Conflict in Myanmar intensifying Rohingya crisis

The ongoing clashes between Myanmar Army and rebel groups in Rakhine state and elsewhere will affect the security of Bangladesh territory and Bay of Bengal.

And the Rohingya crisis is worsening further due to relentless fighting between the Arakan Army and military in Rakhine state.

Under this circumstance, Bangladesh should consider maintaining contact with the National unity Government (NUG), Arakan Army and other stakeholders to find a way out.  

Speakers said this while addressing a seminar on the existing crisis in Myanmar on Wednesday.

Joining the seminar online, NUG’s representative Kyaw Zaw said people of Myanmar have become so united to oust the Juta government for the first time ever. The people will not relent until the military government is ousted. The crisis has further exacerbated as China wants to keep Myanmar in its fold to safeguard its own interest.

Center for Peace Studies (CPS) of North South University’s South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance (SIPG) organised the seminar titled ‘Existing crisis in Myanmar and its impact in the neighbouring regions’.

NSG president’s advisor and spokesperson Kyaw Zaw said, “Violence is escalating every day in Myanmar. Economic crisis has reached its peak. The ongoing Spring Revolution against the military junta will succeed as the people of Myanmar are now more united than ever in the past. It was thought three years ago that the army, which is one of the strongest in ASEAN, could not be defeated. It has now been proven that the people of Myanmar are able to defeat this brutal army. We are controlling more than 30 cities right now.”

SIPG’s senior fellow brigadier general (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain said, “We are very worried over the development in Myanmar. A fierce fighting that has been going on in Rakhine has reportedly reached near the Bangladesh border. There is apprehension as to whether Rohingyas again enter Bangladesh. What is our alternative if the Rohingyas reach near the border? Meanwhile, the Arakan Army is trying to reach out to Bangladesh. So we are actually facing a very shaky security situation and are at the epicenter of a geopolitical storm. The Rakhine conflict will affect the security of Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal in the future.”

Joining the seminar online, former foreign secretary and SIPG’s professor Md Shahidul Haque said Myanmar is India’s important neighbor since it is the only country that connects ASEAN countries by road. Like China, India also maintains ties with military rulers of Myanmar. India wants to further its relations with Myanmar.

Malaysia's Sultan Joynal Abedin University’s professor Md Mahbubul Haque said ASEAN countries are hesitant about taking steps to resolve the Myanmar crisis. It is unlikely for this coalition to take any drastic action in this regard as ASEAN adheres to the principle of 'non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries'.

NSU’s associate professor Raymond Kwun-Sun Lau said sanctions by the US and its European allies are not going to change the steps of the Myanmar military junta. The Myanmar crisis is intensifying as China is trying to keep the country in its own fold.

Observers assume that China is covertly supporting rebels in many places in Myanmar, he added.