It doesn’t matter who is in power, FM says on Rohingya repatriation

Diplomatic Correspondent

Rohingya repatriation will not be affected by the military coup in Myanmar, said Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen yesterday.

“The agreement on Rohingya repatriation was signed with the Myanmar state, and it doesn’t matter who is in power, the agreement must be followed,” he told The Daily Star, hours after Myanmar military took control of the Southeast Asian country following the detention of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and other politicians.

The move follows a landslide win by Suu Kyi’s National League of Democracy (NLD) party in November election, which the army claims was marred by fraud.

The military coup raised concerns if Rohingya repatriation process would be hampered with the military in power, as repeated attempts of Rohingya repatriation failed, with the Rohingyas saying that the conditions in Rakhine state were not conducive for return as there was no guarantee of citizenship, safety, and basic rights.