Chief Adviser’s High Representative Dr. Khalilur Rahman today said the Myanmar authorities will soon start the process of reviewing the names of 5.5 lakh Rohingyas.
He disclosed this information at a press briefing at the Foreign Service Academy this afternoon.
Dr Khalilur said he met with U Than Shew, the Deputy Prime Minister and foreign minister of Myanmar, on the sidelines of the sixth BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok.
Claiming that there was progress on the Rohingya issue, he said the Myanmar authorities identified 180,000 Rohingyas out of 2,50,000 eligible for return to Myanmar.
There was some confusion over the names and photos of 70,000 Rohingyas, and Bangladesh and Myanmar will continue talks to resolve the confusion, he said.
The high representative said Bangladesh sent a list of 800,000 Rohingyas to Myanmar in six batches during 2018-20.
He said the Myanmar authorities told him they would conclude the review of the remaining 5.5 lakh as soon as possible.
Regarding the outcomes of the BIMSTEC Summit, Dr Khalilur said Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus has been elected the chairman of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) for the next two years, and he vowed to advance BIMSTEC as a dynamic organisation.
He said, mentioning that the BIMSTEC secretariat is now located in Dhaka, “We hope that we can work together.”
He said there was no progress in the much-talked-about Free Trade Agreement (FTA) among the BIMSTEC member states, but Dhaka will commence efforts to accelerate the process.
The high representative said an agreement on maritime transport cooperation was signed among the member states during the BIMSTEC summit.
“We hope that maritime transportation, port management and regional cooperation will be strengthened. Connectivity will be improved (among the member states),” he added.
The sixth BIMSTEC Summit was recently held in Bangkok, Thailand.
Cox’s Bazar Life Desk/BSS
