Chittagong, Bangladesh: The Bangladesh government has decided to apply for membership of the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) to escalate its fight against India and Burma over its demand for territorial waters in the Bay of Bengal, according to the report of daily sun.
The decision was taken at a weekly cabinet meeting yesterday with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the Chair.
Bangladesh is not a member of the PCA which has a membership of over 100 where India is also a member of the organization, PM’s Press Secretary Abdul Azad told the reporters.
“It is based in Netherlands and its main objective is to facilitate arbitration and other forms of dispute resolution between states and countries on trade, energy and United Nations Convention on Law of the Seas (UNCLOS).”
They forward the proposal to apply for membership and after becoming a member of the PCA, Bangladesh can make its stand clear that it also wants peaceful solution to any disputes with its neighbors, said Kurshid Alam, additional secretary of the Foreign Ministry.
Khurshid Alam, also project director of the UNCLOS Bangladesh chapter, added that the Foreign Ministry would apply for membership by next one month.
Bangladesh placed its documents in the UN court, claiming more than 400 nautical miles inside the Bay of Bengal from its coastline.
However, Burma is quiet silent, regarding the maritime boundary in the Bay of Bengal to escalate its fight against Bangladesh, said a local elder from Maungdaw Town who denied to be named.
