The government has placed two proposals seeking assistance from the international community to relocate more Rohingyas to Bhasan Char island from the camps in Cox's Bazar for the well-being of the displaced Myanmar nationals.
Under the proposals, Dhaka wants foreign countries and agencies to bear the expenses of the relocation and provide assistance to construct more infrastructures in Bhashan Char to make the remaining two-thirds area of the island livable for the displaced people.
PM's Principal Secretary M Tofazzel Hossain Miah placed the proposals in a meeting with foreign diplomats and representatives stationed in Dhaka, held at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday.
Representatives from 17 countries and agencies, including Australia, US, UK, France, Germany and UNHCR, attended the meeting.
“We have told the international community that the more people we can shift to Bhashan Char in a very quick time, the more their safety and the betterment of their children will be ensured. So now we have given them two proposals,” the principal secretary told the media after the meeting.
About the first proposal, he said housing for 100,000 people was built in Bhasan Char and only 30,000 people have so far been moved there.
“Now we want to shift 70,000 more people to the place, which is an expensive matter. We ask the friendly countries who work with us to bear the cost of taking these people from Cox's Bazar to Bhasan Char. The prime minister seriously wants it,” he added.
Talking about the second proposal, Tofazzel said only one-third of the land of Bhashan Char was used (for infrastructure to house 100,000 Rohingyas) and now the prime minister wants the infrastructure to be constructed in the remaining two-thirds of the land and more Rohingyas to be taken there.
“So Bangladesh has sought assistance [from foreign friends] to construct new infrastructures,” he said.
In the meeting, the foreign countries and agencies were asked to put importance on the Rohingya issue in different international forums, he said.
The principal secretary said Rohingyas will get better life and livelihood in Bhasan Char as they get skill-development training and opportunities for agricultural work including raising chickens and ducks, and rearing cows and goats.
He mentioned that the Rohingyas taken to Bhashan Char are brought to mainland camps to meet their relatives in Cox's Bazar regularly.
Turning to the sufferings of the Rohingyas in Cox's Bazar, he said several social problems, including internal conflicts, infighting, arson, killing and trafficking, are being created due to their prolonged stay there. Many of them are involved in the drug business, he added.
Noting that the fund to conduct humanitarian activities for Rohingyas is not being received as per the commitment of the donors, Tofazzel said Bangladesh received some $586 million, which is 62% of the committed amount of $876 million in 2022. So Bangladesh asked the friendly countries to provide the increased amount, he added.
He said the government spent some Tk3,100 crore only to prepare Bhasan Char.
Australian High Commissioner Jeremy Brewer, Canadian High Commissioner Lilly Nicholls, EU Ambassador Charles Whiteley, UK High Commissioner Robert Chatterton Dickson, US Ambassador Peter D Haas, French Ambassador Marie Masdupuy, German Ambassador Achim Troster, Swedish Ambassador Alexandra Berg von Linde, UN Resident Coordinator Gwyn Lewis, UNHCR Representative Johannes van der Klaauw, WFP Resident Representative Dom Scalpelli, Chargés d'affaires of Switzerland Embassy Suzanne Mueller, Deputy Head of Japanese Mission Machida Tatsuya, Deputy Chief of Netherlands Embassy Thijs Woudstra, Deputy Chief of Turkish Embassy Batuhan Gurhan, Head of Cooperation for Rohingya Refugees and Host Communities Program of Canadian High Commission Vivek Prakash and Regional Refugee Coordinator of the US Embassy Mackenzie Rowe attended the meeting.
Top officials of different ministries concerned including the senior secretaries of the Foreign Ministry and the Public Security Division, and the secretaries of the Relief and Disaster Management Ministry and the PMO, were present in the meeting.
