High Representative to Chief Adviser Dr Khalilur Rahman on Wednesday categorically said that the government has not discussed, nor intends to discuss, granting a "corridor" to Myanmar through Bangladesh with any party.
"I want to say it unequivocally, we have not talked to anyone about the corridor, and we will not talk to anyone," said Dr Khalilur Rahman, national security adviser.
Dr Khalilur Rahman said that the rumours about the UN corridor in Myanmar have been circulating.
He said this at a press conference at the Foreign Service Academy on Bailey Road in the capital on Wednesday afternoon.
Khalilur Rahman also said: "The corridor system should be understood as it is a system for evacuating people from disaster-stricken areas in an emergency. We are not evacuating anyone here."
'No corridor needed'
Stating that there is no need for a corridor in the current situation in Arakan, he said: "There is no need to create a corridor and arrange for any kind of movement of people there now. What is needed is to deliver relief."
Khalilur Rahman said: "Since aid and assistance in Arakan is not possible through other supply routes, the UN has only told us that since the border is nearby, we should help them so that the relief can be taken across. The UN will deliver relief to Rakhine through its own partner organizations. If you ask the UN, you will get proof. We have not talked to anyone about the corridor and will not talk about it. There is no need for a corridor in the current situation in Arakan."
He said: "When the earthquake hit Myanmar, we didn’t wait for their request. We sent relief. This is a humanitarian position. We think that if we can do this, the situation there will be somewhat stable, and we will be able to discuss the repatriation of the Rohingya at that time."
He further said: "So far, 1.2 million Rohingya refugees have taken refuge in Bangladesh. Since this government took charge, we have made every effort to bring this issue back to the international agenda. Earlier, this issue had almost disappeared for seven years. The Rohingya issue had fallen further behind in the recent Gaza and Ukraine issues."
The national security adviser said a conference will be held at the UN Secretariat on September 30.
"We have thought from the beginning that the solution to this problem is the return of the Rohingyas to Myanmar. This is the solution. We have worked tirelessly with the international community on this issue. The UN Secretary-General came last March," he added.
He said that the solution to this problem is repatriation to Myanmar and get a decision from the Myanmar government on who will go back.
"Last February, I had a bilateral meeting with the special envoy of the Myanmar junta government. In that meeting, they indicated for the first time that out of these 800,000 Rohingya, they had completed the verification of 250,000 Rohingya. Of these, they had identified 180,000 as eligible for repatriation. And the remaining 70,000 had problems with photos and some information. They will sit down with us and resolve them. As a result, we received the first list of Rohingya eligible for repatriation. These were urgent tasks for repatriation, which had not been done in the past," he said.
Khalilur Rahman said: "There is a widespread shortage of food and medicine in the Rakhine region. According to the UNDP report, there is a terrible humanitarian crisis there. We fear that they may come to our country without getting food and medicine. The Rohingya are especially at risk, they may have a higher tendency to come to our country. At various times, the Rakhine community has come to our border asking for food and medicine. If they start coming, we will have to face a new type of crisis. We want to avoid that."
The UN activities that are going on in Myanmar are no longer possible in Rakhine. "Due to the war situation, it is not possible to take any kind of humanitarian relief to Rakhine. The UN secretary-general came to us last March and told us whether we can provide relief assistance to Rakhine? We are considering the matter. But there are several requirements for this," he added.
He also said: "We have directly told the Arakan Army that we will not tolerate any kind of ethnic cleansing. If they want to operate only through Rakhine, we will not be able to accept it. We hope they will give a good response. We want to resolve this problem peacefully."
Khalilur Rahman said: "All options for Rohingya repatriation will be on our table. We will solve this problem with all our diplomatic capabilities."
On the other hand, raising the issue of nationality at the press conference, Khalilur Rahman said: "There is a discussion about my nationality. I have only one nationality, Bangladeshi."
He further said: "I have stayed in the United States with my family. But I do not have an American passport. I do not have the nationality of any other country except Bangladesh."
"If I am called a foreign citizen because of my stay in the United States, then tomorrow I will tell Tarique Rahman too. I will appeal and speak with some understanding. If you throw stones at me, that stone may also fall on someone else," he said.
Khalilur Rahman further said: "Please do not make me something that I am not. If you can, prove it, go to court and prove it. I have a right as a citizen of Bangladesh. That right should be protected."
