Myanmar says over 3,00,000 Rohingya refugees verified for repatriation as exodus enters ninth year
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs verified 3,08,797 Rohingya refugees on Bangladesh's list as former Rakhine residents out of 4,26,545 checked, while flagging 113,507 as unverified and 4,241 as participants in "terrorist activities."
- Myanmar rejected international claims that over 1 million people were displaced from Rakhine, asserting instead that 5,40,000 crossed into Bangladesh in 2017 and over 2,00,000 remained in northern Rakhine.
- Myanmar does not recognize the Rohingya as one of its 135 lawful ethnic minorities, instead referring to them as "Bengalis" to frame them as illegal migrants from Bangladesh.
- A 2018 two-year repatriation agreement between Myanmar and Bangladesh has stalled, with security in Rakhine deteriorating after the 2021 military coup ousted Aung San Suu Kyi and renewed fighting between the Arakan Army and military since 2023.
- Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim said in late July that Myanmar agreed to take back 5,000 Rohingya from Malaysia, but Myanmar foreign ministry official Han Win Aung rejected the characterization, saying repatriation applies only to verified Myanmar nationals currently in Malaysian detention centres.
Why it matters: The verification covers roughly 39% of the 8,28,824 refugees on Bangladesh's list, and the 4,241 "terrorist" designations create a near-certain barrier to return for those flagged. Meanwhile, Myanmar's explicit rejection of Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim's claim of 5,000 returnees shows the junta is using conditional acceptance as diplomatic language without enabling actual returns, especially as the Arakan Army now controls much of Rakhine and fighting has displaced new waves of refugees since 2023.
Ask SkimNews
