BANGKOK, June 22 (TNA) — The Myanmar government has guaranteed for the safety of displaced persons from its Rakhine State and is willing to issue them the personal documents, similar to the US Green Card given to foreigners there, said Thai Foreign Affairs Minister Don Pramudwinai on Saturday.
Foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) discussed the sensitive issue during the two-day ASEAN Summit which ends Sunday at a Bangkok hotel.
They discussed how to repatriate those displaced Rohingya Muslims from Rakhine State who had fled their homes to Bangladesh.
Finally, they agreed that both Myanmar and Bangladesh have full rights to approve, screening and the exact number of Muslim displaced persons to be repatriated, said Mr Don.
Myanmar is now better prepared on the safety of Muslims from Rakhine State, according to ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management, or AHA Center which had surveyed the area, he said.
But some displaced persons still do not have confidence in returning to their homes in Rakhine State, Mr Don noted.
Further discussions on sending back displaced persons will happen later this year and the repatriation will occur soonest, Mr Don said. (TNA)
