Poll-time security urged without sealing Rohingya camps

News Desk

An intelligence agency has warned the government about the potential use of Rohingyas in criminal and political activities during the election period, while recommending stepped-up security measures without sealing the camps.

The agency believes it would not be feasible to implement the Election Commission’s proposal to seal the Rohingya camps during the polls, citing the camps’ vast size and infrastructural limitations.

Instead, it has advised enhancing surveillance and security. A report incorporating these recommendations was sent from the Office of the Chief Advisor to the Ministry of Home Affairs on January 22. The report also called for allocating funds to repair damaged CCTV cameras in the camp areas.

According to the intelligence report, vested interests could exploit illegal weapons or organised groups inside the Rohingya camps to carry out sabotage in Cox’s Bazar or elsewhere in the country during the election. It also warned that some Rohingyas had been illegally included in voter lists at different times and might attempt to cast votes.

The report further noted the possibility of Rohingyas being drawn into election-related political activities, including rallies, meetings and canvassing.

Recently, the Election Commission proposed sealing the Rohingya camps to ensure election-time security and prevent their participation in the polls. However, the intelligence agency said sealing the camps would be unrealistic due to their scale, the ineffective boundary walls and non-functional CCTV systems.

As an alternative, the agency recommended that the Election Commission formally warn all political parties against involving Rohingyas in any election-related activities, noting that such actions should be treated as serious violations of the electoral code of conduct.

The report also suggested conducting joint operations to recover illegal weapons from the camps and surrounding areas ahead of the polls. It recommended setting up checkpoints on routes from the camps to nearby polling stations seven days before election day to prevent Rohingyas from voting, and detaining Rohingyas found outside the camps in Cox’s Bazar town and adjacent areas during that period to stop their participation in election activities.

In addition, the agency advised that camp-in-charges (CICs) posted in the Rohingya camps should not be assigned duties elsewhere and must remain in the camps from seven days before the election. Members of the three Armed Police Battalion (APBN) units—8, 14 and 16—deployed in the camps should also not be reassigned outside the camps during this period. Instead, they should intensify patrols and operate checkpoints to strengthen security.

The report further stressed the need to repair and activate boundary walls and CCTV cameras in the camps by allocating the necessary funds.

On January 6, Election Commissioner Abul Fazal Mohammad Sanaullah underscored the need to “seal” the Rohingya camps and borders ahead of the 13th National Parliament election, saying strict control over Rohingya movement was essential.

Subsequently, on January 8, a meeting of the National Task Force on Rohingya was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, chaired by Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam. The meeting focused on preventing the use of Rohingyas in the national election and agreed that they should not be exploited for any malicious purposes. It also discussed strengthening border surveillance to prevent infiltration from Myanmar ahead of the polls.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while sealing the camps was discussed at the meeting, the consensus was not to shut them entirely but to place the entire area under a security blanket, including strict monitoring of Rohingyas who travel outside the camps in emergencies. A policy decision was also taken not to change sub-camp in-charges or the commanding officers of law enforcement units responsible for election duties during the period.

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