Bangladesh, Myanmar aim to finish Rohingya return in 2 years

Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.

Rohingya Muslims offer prayers before the burial of a fellow refugee at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

The ministry said a joint working group from the two countries finalized an agreement on Monday on the physical arrangements for the repatriation of the ethnic Rohingya. It said they agreed that the process "would be completed preferably within two years from the commencement of repatriation."

Myanmar and Bangladesh signed an initial agreement in November to repatriate the Rohingya, and the 30-member working group was set up last month to oversee the process. Many have questions whether Rohingya would return to Myanmar under the current circumstances, and whether Myanmar would accept them and allow them to live freely.

Rohingya Muslims refugees talk on their way to their makeshift tents at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Under the November agreement, Rohingya will need to provide evidence of their residency in Myanmar in order to return — something many say they do not have.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR was consulted but it's very important the agency is fully involved to guarantee the repatriation adheres to international standards.

A Rohingya refugee boy extends his hand to receive relief material at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

It's essential the return of the Rohingyas is voluntary, takes place "in safety and dignity," and allows them to return to their homes which will require a huge investment for reconstruction because of the destruction, he said.

It will also require "a huge effort of reconciliation is needed to allow it to take place properly," Guterres said.

"The worst would be to move these people from camps in Bangladesh to camps in Myanmar, keeping an artificial situation for a long time and not allowing for them to regain their normal lives," said Guterres, who was previously the U.N. high commissioner for refugees for 10 years.

A Rohingya Hindu refugees boy swings outside his tent near Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

More than 650,000 ethnic Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since August, when Myanmar's military launched a brutal crackdown in Rakhine state after a militant group attacked police posts. Myanmar's army described it as "clearance operations" against terrorists, but the United Nations and the U.S. have called it "ethnic cleansing."

Despite having lived in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar for generations, Rohingya Muslims have been denied citizenship, freedom of movement and access to basic social rights. They are generally called "Bengalis," a reference to the belief that they migrated illegally from Bangladesh.

A Rohingya Muslim offers afternoon prayers at a make shift Mosque at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Arif Hossein, a former teacher in a Myanmar government school who fled to the Kutupalong Refugee Camp in Bangladesh after violence erupted in August, said he would return if the international organizations working to protect the refugees are able to go along.

"And if we get a nationality identity card in Myanmar, then we are more than willing to go back. We really wish to go back to our land. They should return our land and also rebuild our homes," he said.

Rohingya refugee stand and watch as others receive relief material at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Myanmar officials said the length of the repatriation will depend on how quickly Bangladesh can provide documentation of refugees' previous residency and how fast applications are submitted.

"Even though we are talking about a two-year process, it totally depends on how the two countries cooperate," Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay said. "Bangladesh authorities also need to proceed with the paperwork and documents for refugees and send it to us fast."

Rohingya refugee carry relief material at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

Since the November agreement, Myanmar's civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi has pledged to take measures to halt the outflow of Rohingya to Bangladesh and restore normalcy in the Rakhine region.

Myanmar officials plan to start the repatriation process next Tuesday. Zaw Htay said at least 500 Hindus and 500 Muslims will be in the first group to return.

A Rohingya boy looks up as others study Islam's holy book of Quran in a make shift Mosque at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

State-run media in Myanmar reported Monday that a camp is being prepared that can accommodate about 30,000 people in 625 buildings, and that at least 100 buildings will be completed by the end of the month. It would be the first camp built in the repatriation process.

A Bangladeshi officer takes the photograph of a Rohingya boy while his mother holds him during the process of registration at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said the discussions between Myanmar and Bangladesh failed to include any understanding of what the Rohingya want.

"Where are considerations for protection of the Rohingya from Myanmar security forces who months ago were raping and killing them?" said Phil Robertson, deputy director of the group's Asia Division. "Why are basic issues like citizenship, freedom of movement, and livelihoods not discussed now so refugees can make informed choices?"

Rohingya Hindu refugees stand outside their make shift shelters at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's bazar, Bangladesh, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed that they will try to complete the repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who fled from violence in Myanmar within two years, Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — A court in southeastern Bangladesh on Thursday rejected a plea for bail by a jailed Hindu leader who led large rallies in the Muslim-majority country demanding better security for minority groups.

Krishna Das Prabhu, 39, faces sedition charges after he led huge rallies in the southeastern city of Chattogram. Hindu groups say there have been thousands of attacks against Hindus since early August, when the secular government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was overthrown.

Prabhu didn't appear at the hearing, during which Chattogram Metropolitan Sessions Judge Saiful Islam rejected the bail plea, according to Public Prosecutor Mofizul Haque Bhuiyan. Security was tight, with police and soldiers guarding the court.

“He faces serious charges like sedition and others involving the security and sovereignty of our country," Bhuiyan told The Associated Press by phone. "We argued in the court that if he gets bail it could create anarchy as we saw in the past that he triggered violence on the court premises by calling thousands of his supporters to protest.

"So, we moved against his bail plea as we believed that he could misuse his bail.”

Apurba Kumar Bhattacharjee, a lawyer representing Prabhu, said that they would appeal the decision.

The court rejected an earlier request for bail made while Prabhu didn't have lawyers. Lawyers who sought to represent him at that hearing said they were threatened or intimidated, and many of them are facing charges related to the death of a Muslim lawyer during clashes outside the court when Prabhu appeared there shortly after being arrested in Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka, in November.

For Thursday's hearing, 11 lawyers traveled from Dhaka, arriving and leaving with a security escort.

Hindu groups and other minority groups in Bangladesh and abroad have criticized the interim government led by Nobel peace laureate Muhammad Yunus for undermining their security. Yunus and his supporters said that reports of attacks on Hindus and other groups since August have been exaggerated.

Prabhu’s arrest came as tensions spiked following reports of the desecration of the Indian flag in Bangladesh, with some burning it and others laying it on the floor for people to step on. Protesters in India responded in kind.

Prabhu is a spokesman for the Bangladesh Sammilito Sanatan Jagaran Jote group. He was also associated with the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, widely known as the Hare Krishna movement.

Radharamn Das, vice president and spokesman of the group in Kolkata, the capital of India's West Bengal state, told the television station India Today that Prabhu's health is deteriorating.

Das said that the jailed Hindu leader "has become a face of minorities in Bangladesh. The minorities see him as a ray of hope. He represents their voice."

Police officials block a street leading to the court during the hearing of the bail plea by Krishna Das Prabhu, a jailed Hindu leader, in Chattogram, Bangladesh, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo)

Police officials clear the way for the vehicle carrying Krishna Das Prabhu, a jailed Hindu leader, after a court rejected his plea for bail, in Chattogram, Bangladesh, Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025. (AP Photo)