Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday (May 28) sought firm commitment of the international communities, including the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), to ensure safe and dignified repatriation of the Rohingyas. "We need strong commitment from international communities, including the OIC, to ensure safe and dignified repatriation of the Rohingyas," she said. The premier made the remarks when OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha paid a courtesy call on her at the latter's official Ganabhaban residence in Dhaka. PM's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed newsmen after the meeting, local media reported.
Sheikh Hasina also sought strong commitment from the OIC member states to help resolve Rohingya issue by sending them to their homeland. The PM said Bangladesh has given shelter to Rohingyas on humanitarian ground and called for raising fund for Rohingyas from the OIC member states. Sheikh Hasina said there are religious harmony in Bangladesh as the people live here in peace.
While the OIC Secretary General said Rohingya is a priority issue for the OIC, adding, "Rohingyas are deprived to their rights". The OIC Secretary General said Bangladesh is an important country of the OIC. "Bangladesh plays a pivotal role in the OIC," he said. He also recalled the great contribution of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to establish international peace.
The OIC Secretary General greeted the premier on the 50th anniversary of getting Joliot-Curie Peace Prize by Bangabandhu for his contribution to global peace.
PM's Ambassador-at-large Mohammad Ziauddin, PM's Principal Secretary M. Tofazzel Hossain Miah and Secretary (maritime affairs unit) at the Foreign Affairs Ministry Rear Amiral (retd.) Md Kuhursed Alam were present at the meeting. OIC Assistant Secretary General Ambassador Askar Mussinov was also present.
OIC Secretary General Hissein Brahim Taha arrived in Dhaka on Saturday on a five-day visit. As the Chancellor of the Islamic University of Technology (IUT), the OIC Secretary General will join the 35th Convocation of the IUT on May 30.
