UN Resident Coordinator Gwyn Lewis has denied outright any involvement in the discussions on a humanitarian corridor via Bangladesh to Myanmar’s Rakhine State. But the interim government officials admit that the UN initiated the matter, and they have agreed to facilitate.
During a meeting on Wednesday, she said that they welcome any initiative to improve cross-border relations and to support people who are impacted by the conflict in Myanmar.
“But there is no humanitarian corridor in place as such and we haven’t been involved in discussions to establish such a corridor. So, I just want to clarify that it really is between governments. It’s something that we can support once it’s established, but there is quite a legal process behind something like a corridor,” said the UN envoy.
Awami League asks UN envoy Gwyn Lewis to uphold neutrality
Earlier, during the visit to Bangladesh in March this year, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told media he discussed the possibility of humanitarian aid channel from Bangladesh. He added that it would require authorisation of the parties involved in the conflict.
On April 8, Khalilur Rahman, the chief adviserโs top aide, publicly mentioned the concept of a โhumanitarian channelโ for the first time. He said discussions about Bangladeshโs potential involvement in such a mechanism began during a Feb 7 meeting with Guterres in New York.
According to him, preliminary consultations had taken place with the Arakan Army, international organisations, and the Myanmar government. โWe told him [Guterres] that there is no alternative to international assistance to address the humanitarian crisis in Rakhine. That operation must take place under UN supervision,โ Khalilur said.
At the DCAB Talk, Gwyn Lewis said no such agreement has been reached yet.
Severe opposition
Her statement comes at a time when the interim government is heavily criticized for agreeing to allow a humanitarian corridor by the army, politicians, and civil society.
On May 31, a high-level discussion was held in Dhaka on Bangladeshโs geopolitical security and the humanitarian corridor. The speakers said the issue of providing a humanitarian corridor to Myanmarโs Rakhine state is related to the existence and security of Bangladesh.
However, the government has moved forward on this issue without discussing it with anyone in society. They said it has no transparency. The government should stop such activities. There is no opportunity to provide a corridor, no channel for Myanmar.
Apart from politicians like former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, influential civil society groups and security experts have also expressed concern over the move, which was put forward by the UN Secretary-General Antรณnio Guterres during his visit to Bangladesh on March 15.
Awami League President Sheikh Hasina said the illegal interim government led by Yunus is selling the country to its Western masters by allowing corridors, a military base in the Bay of Bengal, and helping establish a Christian state bordering Myanmar and Indiaโs Seven Sisters, a proposal she declined during her rule.
Army Chief General Waker-uz-Zaman on May 21 said that the Bangladesh Army would never be involved in any activity that was detrimental to sovereignty. He believes that such a decision on the corridor should come from an elected government, and it should be made by following a legitimate process. Here, national interests should be maintained, and it should be done through political consensus.
The corridor has also been a headache for the governments of Myanmar, India, and China.
It is widely believed that Guterres revealed the proposal after an understanding with Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus. But the danger of armed conflict and the presence of other armed groups are the major concerns for Bangladeshโs sovereignty.
On April 28, UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi told the UN Security Council in New York that Bangladeshโs interim government has chosen to engage with the parties to the conflict in Rakhine in pursuit of a solution.
Bangladesh also proposed several conditions, which include a ceasefire in Rakhine, ensuring representation of the Rohingya in Rakhineโs leadership, and establishing conditions in the state for the eventual repatriation of Rohingya refugees.
Meanwhile, radical Jamaat-e-Islami has proposed a Muslim state in Rakhine, while Bangladeshi jihadists have vowed to wage jihad to this end.
Other armed groups currently active in the region with similar aims are Ansar al-Islam, Jamaโatul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Harkatul Jihad al-Islami Bangladesh (HuJI-B), Hizb ut-Tahir, Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO), Kuki-Chin National Front (KNF), and Jamaโatul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqya.
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