Photo: Mohammad Jamil Khan
The world must confront the root cause of the Rohingya crisis and hold Myanmar authorities accountable for decades of atrocities, speakers said on the first day of a three-day international conference at a hotel in Cox's Bazar yesterday.
Rohingya voices -- students, activists, and diaspora leaders -- spoke with defiance and of hope. They called for justice, accountability, and sustainable solutions.
The conference, titled "Stakeholders' Dialogue: Takeaways to the High-Level Conference on Rohingya Situation", aims to engage global stakeholders in finding solutions to the prolonged crisis. The first day's programme included a special interactive session with Rohingya representatives.
The session brought together government officials, political leaders, foreign delegates, and representatives of UN agencies and international NGOs. Bangladesh's High Representative for the Rohingya Issue and National Security Adviser Khaliur Rahman, and Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam attended the conference, alongside UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar Thomas H Andrews, UN Resident Coordinator (ai) Rana Flowers, Head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar Nicholas Koumjian, and UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner Raouf Mazou.
The conference, titled "Stakeholders' Dialogue: Takeaways to the High-Level Conference on Rohingya Situation", aims to engage global stakeholders in finding solutions to the prolonged crisis. The first day's programme included a special interactive session with Rohingya representatives.
The session brought together government officials, political leaders, foreign delegates, and representatives of UN agencies and international NGOs. Bangladesh's High Representative for the Rohingya Issue and National Security Adviser Khaliur Rahman, and Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam attended the conference, alongside UN Special Rapporteur on Myanmar Thomas H Andrews, UN Resident Coordinator (ai) Rana Flowers, Head of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar Nicholas Koumjian, and UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner Raouf Mazou.
Representatives of major political parties, including BNP, Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party, Islami Andolan Bangladesh, and Gono Odhikar Parishad, were also present.
The event was moderated by Rohingya community leaders Lucky Karim, Mohammed Rofique, and Omar Salma.
"This is the first time in history that the Rohingya get to sit in person with the host government of Bangladesh," Lucky Karim said while moderating the session.
'WE NEVER WANTED THIS LIFE'
Young speakers shared their experiences of discrimination, displacement, and the longing for a dignified return.Rohingya youth Furkan Mizan said, "I faced countless hardships and discrimination in Myanmar. Despite excelling in my studies, I was denied the right to higher education. I was not allowed to attend university.
"We were forcibly displaced to our neighbouring country. Our right to live in our own motherland was taken away. We became refugees unwillingly. We never wanted this life," he added.
Another youth, Sahu Asyus, said, "For us, repatriation is not just about going back. It is about returning with rights, with dignity, and with the guarantee that we will never face persecution again."
He stressed that full citizenship, accountability for perpetrators, restoration of homes and livelihoods, and freedom of movement were non-negotiable.
"Without legal recognition, we fear we will remain voiceless, stateless, and excluded from opportunities to live a dignified life."
Diaspora leader Anwar Arkani, co-general secretary of the Arakan Rohingya National Council, said the international community must stop ignoring Myanmar's responsibility.
"The Burmese government is the criminal -- rapists, murderers, arsonists... . They have committed every crime in the dictionary, yet they are still free. What is wrong with the world community? What is wrong with the UN?" he said.
Arkani, who fled in 1978 after his father was arbitrarily arrested, said Myanmar had long been a "refugee-producing factory". "From Thailand to Bangladesh, Malaysia to Indonesia, Burmese refugees are everywhere. Yet there are no Bangladeshi or Thai refugees fleeing into Burma. Why? Because Burma is the factory producing refugees," he said.
'MEDIA BIAS'
Rohingya activist Ro Nay San Lwin criticised Myanmar's media for decades of biased reporting.
"Until 2021, no Rohingya leaders or activists were asked for comment. In Burmese-language media, we were called "Bangalees", treated as invaders. However, the same media outlets used "Rohingya" in English to secure foreign funding," he said.
He alleged that the Arakan Army massacred over 600 Rohingyas in Hoiya village on May 2, 2024. "Pregnant women, children, elderly were slaughtered. Survivors and evidence are in Bangladesh today, yet most media remain silent," he added.
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Lucky Karim, also the executive director of Refugee Women for Peace and Justice, said solutions must go beyond talks of repatriation.
"We need to see internally displaced people return safely to their homes and humanitarian organisations allowed to operate inside Myanmar before refugees in Cox's Bazar can be convinced to return," she said.
Karim cautioned that without adequate aid and protection in the camps, many would attempt dangerous sea journeys.
The main session of the conference would be inaugurated by Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus today.
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