The chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Bangladesh has severely criticised the agreement by Myanmar to repatriate the displaced Rohingya, claiming that the ‘oppressed have been left voiceless.’

Anne Main MP said that she has ‘no confidence’ in an agreement that, ‘can’t even use the term Rohingya,’ and that does not include a voice for the affected people. 

Mrs Main said that, ‘The Rohingya are among the least enfranchised and most oppressed people in the world.  Throughout this process they have been shut out of the room while the host country and the oppressors negotiate a settlement.

‘Britain and the rest of the international community has greatly helped the displaced refugees in Bangladesh.  We can be proud of that.  However, over the border, in a land that many Rohingyas call their home, they have been stripped of their rights and their voice.

‘We are being asked to put our trust in an agreement that has shut out the very people who have suffered and fails to recognise the Rohingya by name.  I have no confidence in a hasty settlement between the oppressor and the host country – the oppressed have been left voiceless.

‘What we need is a figurehead at the negotiating table who speaks for the Rohingya.  The British government, the United Nations, and the international community need to insist that strenuous efforts are made to identify a spokesperson who is involved in the negotiation and the process. 

‘Bangladesh is doing everything it can, but is being overwhelmed as the host country.  We cannot stand by and let the oppressors dictate the terms and find a solution of a return to a hostile state.  More disaffection will ensure the innocent suffer, and basic rights are trampled upon.  That would more likely ensure that Rakhine becomes a breeding ground for more violent means.’