Myanmar cites security concerns while delaying Rohingya repatriation, overlooking systemic discrimination and regional geopolitics
Original framing: “Myanmar confirms nearly 3,09,000 Rohingya in Bangladesh, says security issues delaying repatriation” — The Hindu
The Rohingya crisis is rooted in a colonial legacy of divide‑and‑rule, the 1948 Union Constitution, and the 1982 Citizenship Law that institutionalised exclusion. Historical patterns of forced migration in the region, such as the 1970s Arakan insurgencies, demonstrate a cyclical link between state militarisation and ethnic displacement, underscoring the need to address past injustices to break the cycle.
The Rohingya repatriation impasse is not merely a security dilemma but a convergence of historic statelessness, climate stress, and geopolitical maneuvering that marginalises the very people it purports to protect.
By foregrounding indigenous land‑care practices, amplifying Rohingya and host‑community voices, and applying rigorous scientific and future‑modelling insights, a holistic pathway emerges that couples citizenship reform with climate‑resilient livelihoods and accountable reconciliation. Actors ranging from the Myanmar military to ASEAN, UN agencies, and civil‑society must coordinate to replace the trickster security narrative with transparent, rights‑based mechanisms, ensuring that repatriation becomes a durable, just, and sustainable process.