Bangladesh today said it has given shelter to Rohingya refugees from Myanmar but other countries should also come forward and give shelter to them.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to India Syed Muazzem Ali also said that his country has not closed its border along Rakhine state, home to the minority community in Myanmar.
Scores of Rohingyas Muslims have fled Myanmar over the past few years alleging atrocities by the Myanmarese army.
He stressed that the solution to the Rohingya problem should be found in Myanmar itself by giving the same rights as is given to 21 other tribes there.
"There are 8,00,000 Rohingyas and naturally the solution to the Rohingya problem must be found in Myanmar itself. They must be given the same rights as is given to 21 other tribes in Myanmar.
"We have not closed the borders. We have certainly given shelter to some. But there are other countries which should also come forward and give shelter to the refugees. I have seen Rohingyas are getting shelter in China, India, Malaysia and in other countires," Ali said on the sidelines of screening of a documentary based on the atrocities perpetrated on Bangladeshis during its freedom struggle.
He said the Rohingya problem arised because Myanmar consistently calls them as Bangladeshi.
"So, the more you give shelter to them, the more difficult it becomes to repatriate them," Ali said.
Northern Rakhine, which is home to the mostly Bengali speaking Muslim Rohingya minority and borders Bangladesh, has been under military lockdown ever since surprise raids on border posts left nine police dead last month.
Human rights groups accuse the Myanmarese army of abuses against the Rohingya minority, including killings, rapes and burning of homes.
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