Twenty-nine Bangladeshi citizens returned home on Tuesday after serving jail terms in different prisons in Myanmar.
They came back to Bangladesh through the Teknaf border following a battalion commander-level flag meeting between the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and the Border Guard Police (BGP) of Myanmar.
The steadfast and continued efforts by the Bangladesh embassy in Yangon and its Sittwe consulate made the latest repatriation possible after a long hiatus of 18 months when 41 Bangladeshi nationals were repatriated from Myanmar on March 23, 2022, said the Yangon mission.
Among the returnees, 23 are from Cox’s Bazar, four from Bandarban and two from Rangamati. The BGP had detained the Bangladeshis on charges of illegally crossing the border into Myanmar at different times.
Lt Col Mohiuddin, commander of the BGB’s Teknaf battalion, led the 10-member Bangladesh team, which included, among others, Zakir Ahmed, consul of the Bangladesh consulate in Sittwe, during the handover.
Bangladesh Ambassador to Myanmar Dr Md Monwar Hossain on September 27 met Lt Gen Yar Pyae, union minister for home affairs of Myanmar, in Naypyidaw and requested facilitation of the repatriation of the said Bangladeshi nationals at the earliest.
Following the meeting, authorities in Myanmar confirmed the proposed flag meeting for October 3. Bangladesh's consulate in Sittwe played an important role in this repatriation by issuing necessary travel documents and coordinating with the BGP and BGB.
