Question Period Note: Rohingya refugees

What can Canada do about Rohingya refugees fleeing Myanmar

PROPOSED RESPONSE:
• Canada remains deeply concerned by the genocide of the Rohingya in Rakhine State and the resulting exodus in August 2017 of more than 740,000 people into neighbouring Bangladesh.
• Canada supports the right of the Rohingya people to return to their homes in Myanmar and is cooperating with international partners to promote the conditions necessary for a voluntary, dignified, sustainable and safe return.
• In 2017, Canada dedicated $300 million over three years in international assistance, and Budget 2021 allocated an additional $288.3 million to GAC over three years, to continue to respond to this humanitarian crisis, encourage positive political developments, ensure accountability for the crimes committed, and enhance international cooperation.
• Conditions in the region are not currently conducive to resettling Rohingya to Canada. We are monitoring the situation and stand ready to resettle Rohingya refugees going forward, should conditions permit.

BACKGROUND:
• The Rohingya are a largely stateless Muslim minority from Myanmar’s western Rakhine State. Having faced decades of institutionalized discrimination, the United Nations considers the Rohingya to be one of the most persecuted minorities in the world.
• On August 25, 2017, a military crackdown targeting Rohingya civilians caused over 740,000 Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh. The Government of Myanmar has not taken meaningful steps towards addressing the root causes of persecution, ensuring accountability for the violence and respecting the rights of the Rohingya in Rakhine state.
Human Rights
• On 27 August 2018, the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar reported that it was reasonable to conclude that crimes against humanity and war crimes had been committed by the Myanmar military in its operations in Rakhine State since 2011.
• In September 2018, the Canadian House of Commons declared that the crimes committed by the Myanmar military against the Rohingya constituted an act of genocide.
• On November 11, 2019 the Gambia filed a contentious case against Myanmar at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) alleging the latter’s violation of the Genocide Convention. On December 9, 2019, Canada released a joint statement with the Netherlands announcing intentions to explore options to support the Gambia’s case. At public hearings at the ICJ in The Hague from December 10-12, the Gambia argued for the indication of provisional measures in the interim of a formal determination by the Court on whether Myanmar has violated the Genocide Convention.
Voluntary repatriation and resettlement
• There are nearly 1 million Rohingya refugees who are now living in camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
• On August 22, 2019, the Governments of Bangladesh and Myanmar undertook a plan to repatriate 3,450 Rohingya refugees to Myanmar. The news triggered concerns among international observers on issues of informed consent, escalations in violence in Rakhine state, and the lack of clarity on resettlement locations. In the end, Bangladesh abided by its commitment to voluntariness; no refugees volunteered to go back and none were repatriated.
• Following this failed attempt, the Government of Bangladesh called for the international community to accept its plan to relocate 100,000 Rohingya refugees to Bhasan Char, a shifting silt island in the Bay of Bengal which poses significant concerns regarding protection needs and service provision. Canada continues to support United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) position that any relocations to Bhasan Char be postponed pending a full UN technical and protection assessment of the land.
• Canada has signaled its willingness to lead an international resettlement effort of Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh when conditions permit. [REDACTED].
• When conditions allow, Canada will resume resettling Rohingya refugees from the region, outside of Bangladesh, as referred by UNHCR or private sponsors. Canada will expedite cases of privately sponsored refugees, as well as family class sponsorship cases of Rohingya identified by family members in Canada, in order to support family reunification.
• Canada has been a global leader on the resettlement of Rohingya from Bangladesh when such resettlement has been possible. Between 2006 and 2010, Canada resettled approximately 295 Rohingya from Bangladesh. Canada was the first country to resettle Rohingya out of Bangladesh in large numbers, and did so to encourage other countries to follow suit and provide a durable solution to particularly vulnerable refugees.
In-Canada Asylum System
• The in-Canada asylum system offers a robust framework that provides protection to asylum seekers who meet the definition of a refugee under the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol and to persons in need of protection. The system allows for persons who fear persecution in their home country to have their claim heard by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada.

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