differences remain
Although a trilateral meeting was held in Kunming last month, three countries – Bangladesh, Myanmar and China – attended the talks separately. Later all the three countries sit together for discussion.
According to diplomatic sources, in the tripartite meeting, Bangladesh sought a plan to repatriate the Rohingyas. Later, it was decided that 6,000 Rohingyas would be taken back to Rakhine in 5 phases by December, 1,200 people in each phase. The next meeting will be held in December to review the decisions taken in the meeting.
However, despite the decision at the Kunming meeting to repatriate 1,176 Rohingyas and accommodate another 6,000 Rohingyas, there are still some unresolved differences between Bangladesh and Myanmar.
According to the repatriation agreement signed between Bangladesh and Myanmar, 1,500 Rohingya will be repatriated, 300 per day, 5 days a week. But Myanmar now says that 150 Rohingya could be taken back to Rakhine, 30 people a day, 5 days a week, due to lack of preparation. Meanwhile, Bangladesh says that according to the terms of the agreement, the Rohingyas should be taken back.
Incidentally, just three months after the influx of Rohingya people into Bangladesh in August 2017, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed with Myanmar under pressure from China.
At that time, Wang Yi, the then Foreign Minister of China, visited Bangladesh and Myanmar several times.
Despite China’s intervention, it was said that Bangladesh and Myanmar are trying to solve this problem bilaterally. Wang Yi was in Naypyidaw during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on Rohingya Repatriation on 23 November 2017.