21 January 2019•Update: 21 January 2019
By Md. Kamruzzaman
DHAKA, Bangladesh
Some 31 Rohingya refugees have been living in inhuman conditions between the Bangladesh and India border for the last three days, according to local media reports on Monday.
Indian Border Security Force (BSF) tried to push them over border line while Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) foiled the attempt, leaving dozens of refugees stranded on no-man’s land under the open sky.
Uncertainty looms over the fate of the destitute Rohingya refugees as a flag meeting between border forces of the two countries on Sunday ended inconclusively.
The stranded Rohingya had shown their national identity cards which were issued by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in India, local newspaper the Daily Star quoted a senior BGB official without disclosing a name.
The Daily Star also claims to have collected a photograph of one of the identity cards issued by the UNHCR India, which shows the name of the bearer as Abdur Shakur and his country of origin to be Myanmar.
BGB and BSF have both deployed additional forces and increased patrols in the area which has led to a tense situation among the locals, the Star added.
At least 1,300 Rohingya Muslims have reportedly crossed into Bangladesh from India since the start of the year in fear of forced deportation to Myanmar.
Some 40,000 Rohingya are believed to have taken shelter in India over the years, according to media reports.
India, which is not a signatory to the UN Refugee Convention, has reportedly arrested 230 Rohingya in 2018 -- the most in years.
BGB public relations officer Mohsin Reza told Anadolu Agency that the battalion working in that particular border is aware of the situation and they are trying to address the crisis.
Persecuted people
The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.
According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017.
Since Aug. 25, 2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state forces, according to a report by the Ontario International Development Agency (OIDA).
More than 34,000 Rohingya were also thrown into fires, while over 114,000 others were beaten, said the OIDA report, titled "Forced Migration of Rohingya: The Untold Experience."
Some 18,000 Rohingya women and girls were raped by Myanmar’s army and police and over 115,000 Rohingya homes were burned down and 113,000 others vandalized, it added.
The UN has also documented mass gang rapes, killings – including of infants and young children – brutal beatings and disappearances committed by Myanmar state forces.
In a report, UN investigators said such violations may have constituted crimes against humanity.
