Four Bangladeshi fishermen have returned from Myanmar after serving nine years in jail in the neighbouring country.
They were brought back through a flag meeting between Bangladesh and Myanmar border guards at the Maungdaw immigration centre on Wednesday afternoon.
A delegation of Myanmar immigration department handed over the four fishermen to Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel.
They are Md Jasim, Md Elias, Azgar Ali and Sabbir Ahmad. All of them are from Nazirpara and Moulvipara areas under Teknaf Sadar.
BGB officials said the four men were placed into the Teknaf police custody to be handed over to their families.
Teknaf-based BGB 2nd battalion Acting Commanding Officer Maj Shariful Islam Jamaddar had led the 11-member delegation into the flag meeting with the eight-member Myanmar side.
According to the BGB, the four fishermen were arrested by a Myanmar law enforcement agency in 2009 after they illegally entered the country’s territory on a fishing trip.
All four were later sentenced to 25 years in prison each by a Myanmar court. But the Myanmar government pardoned them after they served nine and half years behind bars.
Maj Shariful said the fishermen were brought back after Myanmar’s foreign and home ministries gave the green light.
“However, there are still more Bangladeshis in Myanmar’s prison. We are also trying to bring them back through the same process,” he added.
