Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective

S M Tasdid Swad, SRMP-R

Abstract

Security and Peace are concepts that complement one another. In today’s globalized world, the perception of security is changed but human insecurity or fear of persecution remains a key concern. Nations compete more on economic hegemony over one another than focusing on traditional military invasions by adversaries.

Diplomatic pursuit has gained ground over border protection. Bangladesh is not an exception, having international attention because of its sizable refugee population. The inflow of Rohingya refugees from Myanmar has historical roots in the need to settle for peace in Southeast Asia. The geopolitical significance has made the issue a strategic concern for the major world and regional powers.

This qualitative study described the arising global threats by characterizing transnational crimes that have emerged from the activities of Rohingyas, referring to them as a “Globalized (world’s) Security Challenge”. The Global Compact on Refugees must also mandate humanitarian security assistance for host nations.

To ensure that other nations across the world are not impacted, we should strengthen the security surveillance infrastructure to redundant refugees from becoming a cause for unrest. The international community needs to put forth more effort to help these people be compensated or fit in with society.

Keywords: Globalized World, Security Challenges, Refugee, Transnational Crime, Sustainability

“Humanity Knows No Boundaries” is a truth that best represents when a country offers asylum to forcibly displaced individuals. Despite being the most in danger, refugees may also turn dangerous to the host country and the world ultimately.

National security threats by a multitude of the international power equation including refugee-committed atrocities. This research is about the perceived security threat faced in the governance of refugees in the context of the world crisis. The ‘Globalized Security Challenge’ is to defend refugee rights recognized internationally and counteract pressures that threaten world peace.

This study paints a picture of the security dilemma that refugees (Rohingya) presented to the host nation (Bangladesh).

The goal of this research is to explain why national and international security mechanisms need to work more closely together. Similar to the Ukraine crisis, refugee threats in one part of the world have the capacity to threaten the stability of countries that are far away.

One of the fundamental traditions of humanity is to defend the weak. Therefore, all the challenges that now may occur in the changing global environment need to be managed in protecting refugees.

Future research may employ the term ‘Globalized Security Challenge’ which is being used maybe for the first time to pursue sustainability goals.

Although there is a lot of research being done in the field of human rights, academic scholars haven’t really focused on the Rohingya as a concern. This study aims to assist in the creation of situationally relevant training materials for the country’s developing security sector.

Modern architects are increasingly adopting the concept of CEPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design), which is Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective by Tasdid Page 2 of 6 encouraged in the context of Cox’s Bazar refugee camp’s surveillance.

This research describes the historical background of the Rohingya crisis as well as understands the issues linked with a security challenge.

Literature Review:

This analysis is based on comprehensive research on the Rohingya persecution
conducted by numerous organizations and individuals. Researchers sometimes tend to be regionally biased and confined to their institutional purposes.

Bangladeshi academics are researching the Rohingya crisis with a greater emphasis on social and economic factors. The topic of this study and the literature on
peace and conflict are intertwined.

The security issues of a globalized world are drawn from many of the authentic literary works here.

Figure : Rohingya Migration (What Forces Are Fueling Myanmar’s Rohingya Crisis?, n.d.)

Who are Rohingya?

A minority ethnic group of Muslims in Burma, the Rohingya adheres to a Sunni
branch of Islam with Sufi connotations. Successive governments of Burma since the country’s declaration of independence in 1948 have denied the historical assertions of the Rohingya minority.

Burma changed its name to Myanmar in 1989 but did not change its notion towards Rohingya. Their Government doesn’t count them as one of the nation’s 135 recognized ethnic groups.

The Rohingya may trace their genealogy back to the fourteenth century when tens of thousands of Muslims came to the Arakan Kingdom.

What is the case?

Human Rights Watch and UNHCR both stated that Muslim Rohingya were subjected
to extreme forms of cruelty and torture. (Mehar et al., 2019) The administration had supported these crimes against humanity, which several experts have also raised as a potential act of genocide. The international media have published numerous reports on the facts.

Why is the unrest?

The conflict’s underlying roots are long-standing political, religious, and ethical that
have rekindled anti-Muslim prejudice in Myanmar. Persecution has numerous reasons including skin color.

There have been attempts to portray Rohingyas as migrants in their own country due to the strict ethnic divisions established in Myanmar’s legal and political systems. (Fair, 2018) People in Burma with dark skin and South Asian ancestry are often regarded as the Kalar (dark-skinned people).

The majority of Burmese people do not consider themselves to have a dark complexion. (Borici, 2017) Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective by Tasdid Page 3 of 6

What is the crisis of Rohingyas?

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries when Rakhine was governed colonially as a region of British India, a lot more people immigrated there. Even though many of the Rohingya can trace their ancestry back to Myanmar, they are regarded as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

Analysts agree with the Rohingya claim that they are not migrants of their land (Rakhaine state) rather they are native to the region. (New Political Space, Old Tensions, 2021) Myanmar’s 1948 citizenship law was prejudiced until the military junta seized power in 1962 and 20 years later passed new legislation that denied the Rohingya full citizenship.

The junta began issuing identification cards known as "white cards” to countless Muslims, Rohingya and non-Rohingya, in the 1990s, and these cards allowed Muslims to register as temporary residents.

In 2014, the government undertook a nationwide census for the first time in thirty years, with UN backing. Initial registration under the name Rohingya was approved for the Muslim minority population. but after Buddhist nationalists threatened to boycott the census, the government decided that Rohingya may only register under the Bengali name. The temporary identity cards were also cancelled in February 2015 in a same manner in response to pressure from Buddhist nationalists who opposed the Rohingya.

According to a report by the advocacy group Fortify Rights, the government recently compelled Rohingya to begin wearing national verification cards, which essentially identify them as foreigners but do not give citizenship. Officials in Myanmar believe that the cards are a first step toward citizenship; however, opponents contend that they rob the Rohingya of their identity and may make it simpler for the government to continue oppressing their rights.

What is the crisis for Bangladesh?

The vast majority of Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh, a nearby nation with limited resources and space to house refugees. Offering asylum is a kind and compassionate
contrary to those who commit crimes against peace.

The finest example of this is the notion of the humanitarian and civil nature of refugee camps. In the Cox’s Bazar region, where many people live in crowded settlements, there is the largest refugee camp in the entire globe.

Teachers are not allowed to utilize Myanmar or Bangladeshi curricula in the camps, leaving nearly 400,000 children without access to education. Rohingyas have been in the assistance of smugglers and sexual servitude. Few violence directed at the host communities has worsen the security situation. (Relief and Rehabilitation Program for the Rohingya People – Bastob, n.d.) (Buye, 2021)

What is the crisis for Global peace?

89.3 million individuals would have been forcibly displaced of their land due to events that gravely disturbed the peace by the end of 2021. (Zafar, 2021) . An estimated 3.5 million Rohingya are disbursed around the globe. They exploits as pawns in transnational crimes including drug trafficking, smuggling, the sex trade, as well as many other acts of anti-national terrorism and espionage by adversarial countries. Rohingyas have the ability to affect both domestic and global security.

Security concerns related to food, water, and energy are having more tangible effects on international politics. Human rights abuses can be seen as assaults on people’s innate sense of security.

A region’s peace landscape includes dealing with security concerns at the individual, social, global and national levels including local authorities and stakeholders. (International Conflict . The Encyclopedia of World Problems, n.d.) (Buye, 2021) (Mata, 2019)

Background:

Security concerns have been a key concern for humanity since the dawn of time. Since the turn of the century, the world’s security situation has deteriorated. The repercussions of globalization have brought issues from other locations to us. As a result, if a crisis occurs anyplace in the world, the rest of the world must share the consequences.

This Rohingya presence has the same potential to spread to areas outside of Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective by Tasdid Page 4 of 6 the host nation.

As a result, it is important to view the Rohingya population in Bangladesh from a global viewpoint as it is also impacted by the mentioned globalized security concerns. Security, however, also involves cultural, social and economic components.

Refugees are especially vulnerable when resourcesare few and their family and community support mechanisms are compromised or destroyed. This study stresses the need to include societal security concerns as a part of the refugee dilemma.

A variety of threats seriously jeopardize national security including crimes perpetrated by Rohingya. A refugee has a legitimate fear of persecution because of their ethnicity, religion, political stance, or membership in a specific social group.

They fear going back home. (“Global Challenge,” 2018) . It is hard to find a long-term solution to the refugee situation without international cooperation. If the local
population does not step up its support for and collaboration with refugees, the political aspirations of the entire international community may result in additional security issues. (Hansen et al., 2007) Theft, robbery, rape, assault and violence against or committed by them are significant security issues for host communities.

(Nations, 2022) The world is terrified by the Ukraine-Russian confrontation. It also demonstrates the danger that chronic sources of conflict like WMD (Weapons of Mass Destruction), proliferation, international terrorism, and price increases for essential items might push many nations that are not economically independent or
heavily dependent on exports of remittances toward hunger.

New non-military threats have emerged that are equally important to conventional military threats. The market economy of today has replaced the traditional forms of warfare, which entailed an army, armories, and the idea of an invasion of a country.

We must resolve refugee concerns diplomatically as soon as possible. This study represents a small contribution to that. (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CPTED), 2022; Refugees, n.d.)

Methodology:

The research is based on reports from numerous organizations as well as works written concerning the Rohingya issue. This study integrates both primary and secondary information.

Data of few interviews based on an established questionnaire, observations through field visits (Rohingya campsites) and discussions with various camp workers is referred from previously published research intended for University Masters program. (Muktasid & Lindberg, 2022) However, secondary data have been gathered from multiple news reports and articles published in international mass media as well as academic journals that are cited in APA.

Result:

An analysis is completed to suggest social stability after thorough examinations of numerous internet information sources, fieldwork in various refugee camps, and interviews with humanitarian groups housed in refugee camps. NGOs can significantly contribute to the achievement of human security because they are one of the most prominent groups of actors in the human rights.

Because of their size and scope, proximity to local populations, willingness to address international concerns through coalition- building, NGOs are particularly well-suited to action for human security. (Michael, 2002) The protection of the rights of refugees who do not have access to national protection and the averting of conflicts between the countries of origin and the countries providing sanctuary are matters of both national and international significance.

There is also a need for enhanced efforts to help immigrants and refugees
integrate into their new cultures and become citizens who are proud of their new country. Integration is Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective by Tasdid Page 5 of 6 essential if we are to avoid refugees becoming a cause of social and political conflict in our societies.

Five crucial initiative is essential based on the overall scenario to address the Rohingya crisis : (Sullivan, n.d.)
1. Human rights crimes have been committed and must be exposed
2. The persecution of Rohingya in Myanmar must stop
3. Rohingya in Bangladesh are still at risk and must be protected
4. Global initiative in returning Rohingya to Myanmar is a crucial for long-term solution
5. Humanitarian security risk management framework is to strengthen by relevant stakeholders

Discussion:

Global Initiative: The security of society and the economy are particularly at risk from illegal migration, human trafficking, and cross-border drug smuggling that result from the influx of Rohingya refugees. Refugees are always susceptible to exploitation by criminal groups.They can be manipulated due to their inability to afford necessities like food and shelter.

The fact that globalization has the effect of making the entire world into a single town has made this more visible. National security cannot be maintained solely by the efforts of governments. Until the refugees are repatriated, a local structure made up of refugee representatives, local stakeholders and government and non-governmental security specialists should be in place. (Kvint & Bodrunov, 2021).

Good Security Governance: In Bangladesh, the private security industry is booming but their training and expertise in refugee protection is practically nonexistent. Local security firms aside from law enforcement typically handle security of the foreign delegates and the local population.

Rresearch tends modern surveillance mechanism and design of the refugee camps. Local authorities and refugee representatives must work in a cohesive strategy. (Noja & Son, 2016) (Mandel, 1997) .

International terrorism has affected refugee society despite the efforts of numerous volunteer organizations to assist refugees in creating stable societies. NGOs should focus their security based on strategies of acceptance, protection and deterrence to reduce strain on host nations; increase refugee self-reliance; expand access to partnership in local stakeholders, promote circumstances in countries of origin for safe and dignified repatriation.

Research and Development: Research is the basis for good security policy. Numerous academic fields need to collaborate and communicate with one another, as well as with other public and private sector partners in order to address contemporary security affair. Studies on security and peace governance have not received considerable support. Crime can be prevented based on architectural planning those incorporates built environment priotizing surveillance.

To that end, all universities should concentrate their research efforts on developing comprehensive forums within Bangladesh as well as strengthening intelligence and security analysis capacities.

There is a requirement for widespread security governance expertise and an in-depth comprehension of crisis nature. Young scholars need to focus on peace governance and their connections to security in order to encourage publicdiscussion, and support the development of professional practice. (Sullivan, n.d.) (Raghavan, 2007)

Conclusion:

Crimes and security concerns that affect Rohingyas must be seen as societal constructs. Since managing refugees well requires both financial investments and a focus on maintaining peace, it is a constant

Globalized Security Challenge to Manage Refugees: Bangladesh Perspective by Tasdid Page 6 of 6 national problem. One of the top countries in the world for taking in refugees is Bangladesh. Without a global approach, peace threats cannot be removed by enforcing rules or by boosting help in refugee camps.

Effective security governance requires cooperation across all regional and global agencies. In an uncertain society like Rohingyas, world political powers and economic players may attempt to capitalize on people’s fear.

It’s high time to pay new attention to changing world context to refugee issues of Bangladesh, which otherwise will affect world peace. The focus of the study is on the peaceful integration of refugees as evidenced by the literature evaluation in the context of global stability.

Therefore, Security must be ensured in a holistic manner if we want to be proud of the nation’s glory and sustainability.

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