Sayonton Bhattacharjee:
For the first time, Rohingyas were recognized as Myanmar’s own people by the country’s National Unity Government, NUG’s Health Minister. When asked how the NUG views about the Rohingya, Jo Wei Soh, the health minister of Myanmar’s anti-junta National Unity Government (NUG), said, “The Rohingya are our people and they are one of us,” and efforts should be made to bring them back.
He said this while joining a seminar titled ‘Restoring Peace in Myanmar: Two Years of Military Coup’ organized at Syndicate Hall of North South University in Dhaka on Tuesday (January 31). The seminar was organized by the South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance Center for Peace Studies (CPS).
Analysts here say that even two years after the military coup, there is no possibility of peace returning to Myanmar. Myanmar’s military has shown no signs of relenting. Rather than relenting, the military redoubled its efforts to hold on. Until the international community can pressure the military to step down, the prospects for peace and democracy in Myanmar will remain slim, analysts say.
Analysts pointed to the ‘Burma Act’ passed by the US Congress last year and said that due to this law, the conflict may spread further in the region. They emphasized on not taking any side of Bangladesh in such a situation.
Former Foreign Secretary. Shahidul Haque said, the conflicting geopolitics of this region is very old. Here India is trying to corner China. Again China is trying to push India aside.
He said that the ‘Burma Act’ could further complicate the conflict situation in the region. It might not be good for us.
At the seminar, Minister Joe Wei Soo also said that the NUG controls more than 50% of Myanmar’s territory. More than 20,000 soldiers of the Myanmar junta have died so far.
The NUG health minister said that they will definitely win this war.
Hla Mint, a Rohingya representative from Australia, said, “The different platforms of the Rohingyas are now coming together.” Because we have understood, if we don’t have one, we will have problems.
Security Analyst Brigadier General (Retd.) Md. Sakhawat Hussain said, “It is necessary to follow Western policy (Burma Act) and not ‘Eastern approach’ (Chinese policy) to solve the Rohingya problem.”
