REFUGEE CRISIS
Myanmar’s repatriation of family ‘a publicity stunt’
Yangon — Myanmar’s government says it has repatriated the first family of Rohingya refugees among the 700,000 who fled a brutal crackdown. The move, however, was criticised by rights groups as a publicity stunt that ignored warnings on the security of returnees. The Muslim minority has been massing in squalid refugee camps in Bangladesh since the Myanmar army launched a ruthless campaign against the community in northern Rakhine state last August. The UN says the operation amounts to ethnic cleansing, but Myanmar has denied the charge, saying its troops targeted Rohingya militants. Bangladesh and Myanmar vowed to begin repatriation in January but the plan was delayed as they blamed each other for a lack of preparation. According to a Myanmar government statement: "One family of refugees became the first to be processed in newly built reception centres earlier in the day. The five members of a family … came back to Taungpyoletwei town repatriation camp in Rakhine state." Bangladesh’s...
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