Are the Rohingya deportation threats more for optics?

On September 4 this year the Minister of State for Home Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, said, “Rohingya are illegal immigrants and stand to be deported”. This statement was seen as a clear shift in approach towards Rohingyas. The move sparked fears among human rights groups and even prompted a petition in the apex court but now it seems that this tough talk may be more for optics than anything else.

In August the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a circular to all states asking them to identify illegal migrants including Rohingyas and deport them. Does that mean this could happen immediately? The answer is 'No'.

A senior MHA official confirmed to Republic that deportation is a 7-stage-process which includes:-

1) Track and locate illegal migrants

2) Apprehend the illegal migrant

3) Authenticate through local inquiry under foreigners act and passport act

4) If confirmed to be a foreigner, then contact the embassy concerned

5) Embassy to confirm if such an individual belongs to them

6) Embassy to issue emergency travel document

7) Finally, on a stipulated date, the individual will be handed over to the country concerned at the border

The official made it clear that the central government was still one step one and the question of immediate deportation did not arise as due procedure has to be followed till step seven. Secondly, even if the centre manages to confirm their place of origin there is no guarantee that Myanmar would accept them. After all, the Myanmar government has never accepted Rohingyas as their citizens. Thirdly, if Myanmar does not accept these individuals then India will have no choice but to continue hosting them.

To allay fears around deportation, the officer further said, “Indian government is responsible enough to understand the circumstances in which such individuals have come to India. We will hand them over only if we are satisfied that the Myanmar government is going to accept them and safeguard their rights”.

Authorities say that as of today illegal Bangladeshi migrants are a bigger worry than Rohingyas. As per MHA records there are at least two lakh illegal Bangladeshis in India compared to fifty-six thousand Rohingyas. It is important to note that the influx of Rohingyas into India is not a recent phenomenon. Sources say, it has been going on since the last 5-7 years and no decision has ever been taken on how to deal with them.

More than India it is Bangladesh which has had to face the brunt of Rohingyas fleeing Rakhine after large-scale violence broke out on the August 25. Since then over four lakh refugees have reached Bangladesh fleeing persecution in Myanmar. The reason why Bangladesh becomes an obvious choice is because the country borders the violence-hit Rakhine.

What is significant is that according to the Indian government the actual number of illegal migrants coming to India following the recent spate of violence is very small. A govt source said the number may be only a handful — as per some estimates, not more than 15 — and these are illegal migrants who first fled to Dhaka and then made their way to India via the Bangladesh border. The 56,000 refugees already in India were not the result of the recent crisis but those who have travelled to India over the last 5-7 years during periods of violence in Myanmar.

However, the Indian government has stepped up patrolling at some vulnerable points along the Indo-Bangladesh border. The border isn’t fenced at all points and areas like South 24 Parganas, Dhubri, Farakka and Rajshahi are often used by touts to bring in illegal migrants.

Two issues are clear: Firstly, the direct humanitarian challenge to India as a result of recent violence in Rakhine is very small compared to Bangladesh. Secondly, deporting Rohingyas to Myanmar is by no means an easy task. This led a senior government source to suggest that the tough talk on Rohingya may be a part of optics to avoid a huge influx of refugees after violence broke out in Rakhine on August 25 and to tell Myanmar and the world that India cannot accommodate any more Rohingyas fleeing religious persecution.