“The delegation included Stina Ljungdel, the newly appointed country representative of the UN High Commissioner for refugees (UNHCR), Salah Uddin, the deputy secretary of Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commission (RRRC) and other Bangladeshi officials paid visit the Nayapara refugee camp,” said the camp Refugee Committee Chairman Islam.

The delegation that included many high level officials  reached Nayapara camp at about 10:30 am. They were given a tour of the women’s tailoring center, water reservoir, schools, and some of the resident’s homes before leaving around lunchtime.

After the tour, the country representative held a meeting with the delegation and the camp committee at the  Camp Management Committee office (CMC). During the meeting they discussed the various issues facing the refugees.

The CMC chairman and Mohamed Jubair, CMC secretary urged for assistance to repair the roofs of the refugees’ homes They also requested to build a better road inside the camp and for additional medical facilities for the camp.  The committee asked for a durable solution for the refugees as many have been living in the camp for over two decades.

Stina Ljungdel said that the Rohingya, an ethnic group from  Arakan state, are the most persecuted group in the world and the international community is well aware of their plight. The UNHCR is trying to help a solution to be found, Ljungdel said.

According to a recent press release by the Bangladesh Foreign Ministry Dipu Moni that listed points addressed to the newly appointed UNHCR country representative, a durable solution for Rohingya refugees, undocumented refugee and Burmese nationals lay in their voluntary repatriation to Burma and establishing rights in their motherland.  

In the press release Dipu Moni said that the Bangladesh government has introduced free education for up to grade 6, vocational skill training, computer training, and primary and secondary healthcare in order prepare the refugees for a productive life when they voluntarily return to Burma.

Ljungdel extended her appreciation to the Bangladesh government for safely hosting thousands of refugees for the last 30 years. She also pointed out that this has often gone unnoticed when the government should be receiving commendations for maintaining peaceful refugee camps and voluntary repatriation of most of them before 2005.