Bangladesh is hosting a three-day international conference in Cox’s Bazar to address the ongoing Rohingya refugee crisis, focusing on sustainable solutions and repatriation.
The event, held at the Hotel Baywatch auditorium in Inani, Ukhiya, is organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the office of the High Representative on Rohingya Affairs.
It precedes a high-level UN General Assembly meeting on September 30 in New York.
Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, leading Bangladesh’s interim government, will inaugurate the conference, joined by foreign ministers, UN representatives, and diplomats.
The summit includes 100 Rohingya representatives from the world’s largest refugee camps, where 1.5 million people face food and medicine shortages due to aid cuts.
The conference seeks to amplify Rohingya voices, unheard internationally since the 2017 Myanmar military crackdown that displaced them, described as a genocide.
Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar endure severe hardship, with food rations slashed from $12 to $6 monthly, limiting diets to rice and pulses.
Criminal activities like murder and extortion in camps have strained local relations, highlighting the urgency of solutions.
Muhammad Zubair, president of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights, expressed optimism, stating the conference could pave the way for repatriation to Myanmar.
The UN has called for citizenship and security for the Rohingya, emphasizing the need to end impunity in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, where conditions have worsened since 2023.
Fatema Begum, a Rohingya woman, voiced frustration: “Why can’t powerful nations pressure Myanmar’s junta government? How long will we remain exiled in these camps?”
The Cox’s Bazar summit aims to strengthen global support and explore repatriation, with hopes that outcomes will influence the upcoming UN meeting and a potential conference in Qatar in December.