rohingya women by Myanmar’s security forces was widespread, according to interviews with women conducted at displacement camps by UN medics and activists. The military denies it was involved in any sexual assaults. A spokesperson from the UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) said yesterday the Rohingya should only return voluntarily when they feel it is safe to do so. “Major challenges have to be overcome,” UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic told a Geneva news briefing. “These include ensuring they are told about the situation in their areas of origin... and are consulted on their wishes, that their safety is  ensured.” Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay said last week the returnees could apply for citizenship “after they pass the verification process”. Myint Kyaing, permanent secretary at Myanmar’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population, said this month Myanmar would begin processing at least 150 people a day through each of the two camps by  January 23. The meeting that concluded yesterday in Myanmar’s capital Naypyitaw was the first for a joint working group set up to hammer out the details of the November repatriation  agreement. Left out of the talks were the fears and concerns of the refugees themselves, “as if they are an inert mass of people who will go where and when they are told,” Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, told Reuters in an email. “Where are considerations for protection of the Rohingya from Myanmar security forces who months ago were raping and killing them? How come the discussions ignore the deprivation of rights of people held in indefinite detention, which is what these so-called “temporary” accommodations may become?,”  Robertson asked. A group of refugees at the Kutupalong Rohingya camp near Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh expressed doubt about the camps Myanmar has agreed to establish on its side of the border. Mohammad Farouk, 20, who arrived in Bangladesh following the August 25 attacks, said exchanging one camp for another made little difference 0 except “the camps in Myanmar will be far worse, because we will be confined there and there will be a risk to our lives.” Another resident of the Kutupalong camp compared the new transit camps to ones set up near the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe following bouts of violence in previous years “where people are living like prisoners”. “First, ask the military to give those Rohingya their homes and property back, then talk to us about returning,” said the Rohingya refugee who did not want to be identified. Some said the kind of violence they witnessed toward their community in Myanmar made it hard for them to trust the military. “Even if I don’t get food or anything else here, at least there is safety. I won’t feel safe if I go back to Myanmar,” said Rashid Ahmed, 33. Noor Alam, 37, who came to Kutupalong five months back, wondered if he could ever get a job in Myanmar. “They don’t even call us Rohingya. Until they consider us citizens we won’t go back.” Some young men in the camp worried they might be arrested on accusations of terrorism if they returned to Myanmar. Camp conditions in Bangladesh are dire enough, but more than 520,000 Rohingya children are at even greater risk ahead of the cyclone season that generally begins in April, the United Nations Children’s Fund said  yesterday. “Hundreds of thousands of children are already living in horrific conditions, and they will face an even greater risk of disease, flooding, landslides and further displacement,” said Edouard Beigbeder, Unicef  Representative in Bangladesh. Nearly 1mn Rohingya live in Bangladesh, including those who came after previous displacements dating back to the 1990s.

Bangladesh’s national award-winning singer Shammi Akhtar passed away in Dhaka yesterday.  She was 62. Shammi who had long been suffering from cancer breathed her last at around 4:20pm while being taken to a city hospital, said her husband Akramul Islam, also a singer. She is survived by her husband and a son. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had also donated 5,00,000 taka for her treatment. Shammi started her journey with radio in the 1970s while she made her maiden playback in the film in the 1980s with the movie, Oshikhit.  Shammi won the National Film Award in 2010 for her playback in the film Bhalobashlei Ghor Bandha Jay Na.

Somali al Shabaab militants, who have carried out frequent bombings in the capital, Mogadishu, said a former leader who defected to the government side was an apostate who could be killed. Al Shabaab fell out with its former spokesman and deputy leader, Mukhtar Robow Abu Mansur, in 2013. He defected to the UN-backed government in August last year. Al Shabaab has been fighting for years to try to topple Somalia's central government and rule the Horn of Africa country according to its own interpretation of Islamic law. "If Mukhtar Robow thinks he can destroy Islamic sharia and the mujahedeen, he is deluded. Allah will protect Islam and Jihad will not stop just because of you and your likes who joined the enemies," Ali Mohamud Rage, al Shabaab's spokesman, said in a video posted late on Monday. It was not immediately possible to reach Robow for comment. "No doubt, Mukhtar Robow left his religion and joined the disbelievers and the enemies are still the enemies," al shabaab's spokesman said. "Anybody who joins the line of non-Muslims is an apostate who can be killed." A report by rights body Human Rights Watch released on Monday said al Shabaab had threatened and abducted civilians in Somalia’s Bay region to force communities to hand over their children for indoctrination and military training in recent months. "Al Shabaab's ruthless recruitment campaign is taking rural children from their parents so they can serve this militant armed group," said Laetitia Bader, senior Africa researcher for the rights body. The insurgents, who are allied with al Qaeda, were driven out of the capital Mogadishu in 2011. They have also since lost nearly all other territory they previously controlled after an offensive by Somali government troops and African Union-mandated AMISOM peacekeepers. Al Shabaab, however, remains a formidable threat and has carried out bombings both in Mogadishu and other towns against military and civilian targets.  

* NGOs sceptical, say plan doesn't address refugee fears * Myanmar to set up temporary camps on its side of the border * Plan provides for return of orphans, children born of rape * Refugees fear "temporary" camps in Myanmar could be long-term * UNICEF says 520,000 children face more risk with cyclone season   Bangladesh said on Tuesday it would complete the process of returning within two years many of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya  Muslims who had fled a conflict in Myanmar, following a meeting of the neighbours. The bilateral repatriation plan, which Myanmar said would begin next Tuesday, was greeted with some skepticism from NGOs, who said it did not adequately address questions of safety, livelihoods and permanent resettlement. A statement by the Bangladesh foreign ministry said the return effort envisages "considering the family as a unit," with Myanmar providing temporary shelter for those returning before rebuilding houses for them. Bangladesh would set up five transit camps to send Rohingya s to two reception centres on the Myanmar side of the border, the statement said. "Myanmar has reiterated its commitment to stop (the) outflow of Myanmar residents to Bangladesh," it said. The statement also called for repatriating orphans and "children born out of unwarranted incidence", a reference to cases of rape resulting in pregnancy, a Bangladesh foreign ministry official said. The rape of Rohingya  women by Myanmar's security forces was widespread, according to interviews with women conducted at displacement camps by UN medics and activists. The military denies it was involved in any sexual assaults. Verification process The meeting in Myanmar's capital Naypyitaw was the first for a joint working group set up to hammer out the details of the November repatriation agreement. The Myanmar government did not immediately issue its own statement after the meeting concluded on Tuesday. Ko Ko Naing, director general of Myanmar’s Relief and Resettlement Department in the Ministry of Social Welfare, told Reuters by telephone that Myanmar had signed the agreement with Bangladesh and was aiming to start the repatriation process by Jan. 23. Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay told Reuters last week the returnees could apply for citizenship "after they pass the verification process". A Myanmar agency set up to oversee repatriation said last week two temporary "repatriation and assessment camps" and one other site had been set up to accommodate returnees. Myint Kyaing, permanent secretary at Myanmar's Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population, told Reuters this month Myanmar would begin processing at least 150 people a day through each of the two camps by Jan. 23. Left out of the talks between Myanmar and Bangladesh were the fears and concerns of the refugees themselves, "as if they are an inert mass of people who will go where and when they are told," Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, told Reuters in an email. "Where are considerations for protection of the Rohingya  from Myanmar security forces who months ago were raping and killing them? How come the discussions ignore the deprivation of rights of people held in indefinite detention, which is what these so-called "temporary” accommodations may become?," Robertson asked. 'Living like prisoners' A group of refugees at the Kutupalong Rohingya  camp expressed doubt about the two "temporary settlement” camps Myanmar has agreed to establish on its side of the border. Mohammad Farouk, 20, who arrived in Bangladesh from Maungdaw following the Aug. 25 attacks, said exchanging one camp for another made little difference - except "the camps in Myanmar will be far worse, because we will be confined there and there will be a risk to our lives.” Another resident of the Kutupalong camp compared the new transit camps to ones set up near the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe following bouts of violence in previous years "where people are living like prisoners”. "First, ask the military to give those Rohingya  their homes and property back, then talk to us about returning,” said the Rohingya  refugee who did not want to be identified. Some said the kind of violence they witnessed toward their community in Myanmar made it hard for them to trust the military. "Even if I don’t get food or anything else here, at least there is safety. I won’t feel safe if I go back to Myanmar,” said Rashid Ahmed, 33. Noor Alam, 37, who came to Kutupalong five months back, wondered if he could ever get a job in Myanmar. "They don’t even call us Rohingya . Until they consider us citizens we won’t go back.” Some young men in the camp worried they might be arrested on accusations of terrorism if they returned. Camp conditions in Bangladesh are dire enough, but more than 520,000 Rohingya  children are at even greater risk ahead of the cyclone season that generally begins in April, the United Nations Children's Fund said on Tuesday. "Hundreds of thousands of children are already living in horrific conditions, and they will face an even greater risk of disease, flooding, landslides and further displacement,” said Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF Representative in Bangladesh. Nearly 1 million Rohingya  live in Bangladesh, including those who came after previous displacements dating back to the 1990s.

Officials from Bangladesh and Myanmar are to meet today to discuss how to implement a repatriation deal, signed on November 23, on the return of more than 650,000 Rohingya who have escaped an army crackdown since late August.  Buddhist-majority Myanmar has for years denied Rohingya citizenship, freedom of movement and access to many basic services such as healthcare and education. They are considered illegal immigrants from mainly Muslim Bangladesh. The authorities have said returnees could apply for citizenship if they can show their forebears have lived in Myanmar. But the latest deal – like the one in 1992 – does not guarantee citizenship and it is unclear how many would qualify. Today’s meeting in Myanmar’s capital Naypyitaw will be the first for a joint working group set up to hammer out the details of the November repatriation agreement. The group is made up of civil servants from both countries. Two senior Bangladesh officials who are involved in the talks acknowledged that much was left to be resolved and it was unclear when the first refugees could actually return. One of the key issues to be worked out was how the process for jointly verifying the identities of returnees would work, they said. “Any return is chaotic and complex,” said Shahidul Haque, Bangladesh’s top foreign ministry official who will lead Dhaka’s 14-member team in the talks. “The challenge is to create an environment conducive for their return.” Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay said returnees would be able to apply for citizenship “after they pass the verification process”. Zaw Htay added that Myanmar had proposed that a group of 500 Hindus who fled to Bangladesh and have already agreed to be repatriated, alongside 500 Muslims, could form the first batch of returnees. “The first repatriation is important – we can learn from the experiences, good or bad,”  he said. Bangladesh officials said they would begin the process this month by sharing with Myanmar authorities a list of 100,000 Rohingya, picked at random from among registered refugees. Haque said Myanmar officials would vet the names against their records of residents before the August exodus, and those approved would then be asked if they wanted to go back. Refugees without documents would be asked to identify streets, villages and other landmarks near their former homes as proof of their right to return, said Haque. A Myanmar agency set up to oversee repatriation said in a statement on Thursday that two temporary “repatriation and assessment camps” and one other site to accommodate returnees had been set up. Myint Kyaing, permanent secretary at Myanmar’s ministry of labour, immigration and population, told Reuters earlier this month that Myanmar would be ready to begin processing least 150 people a day through each of the two camps by January 23. As well as checking their credentials as residents of Myanmar, he said, authorities would check returnees against lists of suspected “terrorists”. Myint Kyaing declined to comment on how long the repatriation would take but conceded the process after the 1992 agreement had taken more than 10 years. United Nations agencies working in the camps clustered around Cox’s Bazar, in southeastern Bangladesh, have voiced scepticism about the resettlement plans. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organisation for Migration said their offers to help with the process have not been taken up by the two  countries. “Further measures are needed to ensure safe, voluntary and sustainable repatriation of refugees to their places of origin and to address the underlying root causes of the crisis,” said Caroline Gluck, a spokeswoman for UNHCR in Cox’s Bazar. The UNHCR says refugees it has surveyed want guarantees that international agencies will be involved in overseeing the process and more information about the security situation in their home areas. While many Rohingya say they want to go back to Myanmar, most of the more than a dozen who spoke to Reuters said they were scared to do so now. “I am not going back. No one’s going back,” said Hafizulla, a 37-year-old Rohingya man. “We are scared to go back without any UN intervention. They can accuse us later, they can arrest us. They may accuse us of helping the militants.” The military offensive the refugees fled, which was prompted by Rohingya insurgent attacks on police and army posts, has been described by the United States and UN as ethnic cleansing. Myanmar rejects that, saying troops did not  target civilians. “You can have all the agreements in the world, and set up all the reception centres and everything, but it won’t make a difference unless the conditions in Myanmar are such that people feel confident that they can go back and live in peace, and have equal rights,” said a  Western diplomat in Dhaka. The second Bangladesh official, Refugee Relief and Rehabilitation Commissioner Mohammed Abul Kalam, said the “Rohingyas’ reluctance to go back” was an issue that needed to be addressed. He said the repatriation process would cost “millions of dollars” but funding details had not yet been agreed and were not expected to be discussed at today’s meeting. Japan, one of Myanmar’s biggest aid donors, said on Friday it was giving an emergency grant of around $3mn to help with the return of the Rohingya.

Overcrowded train leaves Tongi rail station after the final prayer of “Bishwa Ijtema”, the world congregation of Muslims, on the banks of the Turag river in Tongi, near Dhaka, yesterday.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister Mahmood Ali receives former Indian president Pranab Mukherjee at the Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka yesterday. Mukherjee will attend a special convocation of Chittagong University tomorrow where he will be conferred honorary DLit degree.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has laid importance on literary pursuit to promote human values and sharpen rationalism in the society saying there is no alternative to engage oneself in cultivating literature for self-enlightenment and fight evil forces. “The whole world is now reeling under unrest where reign of terror and anarchies are out to suppress all good senses. We have to be enlightened with knowledge to defeat ominous forces. For this there is no alternative to literary pursuit,” she said while inaugurating the three-day International Bengali Literature Conference in Dhaka yesterday. Hasina said the civilisation is being flourished by human creativity, and language is the main medium of flourishing the creativity. “Thus, the literature is playing absolute role in the evolution of the society and civilisation.” Literary practice develops good sense in human race, unveiling their immense prospect and encouraging them to build a logical society, she said, adding that “the more a society is affluent in literature the more it’s civilised”. Dhaka University professor emeritus Dr Anisuzzaman was in the chair while litterateur Rabeya Khatun, Nikhil Bharat Banga Sahittya Sammilon general secretary Jayonta Ghosh, vice president Pradip Bhattachariya, vice president of Friends Bangladesh, India Sattyam Roy Chowdhury addressed the function, among others. Minister for Cultural Affairs Asaduzzaman Noor recited a poem of Syed Shamsul Haque. India, Japan and Germany are taking part in the conference being held on the Bangla Academy premises. Appreciating the organisers for choosing the immortal message of Gurusaday Dutt ‘Be a Bangalee with heart and soul if you want to be a universal figure’ as the theme of the conference the prime minister said all people across the world, who inherited Bengali culture and literature should always remember about their roots in Bangla. “They should not forget their identity. They have to possess their distinctiveness to survive in the global arena, as they have the glorious history of raising their heads to any injustice and indomitable willpower to accomplish any difficult task,” she said. Bengali literature is founded on the language, which is one of the richest languages of the world in terms of vocabularies, literary repository and having roots among people. Hasina said the lifestyle of the people has changed in many ways with the technological advancement. Lives have been turned easier and faster, but appeal of the literature in public life didn’t diminish. The prime minister hoped that the international literature conference would enrich the literature of different languages through exchanging and sharing of ideas and experiences of literary lovers. Bengali literature would be more enriched through arranging such literary events. The prime minister paid her rich tributes to the language martyrs and creative poets and litterateurs of Bengali literature – Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Bankim Chandra, Rabindranath Tagore, Nazrul, Jibanananda, Jasim Uddin and others - in who’s hands Bengali literature has turned into a ‘big tree’ sprouting many foliage and flowers. Hasina said Bangalee people are the only nation in the global spectrum which has set example of embracing martyrdom to protect the dignity of the mother language. “No nation can tolerate disgrace of its mother language,” she quoted Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, saying Bangabandhu in his first appearance in the United Nations in 1974, addressed the forum in Bangla aimed at establishing its grandeur and dignity at the world forum. Since her accession to power, Hasina said, she has been delivering her speech in the UN in Bangla. “Bangladesh has established the International Institute of Mother Languages for research on languages and their preservation,” she said, adding that her government is continuing its efforts to make Bangla as one of the official languages of the UN. Hasina said February 21 has received global recognition as the International Mother Language Day. “We don’t want any language to go to oblivion in the process of social transformation,” she added.  The premier hoped that the literary conference would make Bengali speaking people more aware to take care of their mother language.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday launched a three-day countrywide ‘Development Fair’ with a clarion call to all to help her government implement its development programmes to change the socioeconomic status of the people. “I seek your utmost co-operation so that our development programmes can be implemented properly,” she said. The Prime Minister said this in her introductory speech at the inaugural programme of the three-day ‘Development Fair’ at sub-district and district levels across the country from her official residence Ganobhaban through a videoconference, marking the Homecoming Day of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Sheikh Hasina also put emphasis on dissemination of information of the ongoing development programmes and those to be taken in the future among the people of the country. “Our aim is to develop the country, simplify the life and improve the living standard of people through using modern technologies...we’re achieving that goal,” she said. To her government, the Prime Minister said, development means ensuring development of the people — rural and grassroots ones. “Our development efforts are going on to take the country to a dignified position in the world.” The main objective of the fair is to inform the country’s people about the development initiatives and the ongoing programmes the government has taken to build Bangladesh as a middle-income country by 2021 and a developed one by 2041. Similar fairs will also be held abroad with a view to ensuring the participation of Bangladeshi expatriates in the development initiatives taken by the present government. The Prime Minister said the people of the country are now getting the benefits of the measures like providing free textbooks, stipends and other assistance to create an educated nation which are playing a vital role in removing poverty from the country. Education has been made multifaceted one through setting up specialised universities while steps are also being made to set up universities under public or private initiatives at every district of the country, she said. Steps have also been taken to take technological facilities and digital technology to people, the Prime Minister said adding that such move has made the lives and livelihood of the common people easier. Hasina said her government wants to see every house illuminated with the light of education. “No children will remain outside the purview of education, and no one will remain away from the touch of development.”  Later, she exchanged views with local public representatives, government officials, cross-section of people, including the beneficiaries of One House One Farm project, getting connected with Habiganj, Barguna, Chandpur, Jhenidah and Gaibandha districts through the videoconference. During the views exchange, the Prime Minister highly appreciated the initiative of the local administrations to rehabilitate beggars with one-day salaries of the government officials working there. She assured them of providing assistance from the Prime Minister’s Relief fund to make the initiative more successful. Hasina also asked the Deputy Commissioners to find out people left homeless due to river erosion or any other reasons and make a list in this regard so that the government can build houses to rehabilitate them properly. She announced that the Balashia-Bahaduarabad ferry service will come into operation next month to lessen the sufferings of the people of the northern region. The Prime Minister mentioned that the government is also considering whether there could be built any tunnel there to ease communications further. While talking to the people of Chandpur, Hasina asked the officials concerned to take measures against dragnet production and its sale to protect the delicious Hilsa fish. She also directed Barguna Deputy Commissioner to take necessary measures to develop ‘tourism industries’ in potential areas of the district. Local Government and Co-operatives Minister Engineer Khandker Mosharraf Hossain, Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu, PM’s adviser HT Imam, Deputy Speaker of parliament Fazle Rabbi Mia were present at Ganobhaban. Principal Secretary M Nojibur Rahman moderated the function, while SDG Chief Coordinator Abul Kalam Azad delivered the welcome address. A video highlighting the government’s development activities was also screened on the occasion.

Bangladesh Foreign Minister Mahmood Ali said yesterday that the issue of Rohingya influx with Myanmar has remained as an irritant in bilateral relations between the two countries and hoped there will be a new beginning with Myanmar through refugee repatriation. “With the repatriation of the Rohingya under the arrangement signed on November 23, 2017, we hope to have a new beginning with Myanmar. We hope to see the problem to be resolved permanently with sustainable return of Rohingya to Myanmar,” he said. The foreign minister said it is the policy of friendly and good neighbourly relations with neighbours that guided them through this difficult time with Myanmar.  “You’re all aware that the Rohingya influx from Myanmar to Bangladesh has soured our relations in recent times. However, we remained steadfast in our foreign policy objective and continued our bilateral engagements with Myanmar,” he said. In 2017, Minister Ali said, the world witnessed one of the fastest growing human movements of history as Myanmar orchestrated an unprecedented exodus of Rohingya from its Rakhine state.  More than 655,500 desperate Rohingya entered Bangladesh crossing a border of 40 miles only.  He said the helpless Rohingya faced worst forms of human rights violations owing to their religion and race.  “Bangladesh, as an immediate neighbour, had to bear the brunt of hosting now over 1mn forcibly displaced population in its territory,” the minister said. Given the shared political, cultural, social, economic history over centuries, the foreign minister said India remains Bangladesh’s most important partner. “Bangladesh enjoys best of its relations with its largest neighbour India.” The foreign minister was addressing a seminar titled “Changing Global Dynamics: Bangladesh Foreign Policy” highlighting on “Evolving Bangladesh Foreign Policy in the Context of Contemporary Geopolitics” at Bangladesh Institute of International and Strategic Studies (BIISS). As a natural connect between South and South-East Asia and beyond, he said Bangladesh will continue to pursue regional co-operation as an engine for sustainable growth and economic integration through Saarc, Bimstec, BBIN, SASEC, and BCIM.  He said to secure economic benefits Bangladesh will continue to forge effective partnerships with other countries. “We’ve already developed such partnerships with India, China, Japan, the UK and the US in recent years across mega infrastructure, power and energy sector projects,” he said.  On realisation of sustainable development goals, Minister Ali said Bangladesh will continue to stretch its partnership in multiple fronts for realisation of sustainable  development goals. He said human rights and fundamental freedoms are the keys to our existence. “After ending the culture of impunity through the trial of war criminals who committed genocide and crimes against humanity during our War of Liberation in 1971, we’re now focusing on international recognition of the 1971 genocide.” He said Bangladesh will continue to maintain a lead role in UN peacekeeping operations by contributing troops, police, including female peacekeepers. “We would also gradually bring more focus on peacebuilding activities,” he added. He said Bangladesh would employ mix tools and options at bilateral, regional and multilateral level to accomplish its objectives. “As we’ve done recently with the issue of Rohingya, we’ll continue to utilise our image in the multilateral forum to further our national interest,” Ali said. Over the past decade, he said, Bangladesh foreign policy has taken multiple retours keeping the basic principles of engagement intact.  “Beyond our deeper engagement with Western Europe, our outreach to Eastern Europe, Africa, Latin America has been extended to explore new markets for our products and labour and thus to best ensure Bangladesh’s economic security,” he mentioned.  In the coming days, Minister Ali said, they will continue to work together to fulfil foreign policy vision and strategy under the normative guidelines of Vision 2021 and Vision 2041.  “Drawing on our rich history and accomplishments, we’ll strive to demonstrate to the world why Bangladesh should matter. We all need to think innovative ways to accomplish that,” the minister said.  In the coming days, he said, Bangladesh will continue to pursue its peace-centric and sustainable development focused approach in the international forum.

Temperatures in subtropical Bangladesh hit a 70-year-low on Monday as authorities handed out tens of thousands of blankets to help the poor fight a record cold spell, officials said. The mercury plunged to a frigid 2.6 degrees Celsius in some parts of Bangladesh, well below average in the low-lying riverine nation whose 160 million citizens are used to milder winters. "It is the lowest temperature since authorities started keeping records in 1948," Shamsuddin Ahmed, head of the Bangladesh Meteorological Department, told AFP. The previous low of 2.8 degrees was recorded in 1968, he added. Ahmed said Bangladesh was in the "grip of a severe cold wave", with temperatures dipping across all northern districts over the past few days. The coldest temperatures were recorded in the border town of Tetulia, about 400 kilometres north of the capital Dhaka. One local broadcaster reported that at least nine people had died from exposure, including six in one of the coldest locations in the northern district of Kurigram. Officials said they were not aware of any deaths so far. Authorities have distributed at least 70,000 blankets to poorer Bangladeshis shivering in the coldest areas of Panchagarh and Nilphamari, government administrators in those two districts said. Panchagarh administrator Jahirul Islam told AFP more blankets were expected to arrive on Tuesday when a senior government minister toured the rural region. The cold snap comes as records tumbled on a frosty US East Coast, with New York on Sunday shivering through minus 15.5 degrees Celsius in the wake of a deadly winter storm blamed for at least 22 deaths last week. At the other end of the scale, Australia's largest city Sydney on Sunday recorded its hottest day since 1939, as the mercury soared to 47.3 degree Celsius.