Bangladesh to Issue Special Visa for Relief Workers in Rohingya Camps

Bangladesh, June 12: Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, met with Canada's Special Envoy to Myanmar Bob Rae and assured him of addressing the visa issue pertaining to foreign relief workers working in Rohingya shelter camps in Bangladesh. "The government is cautiously dealing with the matter as many foreign nationals are working in the Rohingya camps after coming to Bangladesh with a tourist visa," Hasina's press secretary Ehsanul Karim quoted Hasina as saying, as per The Dhaka Tribune.

Hasina further underscored that her government is aware that many foreign nationals in the guise of relief workers are trying to infiltrate in Bangladesh.

"This may lead to child and women trafficking, sexual abuse, terrorism," she added. She further asserted that to resolve the issue a special category visa will be issued to the relief workers.

The Bangladeshi PM later recalled historical relations between Bangladesh and Canada since Bangladesh's independence, adding that the two countries can further work on strengthening cooperation. Rohingyas are a Muslim minority ethnic group in Myanmar, who are considered as illegal immigrants as opposed to citizens of the country. Due to a surge in violence in western Myanmar last year, over 700,000 Rohingyas fled the country to escape the military's action. Presently, they are languishing in Bangladeshi refugee camps.