Bangladesh maintains ban on citizens marrying Rohingya refugees
Dhaka — On Monday, a Bangladesh court upheld a government ruling banning marriage between its citizens and refugees from Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya minority, who have fled ethnic violence in the neighbouring country. The high court in Dhaka dismissed a legal challenge from a father whose son married a Rohingya teenager in a Muslim ceremony in September, despite laws forbidding such unions. Marriages with Rohingya were banned in 2014 to try to prevent hundreds of thousands of refugees living in Bangladesh from seeking a back door to citizenship. Babul Hossain, whose 26-year-old son ran away with his new wife after they married, questioned the legality of the ruling that threatens a seven-year jail term for any Bangladeshi who weds a Rohingya refugee. But the court rejected his plea and ordered he pay 100,000 taka ($1,200) in legal costs. "The court rejected the petition and has upheld the administrative order, which bans marriage between Bangladeshi citizens and Rohingya people," ...
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