Jurist Rohingya face ‘catastrophic’ risks in premature return to Myanmar, rights group warns

[Dadparvar]

Amnesty International on Monday cautioned against what it called a “dangerously premature” push to repatriate Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh to Myanmar, warning that repatriation under existing conditions in northern Rakhine State “could be catastrophic.

The rights group warned of harrowing conditions that could face the returning Rohingya—a predominantly Muslim ethnic group from Myanmar’s Rakhine State who have faced decades of systematic persecution. In particular, advocates pointed to concerns of forced labor, severe food shortages, health crises, and escalating violence, alongside discriminatory restrictions on movement. Amnesty’s warning comes ahead of a UN General Assembly high-level conference on the Rohingya and other minorities in Myanmar scheduled for Tuesday. The conference aims to formulate a plan for the return of more than one million Rohingya refugees currently living in Bangladesh.

Amnesty International researcher Joe Freeman said:

Existing conditions in Myanmar’s northern Rakhine State are nowhere near ready for Rohingya to return safely. The Arakan Army has, to many Rohingya, replaced the Myanmar military as their oppressor. The military are using Rohingya civilians as cannon fodder to fight against the Arakan Army, and Rohingya armed groups are launching new attacks into the territory. The dramatic reduction of US aid has further contributed to a humanitarian crisis in which supplies arescarceand prices are skyrocketing. … While it is vitally important to put an international spotlight on the Rohingya crisis with this conference, any attempt to push ahead with repatriation without addressing the acute dangers facing all communities – Rohingya, Rakhine and other ethnic minorities in Bangladesh and in Myanmar – could be catastrophic.

The Arakan Army, which seized control of much of northern Rakhine from the Myanmar military in 2024, disputes allegations of forced labor or discriminatory restrictions, claiming that such measures are necessary for community security amid ongoing conflict, apply equally to Rakhine communities, and that detainees such as convicted criminals may be assigned work tasks. Despite these denials, Amnesty emphasized that the situation for Rohingya under Arakan Army control remains dire and that both the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army have committed abuses that violate international humanitarian law.

Other rights groups such as Human Rights Watch (HRW) have also condemned the expulsion of Rohingya refugees to Bangladesh and Myanmar “without rights protections”. HRW has also accused the Arakan Army of human rights abuses against the Rohingya population.

More than one million—an estimated 1.2 million total—fled to Bangladesh following a 2016-2017 military campaign described by the UN as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing.” Smaller numbers of Rohingya also sought refuge in India, where many remain in legal and social limbo.

The post Rohingya face ‘catastrophic’ risks in premature return to Myanmar, rights group warns appeared first on JURIST - News.

Continue reading...

Note: We don't have any responsibilities about this news. Its been posted here by Feed Reader and we had no controls and checking on it. And because News posted here will be deleted automatically after 21 days, threads are closed so that no one spend time to post and discuss here. You can always check the source and discuss in their site.