Why Delhi is cagey over keeping Rohingyas
The Indian government seems firm on sending back Rohingya Muslims who have fled the violence they are facing in Myanmar.
A day after the Supreme Court asked the Centre to explain why it wanted the deportation, minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju said on Tuesday, “Rohingya are illegal immigrants and they need to be deported as per law.”
On a two-day visit to Myanmar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday came out in support of Aung San Suu Kyi, who is under intense international pressure over 125,000 Rohingya Muslims who fled the military crackdown in the northwestern Rakhine state.
“Your leadership in Myanmar’s peace process is commendable, we understand your challenges,” Modi said after talks with Suu Kyi in capital Nay Pyi Daw, adding the two countries would jointly fight terror.
There are 40,000 Rohingya Muslims in India. Of them, 16,500 carry United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards, which should ideally prevent them from being arbitrarily arrested, detained or deported.
Whether countries are bound to take in refugees is a complex question with moral, legal and political dimensions.
To begin with, the principle of non-refoulement, or not forcing refugees or asylum seekers to return to the country they fled, is part of a customary international law is binding on all states.
Legally, the government can argue against it, as India is not a signatory to the 1951 United Nations Refugee Convention or its 1967 Protocol.
The convention has 140 signatories and India is the only exception among liberal democracies in the world.
The UN body did play an important role during the refugee crisis of 1971, when around nine million people came to India to escape the violence in the then East Pakistan. But the UNHCR insisted on repatriation of refugees even as New Delhi pointed to the violence unleashed on them by Pakistani forces.
Ethnic groups account for 35% of Myanmar’s population and are seeking greater political representation — a point of friction between the army and Suu Kyi’s government. The groups are also pushing for a federal structure to give them a bigger play in parliament but the army, which has 25% seats reserved in the House, worries it could be at its cost.
For tactical reasons, India has to strike a balance between the army and the government.
Myanmar’s constitution recognises 135 ethnic groups but not the Rohingya, described as the most persecuted people in the world. India has little incentive to get involved as Myanmar denies them citizenship.
There are protests against their presence in India that have the backing of the groups that support the government.
India shares 1,600km boundary with Myanmar. Many of the insurgents group operating in the Northeast are in hiding in Myanmar, where they have set up training camps.
New Delhi is unlikely to give into pressure from the West considering its security concerns.
South Asian countries are wary of refugees on two counts — security concerns and demographic balance.
For instance, the presence of a large number of Rohingya Muslims in Jammu and Kashmir is a concern for the Indian security establishment.
The BJP has for years raised the issue of Bangladeshi migrants in Assam, accusing the Congress of changing the demography of the northeastern state for political gains.
Sending back illegal migrants was one of its main poll promises in the 2016 election that saw the party sweep to power in the state for the first time.