Nine years on, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh rally for safe return to Rakhine

Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees living in camps in Bangladesh held a rally on Tuesday, demanding a safe return to their home state in Myanmar, nine years after they fled a military crackdown. The demonstrators urged the international community to ensure security in Rakhine State as they observed what they call the “Ninth Anniversary of Rohingya Genocide Day”.

More than one million refugees from Myanmar’s Rohingya ethnic and religious minority now live in sprawling camps around the Cox’s Bazar district of southeastern Bangladesh. Most of them crossed the border in a mass exodus in 2017, after Buddhist-majority Myanmar launched a crackdown in Rakhine following an attack by a Rohingya Muslim insurgent group.

The Bangladesh government has attempted to start repatriation at least twice, but no refugees have agreed to return, citing security concerns. Bangladesh says it will not force anyone to go back.

In January, the International Court of Justice held hearings in a case accusing Myanmar of genocide against the Rohingya in Rakhine State in 2017. During three weeks of hearings, the court reviewed documentary evidence, expert testimony, and private witness statements concerning mass killings, systematic sexual violence, and the destruction of villages.

Myanmar has denied the allegations, telling the court that its military campaign was a legitimate counter-terrorism operation and did not amount to genocide. However, the scale and ferocity of the operation led to accusations of ethnic cleansing from the international community, including the United Nations.

In recent years, the security situation in Rakhine has become more volatile, with the Arakan Army fighting Myanmar government forces. “Whether it is the Arakan Army or the Myanmar military, as long as they continue playing this double game, the situation in Arakan, or Rakhine, will not become safe. Does that mean we are expected to remain here for another 50 years?” said Rohingya refugee leader Sayed Ullah on Tuesday. “We cannot stay here for 50 years. Given the current situation in Arakan, we need to determine how an environment conducive to peace can be created,” he added.

Earlier this month, Myanmar’s military-backed government said that more than 300,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are former residents of Rakhine State and that it will accept their return once security conditions improve. Bangladesh has disputed Myanmar’s statistics and its persistent refusal to use the term “Rohingya”, noting that labelling them as “Bengali” is an attempt to deny their identity.