UNHCR urges Bangladesh to lift ban on NGOs
Wednesday, 8 August 2012
FE Report
The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR Tuesday urged the Bangladesh government to lift ban on three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which were working in Bangladesh for Burmese Rohingya refugee.
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Adrian Edwards at the press briefing in Geneva Tuesday said they are appealing to the Bangladesh government to ensure that NGO assistance continues to be provided to unregistered people from Myanmar's Rakhine state.
Last Thursday, the Bangladesh government banned three NGOs-France-based the Médecins Sans Frontières, the Action Contre La Faim and United Kingdom-based Muslim Aid UK to stop their activities in and around unofficial camps near Cox's Bazar in south-east Bangladesh.
The government accused that the NGOs are encouraging the Rohingya refugees who are affected by the recent riot in Rakhanie to enter into Bangladesh.
Bangladesh government refused to allow the affected Rohingya refugees in its territory as nearly 300,000 stranded refugees are now living in Bangladesh for years who are unlikely to be taken back by the Myanmar government.
UNHCR in the press briefing in Geneva said if the government order is implemented, it will have a serious humanitarian impact on some 40,000 unregistered people who had fled Myanmar in recent years and settled in the Leda and Kutupalong makeshift sites in Cox's Bazar.
Local villagers nearby will also be affected as they, too, have been benefiting from basic services provided by the NGOs, the UN refugee agency said.
"UNHCR is urging the government of Bangladesh to reconsider its decision in line with its long tradition of hospitality towards people who have fled Myanmar over the years," it said.
In addition to the unregistered population, there are some 30,000 registered ones living in two official camps in Cox's Bazar.
Meanwhile in northern Rakhine state, we are watching developments closely following reports of renewed violence over the weekend.
UNHCR has received unverified accounts of some villages being burnt in the Kyauk Taw township north of the state capital, Sittwe. Many of the young men have reportedly fled, leaving mainly women and children behind, the UN refugee agency said.
UNHCR in Geneva said the UN and its humanitarian partners have drawn up a response plan to assist some 80,000 people who have been displaced or are otherwise affected in Rakhine state since inter-communal clashes broke out in early June.
UNHCR has so far distributed emergency aid to more than 40,000 people in the form of plastic sheets, blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets and kitchen sets, the agency claimed.
"We are also mobilizing our stocks in Cox's Bazar and plan to deliver them by boat across the Naf river to Rakhine state once the clearances are in place," UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards said.
The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR Tuesday urged the Bangladesh government to lift ban on three non-governmental organizations (NGOs) which were working in Bangladesh for Burmese Rohingya refugee.
The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) spokesperson Adrian Edwards at the press briefing in Geneva Tuesday said they are appealing to the Bangladesh government to ensure that NGO assistance continues to be provided to unregistered people from Myanmar's Rakhine state.
Last Thursday, the Bangladesh government banned three NGOs-France-based the Médecins Sans Frontières, the Action Contre La Faim and United Kingdom-based Muslim Aid UK to stop their activities in and around unofficial camps near Cox's Bazar in south-east Bangladesh.
The government accused that the NGOs are encouraging the Rohingya refugees who are affected by the recent riot in Rakhanie to enter into Bangladesh.
Bangladesh government refused to allow the affected Rohingya refugees in its territory as nearly 300,000 stranded refugees are now living in Bangladesh for years who are unlikely to be taken back by the Myanmar government.
UNHCR in the press briefing in Geneva said if the government order is implemented, it will have a serious humanitarian impact on some 40,000 unregistered people who had fled Myanmar in recent years and settled in the Leda and Kutupalong makeshift sites in Cox's Bazar.
Local villagers nearby will also be affected as they, too, have been benefiting from basic services provided by the NGOs, the UN refugee agency said.
"UNHCR is urging the government of Bangladesh to reconsider its decision in line with its long tradition of hospitality towards people who have fled Myanmar over the years," it said.
In addition to the unregistered population, there are some 30,000 registered ones living in two official camps in Cox's Bazar.
Meanwhile in northern Rakhine state, we are watching developments closely following reports of renewed violence over the weekend.
UNHCR has received unverified accounts of some villages being burnt in the Kyauk Taw township north of the state capital, Sittwe. Many of the young men have reportedly fled, leaving mainly women and children behind, the UN refugee agency said.
UNHCR in Geneva said the UN and its humanitarian partners have drawn up a response plan to assist some 80,000 people who have been displaced or are otherwise affected in Rakhine state since inter-communal clashes broke out in early June.
UNHCR has so far distributed emergency aid to more than 40,000 people in the form of plastic sheets, blankets, sleeping mats, mosquito nets and kitchen sets, the agency claimed.
"We are also mobilizing our stocks in Cox's Bazar and plan to deliver them by boat across the Naf river to Rakhine state once the clearances are in place," UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards said.