Bangladesh: Aid Groups and Burma

bangladesh: When they crossed into Bangladesh, they were met with sprawling, squalid camps, dotted with thousands of temporary tents and plagued by disease, according to Toronto Star. Five months after the violence began, Burma and Bangladesh were on the brink of repatriating up to 1,500 Rohingya last week, with plans to return all eligible refugees over two years, under an agreement widely criticized by the United Nations and aid groups, which warn that it could thrust the refugees back into danger in the nation also known as Myanmar. Violence drove them from their homes, and hundreds of their villages were burned or razed. Read more Not safe yet for Rohingya to return to Burma, UN official says Article Continued Below Former U.S. governor quits Rohingya panel, calling it a cheerleading operation' for Burmese leader Skepticism, worry amid preparation for Rohingya repatriation to Burma The deal, which was brokered without the involvement of the international community, does not address issues that Rohingya refugees and aid groups say are key safety, citizenship and sustainable housing. Bangladeshi authorities delayed the planned start of the returns last week, and it remains unclear when they will begin. Without those guarantees, many refugees are unlikely to repatriate voluntarily, experts say, potentially prolonging what UN officials have referred to as the most urgent refugee emergency in the world. react-empty 163 As of today, the necessary safeguards for potential returnees are absent, and there are continued restrictions on access for aid agencies, the media and other independent observers, UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards said in a briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva on Jan. 23. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.