Twenty-four fishermen and boatmen who had been held by the Arakan Army have returned to Bangladesh after nine months. On Wednesday afternoon, the Arakan Army handed them over to the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) by trawler at the border area adjacent to the Teknaf-Myanmar transit jetty. BGB then brought them to the Teknaf jetty.
Of the 24 who returned, 18 are Bangladeshi nationals and six are Rohingya. Preparations are under way to hand them over to their families after verification.
Lieutenant Colonel Hanifur Rahman Bhuiyan, commanding officer of the Teknaf-2 BGB Battalion, disclosed this information at a press conference at the Teknaf Bangladesh-Myanmar transit jetty on Wednesday afternoon. UNO S M Onik Chowdhury was also present.
Lieutenant Colonel Hanifur Rahman Bhuiyan said the fishermen had been detained by the Arakan Army at various times after crossing the zero line along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border into Myanmar’s waters while fishing in the Bay of Bengal.
He said they had been brought home through BGB’s efforts and would be handed over to their families after verification. Among those who returned after roughly nine months held by the Arakan Army was Md Shafiq of Kowanchhari Para in Sabrang.
He said he had gone fishing at sea east of Saint Martin’s Island along with six boatmen when Arakan Army members chased and detained them.
Shafiq said he had to endure roughly nine months of captivity, during which they were subjected to abuse. He said they were forced to work as laborers for roughly seven hours a day, and were beaten severely if they refused to work. They were given only one meal of rice a day.
He added that he had spent nine months living in inhumane conditions, and that it felt very good to finally be able to return home. He said that after returning to Bangladesh, he had, for the first time in nine months, been given a proper meal by the BGB. He said more than fifty other fishermen, including Rohingya, remain held there.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report