January 29, 2024
DHAKA – UN Resident Coordinator in Bangladesh Gwyn Lewis said today that it is not a good time for Rohingya repatriation.
She made the comment when asked about the escalation of conflicts in Myanmar where rebel groups have taken control of much of the country and the military getting weak.
The UN Dhaka chief paid a courtesy call on Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, her first meeting with the new foreign minister.
Asked if the UN asked Bangladesh to accept Rohingyas as many of them are getting displaced in Rakhine State, Lewis said that there is no movement of Rohingyas across the Bangladesh-Myanmar border following the conflicts in the Rakhine state.
“So, there is no request,” she said.
Bangladesh earlier gave shelter to over 1.1 million Rohingyas who fled ethnic cleansing.
Asked whether the UN was working to create good conditions for Rohingyas to return, she said it was a political issue between the countries and at the UN level, the secretary general was engaged in a systematic way.
Gwyn Lewis said she had discussed about the development issues, particularly climate change, Bangladesh’s graduation from the LDC and the Rohingya response during her interaction with the foreign minister.