The Protracted Rohingya Refugee Crisis: A Growing Incertitude for Bangladesh, the Rohingyas, and the Regional Countries

Abstract

The protracted Rohingya refugee crisis is one of the most significant ongoing refugee crises in the world. The Rohingyas have been facing decades of discrimination, statelessness and targeted violence in Myanmar which forced them to cross the Bangladeshi border for saving lives. The Rohingyas entered into Bangladesh after violent attacks in 1978, 1991-1992 and in 2016. The recent influx of Rohingya arrival in 2016 crossed the previous records that shifted the number of Rohingya refuges in Bangladesh to 1.2 million. This significant number of refugees have not only created humanitarian crisis but also security risks. Though, the host country is getting humanitarian assistance from international communities to support the refugees but the security risks are getting less attention. This study emphasizes on the security aspects of this refugee crisis. It explains that the protracted Rohingya refugee crisis has created multi-dimensional non-traditional security risks. The host country is in the risk of several national security issues and the Rohingyas are also facing human security crisis. This crisis has also posed security risks towards the regional countries at the same time. It also explains the necessity of immediate attention to resolve the crisis permanently by short-term and long-term measures.