Bangladesh says no to Myanmar minis

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Subject: Bangladesh says no to Myanmar minister's visit 

Bangladesh says no to Myanmar minister's visit
04:06 a.m. Jul 22, 1999 Eastern
DHAKA, July 22 (Reuters) - Bangladesh has asked Myanmar not to send its
commerce minister to Dhaka because a recent visit by Foreign Minister Win
Aung did not result in an agreement on the repatriation of Myanmar refugees,
an official said on Thursday.

Win Aung returned home on Monday after a three-day visit, during which
Bangladesh sought a firm commitment for the repatriation of 21,000 Myanmar
refugees from Bangladesh.

``We had a great expectation that the refugee issue would be solved during
the foreign minister's visit. But the other side (Myanmar) made no
pledges,'' said the foreign ministry official, who declined to be
identified.

``Our Myanmar embassy yesterday conveyed the Bangladesh government's
sentiment that until there is any substantial development on repatriation of
Rohingya refugees, a proposed visit by Commerce Minister Kyaw Than should
not take place.''

Said Ismail Hossain, deputy secretary of the relief ministry: ``Dhaka was
unhappy over Myanmar's failure to give a concrete assurance for the return
of the refugees. It was a big disappointment.''

Kyaw Than's trip was planned for August 3-7.

Some 250,000 Moslems, called Rohingyas, fled to southeastern Bangladesh in
early 1992 from west Myanmar's Arakan province to escape alleged military
persecution.

All but 21,000 Rohingyas had been repatriated under the supervision of the
U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) by mid-1997 when the process
stopped abruptly.

Bangladesh accused Myanmar of dragging its feet on the issue and of trying
not to take its people back, which prompted the UNHCR to reopen the issue
with Yangon.

Yangon then resumed repatriating Rohingyas late last year, but very slowly.

Dhaka says only about 350 Rohingyas have gone home since November 1998, a
number replenished by new births in the camps.

``We have the figures (21,000) for refugees in the two camps only. But there
are more refugees outside the camps,'' said Hossain.