Dhaka: State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam has sought support of the member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for creating a conducive situation in Myanmar for safe and dignified repatriation of the forcibly displaced Rohingya people.
“By opening our borders to the persecuted Rohingyas, Bangladesh has not only saved lives but also stabilized the entire region,” he said while briefing OIC ambassadors and delegates about the evolving situation with the crisis in Geneva on Thursday, according to a message received here today.
“The international community has a shared responsibility to help restore the Rohingyas’ fundamental rights and freedoms, including their right to return to Myanmar in safety and dignity,” he added.
The state minister arrived in Geneva on Wednesday to attend the launch of the UN Joint Response Plan for the Rohingya Humanitarian Crisis for 2019. The launch will take place at an event at the UN in the Swiss city of Geneva today.
Alam raised the possibility of creating a civilian “safe zone” for the returnee Rohingyas in Myanmar, to be monitored by the human rights and humanitarian outfits in the concerned regional context.
He also shared information on the government’s plans to relocate a portion of the Rohingya population in Cox’s Bazar to the Bhashan Char island in consultation with all concerned stakeholders.
The OIC ambassadors and delegates from Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Indonesia, Pakistan, Lebanon, Jordan, Libya, State of Palestine and the Maldives reaffirmed their solidarity with the forcibly displaced Rohingyas and commended Bangladesh for its generosity in hosting them.
The OIC member states reiterated their commitment to help find a peaceful and lasting solution to the crisis through sustained engagement in the relevant human rights and humanitarian fora in Geneva.
The state minister also had a bilateral meeting with Michelle Bachelet, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, where they discussed the latest developments with the Rohingya crisis.
The high commissioner conveyed her personal greetings to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, and congratulated Bangladesh on its reelection to the Human Rights Council (HRC).
She assured of continued engagement of her office in realizing the newly-elected government’s commitments to promoting the rule of law, good governance and human rights.
Alam said that in course of its efforts to further consolidate democracy and sustainable development, the government of Bangladesh would make all possible efforts to deliver on the huge mandate given by the electorate.
He thanked the high commissioner for her office’s participation in the seminar on Bangladesh and Human Rights held on February 10 in 2019 in Dhaka.
High Commissioner Bachelet welcomed Bangladesh’s positive consideration of developing an Action Plan for implementing the recommendations from its 3rd cycle Universal Periodic Review in HRC last year.
The state minister earlier had a meeting with Houlin Zhao, Secretary General of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU).
The Secretary General congratulated Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on her reelection, and recalled his previous visits to Dhaka to witness the progress with “Digital Bangladesh”.
He expressed his wish to visit places outside the capital next time to experience the real impact of the government’s broad-based digitization efforts.
Zhao said that the Bangladesh narrative is a good model for the ITU to promote among other developing countries.
He invited Bangladesh to actively engage in the development of international telecommunications standards.
Alam encouraged the ITU to contribute further to member states’ capacity building for cyber security through existing regional arrangements.
He assured the secretary general of doing Bangladesh’s part in helping ITU achieve its strategic goals and targets till 2023.
