66 Burmese refugees return home fro

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Subject: 66 Burmese refugees return home from Bangladesh

66 Burmese refugees return home from Bangladesh

CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh, April 30 (AFP) - A group of 66 Moslem refugees were 
repatriated to Burma Wednesday from frontier camps in Bangladesh, refugee 
officials said.

With the departure of the refugees, known as Rohingyas, the number of 
returnees in the past five years has totalled 229,100 with more than 21,800 
still to go, they said.

The refugees fled their homes in Burma's predominantly Moslem Arakan province 
in 1992 and took shelter in 20 makeshift camps in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar 
region, alleging persecution by Burmese troops. Burma had denied the 
allegations.

Rangoon later agreed to take them back following an April 1992 repatriation 
agreement signed in Dhaka during visit of Burmese foreign minister.

Bangladeshi repatriation officials claim the slow pace of return was mainly 
due to delayed clearance by Burmese authorities.

But others have blamed the reluctance of the refugees to return to the 
rigorous life inside Burma after years in camps supported by the Bangladeshi 
government, the United Nations and other refugee agencies. Many have also 
opposed repatriation because they fear for their safety.

The speed of repatriation picked up a year ago when Rangoon agreed to allow 
the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to supervise the return and 
oversee their safety inside Burma.