University Professor Ali Riaz, noted expert on the politics of Bangladesh, published a September 12 commentary article on the politics of the ongoing Rohingya refugee crisis. The article, titled “Myanmar’s plans, policies must be understood,” appeared in Prothom Alo. In response to the events in which hundreds of thousands have suffered indiscriminate violence and the loss of their homes, Riaz argues that “the unforgivable silence of the international community and the unplanned steps of the Bangladesh government, which has an ambiguous stand on the issue, has made the refugee situation all the more complex. Bangladesh is having to bear the burden more or less alone.”
“Global politics is in Myanmar’s favour and this has rendered feeble any hope for the Rohingyas to be given their due rights.” Ali Riaz
Riaz notes that major world powers have other priorities–the U.S. being preoccupied with North Korea and China with its own geopolitical interests in the region. This, he argues, doesn’t bode well for the fate of the refugees: “Global politics is in Myanmar’s favour and this has rendered feeble any hope for the Rohingyas to be given their due rights.”
