UN rights chief discusses Rohingya issue with civil society members

UN rights human chief Michelle Bachelet met with a host of officials, civil society representatives and Rohingya refugees on Tuesday.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visited camps housing Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar who fled Myanmar five years ago to get some safety.

"An estimated 1.1 million Rohingyas are in Bangladesh right now, meaning Cox's Bazar, some of them in Bhashan char," UN News quoted Bachelet as saying after visiting several sites inside a camp.

During her first visit to Bangladesh, the top UN human rights official met with religious leaders and women and youth groups who shared their concerns and hopes with her.

In a women's safe place inside the Cox's Bazar camp, she spoke with them about their experiences. "They described their grievances, their pains, how they left and lost everything they have...their livelihoods" and loved ones, said Bachelet.

They talked about the shelter provided to them in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar camp and how the UN with partners and NGOs have been supporting them with services.

The High Commissioner reiterated the importance of continuing to ensure that safe and sustainable conditions exist for any returns and that they are conducted in a voluntary and dignified way.

"The UN is doing the best we can to support them. We'll continue doing that," she said. "But we also need to deal with the profound roots of the problem. We need to deal with that and ensure that they can go back to Myanmar - when there are conditions for safety and voluntary return".

During her stay in Dhaka, the top UN rights official met with Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at the Government guest house, several ministers, and representatives of civil society organizations along with others.

On Monday, she underscored that civic space and enabling conditions were vital for society to play its crucial role in identifying and helping resolve #HumanRights challenges in the country.

She will conclude her visit on Wednesday following a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed and a press conference, UN News reported.