Chittagong: The contentious Rohingya refugee problem cannot be solved without resolving the political imbroglio in Burma , said a press release issued on May 19, by Neeti Gobeshona Kendra, or Policy Research Centre.
 
It stated that the Kendra, a research and advocacy organization working on human rights organized the seminar on "the Recent Political Situation in Burma and Rohingya Issue" in Chittagong District Council Auditorium on May 19.
 
Speakers at the seminar felt that Dhaka needs to hold constructive talks with Rangoon to find a durable solution to the issue of Rohingya refugees who have migrated to Bangladesh from Burma .
 
The press release added that thousands of Burmese Rohingyas had been living in Bangladesh as refugees due to political crisis in Burma . It also called for increasing diplomatic pressure from the international community on the rulers of the pariah state to come to the negotiation table to resolve the refugee crisis.
 
"Only a few thousand Rohingyas are living in refugee camps while a sizeable number of them are living outside the camps affecting the local environment and destroying the balance in the labor market of Chittagong ," said Mahbubul Haque, Ripon director of the Neeti Gobeshona Kendra.
 
Professor Monirul Hasan said the recent referendum in Burma will make the resolution of their political problem more difficult. The refugee issue will remain unresolved.
 
The seminar was presided over by Nazim Uddin Shamol, the general secretary of the Chittagong Union of Journalists.
 
The seminar was also addressed by SM Munirul Hasan, a teacher of Chittagong University , Aminur Rasul Babul, the coordinator of the Coalition for Good Governance, transport association leader Ashraf Khan, Dr. Mohammad Yunus and Mohammad Aiyaz.