Safety and 'identity' key for Rohingya returnees, says UN chief in Myanmar

YANGON: Safety and "identity" want to be in place for Rohingya Muslim refugees who go back to Myanmar, the head of the United Nations within the nation stated on Wednesday, as Myanmar and UN companies signed an overview deal on returns.

The signing of a memorandum of figuring out between the federal government and UN construction and refugee companies - the UNDP and the UNHCR - marks a warming of ties which hit a low point closing yr after the federal government advised some companies supplied meals to Rohingya militants.

The head of the United Nations in Myanmar, Knut Ostby, stated he hoped UN personnel would be able to go back and forth to the violence-ravaged north of Rakhine State "almost immediately" to assess the placement and - over time - to help the refugees in Bangladesh make an educated determination about possible returns.

Since August, about 7,00,000 Rohingya have fled a military crackdown in Myanmar, many reporting killings, rape and arson on a big scale. The United Nations has called the campaign a textbook example of "ethnic cleansing" - a charge Myanmar denies.

UN officials have stated for months the conditions in Myanmar were "not conducive" to returns which would be protected, voluntary and dignified and examine Wednesday's deal as a primary step in opposition to meeting the ones goals.

"There are two really crucial things that need to be in place - one is to have an identity for the people who come back, so that they can live as normal members of society both in terms of an identity and in terms of being able to have the freedom of movement," Ostby instructed Reuters through telephone.

"And the other issue is that they need to be able to live in safety. They should not have to risk further violence," stated Ostby, who serves as the UN resident and humanitarian coordinator in Myanmar.

Access to elementary services and products, livelihoods and infrastructure would also should be addressed, he stated.

Rohingya are broadly called "Bengali" in Buddhist-majority Myanmar - which they see as a derogatory term implying they are illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. They had been denied citizenship in spite of many tracing their roots within the nation back generations.

'PATH TO CITIZENSHIP'

Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's govt has pressed the Rohingya to just accept National Verification Cards - documents which are a part of govt effort to register Rohingya, but which falls short of providing them citizenship.

Rohingya group leaders have broadly rejected the card, announcing it treats life-long residents like new immigrants.

Ostby, requested how the Wednesday settlement might help to get to the bottom of the issue of citizenship, stated: "We have been talking for a long time about making a clear and predictable path to citizenship for those who are eligible."

But the granting of citizenship was the federal government's prerogative, he stated.

"What we can do is to facilitate and we call for commitment to international principles," stated Ostby in his first detailed remarks on the textual content of the settlement, which has not been made public.

Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed in January to finish the voluntary repatriation of the refugees within two years but differences between them persist, impeding implementation of the plan.

The Myanmar govt stated in a statement after the signing it hoped the repatriation process would "hasten" with UN involvement.

It stated the UNHCR would help "in the implementation of the voluntary repatriation and the reintegration of all those who return", whilst the UNDP would center of attention on preparing "conditions for recovery and resilience-based development".