Bangladesh moves to boost security on Myanmar border

The Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB) chief on Thursday visited the frontier with Rakhine State where the Arakan Army (AA) has seized a town and several of Myanmar’s junta outposts, The Irrawaddy reports.

The BGB headquarters said Major General AKM Nazmul Hasan visited troops at Bandarban, Palangkhali, Tekhnaf and Saint Martin Island in Cox’s Bazar, inspected the defense system and instructed the force to remain on high alert for the threat of smuggling.

A special meeting was held on Wednesday at Cox’s Bazar administrative offices to address the increasing smuggling of fuel, cooking oil and food to Myanmar through coastal areas.

The AA on Sunday seized the town of Paletwa in southern Chin State, about 20km from the Bangladesh border on the Kaladan River.

A New Delhi-backed infrastructure initiative along the Kaladan is underway to link India’s landlocked northeast to the Bay of Bengal.

A Bangladeshi home ministry source said Dhaka is closely observing developments in western Myanmar and the developing food shortages.

Dhaka’s Business Standard reported on Thursday the Bangladeshi authorities have arrested 28 suspected smugglers and seized 7,636 liters of octane fuel, 136 liters of diesel and 3,752 liters of soybean oil destined for Myanmar.

The newspaper blamed the growing conflict with Myanmar’s junta in Rakhine State and Paletwa for the growing demand for essentials.

Cox’s Bazar Deputy Commissioner Muhammad Shaheen Imran has asked oil pump owners and traders to submit weekly fuel and cooking oil transactions to his administration.

“The Bangladeshi boatmen are making huge profits, selling fuel at six to seven times Bangladeshi prices in Myanmar,” a Cox’s Bazar official told The Irrawaddy.

Bangladeshis along Myanmar’s border said they feared a renewed influx of refugees and about the impact on the remaining Rohingya communities in Rakhine.

Bangladesh’s former foreign secretary Touhid Hossain told The Irrawaddy that Bangladesh must not allow any more refugees to cross the border, whatever happens in Myanmar.

He said the AA should ensure the Rohingya are not affected by the conflict.

John Quinley, director of Fortify Rights, said since November the conflict has led to increased junta restrictions on humanitarian aid throughout Rakhine State, including to Rohingya and Kaman Muslims in internment camps.

“The junta must stop its campaign of violence and step down from power,” he said.

Bangladesh hosts nearly 1 million Rohingya from Myanmar, most of whom fled Rakhine State in 2017 during a military crackdown.