Bangladesh revives plan for island refuge
DHAKA: Bangladesh, one of the world’s poorest and most crowded nations, plans to go ahead with work to develop an isolated, floodprone island in the Bay of Bengal to temporarily house tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees fleeing violence in neighbouring Myanmar, officials said.
Dhaka says the Rohingya are not welcome, and has told border guards to push back those trying to enter the country illegally.
But close to 125,000 Rohingya have crossed into Bangladesh in just 10 days, joining more than 400,000 others already living there in cramped makeshift camps.
“We are stopping them wherever we can, but there are areas where we can’t stop them because of the nature of the border; forests, hills,” said H.T. Imam, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s political adviser.
“We have requested international agencies for help to shift the Rohingya temporarily into a place where they can live – an island called Thengar Char. Developing Thengar Char should be given serious consideration,” he said.
The island, which only emerged from the silt off Bangladesh’s delta coast 11 years ago, is two hours by boat from the nearest settlement. It regularly floods during JuneSeptember monsoons and, when seas are calm, pirates roam the nearby waters to kidnap fishermen for ransom.
Flat and featureless, Thengar Char has no roads or buildings. When visited in February, a few buffalo grazing along its shores were the only sign of life.
The plan to develop the island and use it to house refugees was criticised by humanitarian workers when it was proposed in 2015 and revived last year.
“The honourable prime minister wants to resettle them in Thengar Char, though some people say that island will not be a suitable place for them,” said another Hasina aide.
“But there are many such areas in Bangladesh, where Bangladeshis live. It’s our country, and we decide.” — Reuters