Rohingya remain stranded at sea as Delhi and Dhaka are evasive about refugees

BANGLADESH is under “no obligation” to shelter 81 Rohingya Muslim refugees adrift for almost two weeks on the Andaman Sea and being assisted by India, said Bangladesh foreign minister AK Abdul Momen.

India’s coast guard found the 81 survivors and eight dead crammed onto a crippled fishing boat and were trying to arrange for Bangladesh to take them, Indian officials said last Friday (26).

But Momen said late last Friday that Bangladesh expects India, the closest country, or Myanmar, the Rohingyas’ country of origin, to accept them.

“They are not Bangladesh nationals and in fact, they are Myanmar

nationals. They were found 1,700 km (1,100 miles) away from the Bangladesh maritime territory and therefore, we have no obligation to take them,” said Momen, who is in the United States.

“They were located 147 km (91 miles) away from Indian territory, 324 km (201 miles) away from Myanmar,” he said by phone, adding other countries and organisations should take care of the refugees.

India’s coast guard repaired the vessel, but did not permit it to enter Indian waters, and instead wanted it to return to Bangladesh.

Indian foreign ministry officials did not respond to requests for comment. External affairs ministry spokesman Anurag Srivastava said last Thursday (25) India was “in discussions with the government of Bangladesh to ensure their safe and secure repatriation.”

The Indian ministry did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would accept the refugees onto Indian soil. A senior Indian official, who declined to be named as he was not authorised to discuss the matter with media, said India planned to help the refugees with food and water, but it was not planning to take them ashore.

New Delhi did not sign the 1951 Refugee Convention, which spells out refugee rights.and state responsibilities to protect them.