In the last five years or so, various initiatives have been taken in bilateral and international forums to repatriate the displaced Rohingya or to resolve the crisis, but to no avail. The adoption of a unanimous resolution for the first time in the Third Committee of the United Nations on this issue on Wednesday is a beacon of hope in the current crisis. The matter has been published in the media for a good reason.
We have also seen that Japan-Russia-China has expressed their views again after the adoption of this proposal. They have explained their position despite being with the proposal. It is important for us to observe their attitude in this regard. We can claim that their previous position has changed a bit. Earlier, when such a proposal was raised in the third committee of the UN, whatever their position, this time they did not oppose it. But the question is – what is the real attitude of the displaced Rohingya towards the place we want to go to, the environment, or the favorable conditions for them to be ensured in Rakhine?
The statement of the European Union in this regard is significant. It said the unanimous resolution would play an important role in protecting the rights of other minorities. In the adopted resolution, Myanmar has been informed about many issues. There is no room for complacency in the Third Committee of the United Nations. The General Assembly did not reflect the effectiveness of such a proposal. The question may arise that the proposal of the past was not as unanimous as this time. That is not unreasonable. But we see that many of the people who are committed to us in resolving the Rohingya crisis have not acted on their word. The UN General Assembly has already passed resolutions in this regard in the Third Committee of the United Nations. But Myanmar did not follow the prescribed path. The Third Committee deals with such proposals. It will now go to the General Assembly again.
If the resolution is passed in the General Assembly session, then the Security Council should also pass it – that is the goal now. We assume that since the proposal has been unanimously adopted by the Third Committee, there will not be any undesirable situation in the General Assembly session. But if Myanmar’s attitude is not positive, it will remain an obstacle to resolving the crisis.
First, the Myanmar needs to create a conducive environment for the displaced Rohingya to return to their homeland. Second, multifaceted pressure on Myanmar is essential and the way to create that pressure has become a little easier. Various branches of the United Nations have also made proposals in this regard. But Myanmar is not moving. At present, the military government is directly in power there whereas earlier they were indirect helpers.
In the last few months, we have not seen any activity of the present government in this regard, which is different from the activities of the previous government. A major solution could be found through the UN Security Council and the consensus of the permanent members of the Security Council is crucial. The United States and the United Kingdom are with Bangladesh in this matter. China, Russia, Japan, France – these countries need to take a clear stand on resolving the Rohingya crisis. But for this, we need more vigorous and far-sighted diplomatic activities in the context of new realities. We cannot say that the position of China and Russia is in our favor. The desired outcome cannot be expected until others as powerful as them pass a resolution in the UN Security Council unanimously.
If that happens, the pressure on Myanmar will be severe and Myanmar will be forced to change its position. This requires the sincere initiative of many parties such as China, Japan and Russia. Bangladesh needs to strengthen its diplomatic relations with these countries because its economic relations with these countries are profound. These countries are all Bangladesh’s development partners. Several mega projects are being implemented in the country with their financial support. If Bangladesh can convince them that this is putting pressure on Myanmar, then hopefully the way to resolve the crisis will be smooth because Myanmar also has economic relations with them. It is difficult to say how far Bangladesh has come in such a strong position.
Now Bangladesh needs to work on a new framework for diplomacy to make all international alliances and organizations more active. There is an opportunity to do more in our existing relationship with Japan. With the economic relations that Bangladesh has with China, Japan and Russia, it cannot be said that Bangladesh has succeeded in managing the politically desired level. The constant goal of Bangladesh should be to make the diplomatic process stronger and stronger. In this case, Bangladesh has to work more bilaterally. This goal must be multilateral. If the positive position of the member states in the Security Council can be confirmed, then this will be a source of great hope for Bangladesh to change its position. Bangladesh must continue to make every effort to strengthen its relationship with all its friends and development partners.
It is important to increase the depth and foresight of diplomacy. For example, the full support of 107 countries to the proposal of the Third Committee of the United Nations is a testament to Bangladesh’s diplomatic success.
Many countries have abstained or voted against such a proposal in the past. But this time around, the exceptional incident will send a fresh message to Myanmar that their chances of remaining steadfast in resolving the Rohingya crisis are diminishing. The international community is now more positive than ever. There are many motives on the part of Myanmar to prolong this issue. They may think that if the issue is prolonged, the attention of the international community will be reduced. But this time the incident has left a mark on their thinking.
Bangladesh must work hard to increase the pressure on Myanmar as much as possible to resolve this crisis. We hope that the fruits of Bangladesh’s continued efforts will be seen in the Security Council as well.
*The writer is a teacher and researcher based in Bangladesh. He has a Masters in International Relations from Dhaka University.
December 4, 2021
The viewpoints expressed by the authors do not necessarily reflect the opinions, viewpoints and editorial policies of Aequitas Review.
