Military Junta Claims Evidence Shows Only Over 300,000 Out of 800,000+ Refugees Sent by Bangladesh Resided in Myanmar

News ၊ August 15, 2026

Photo - JURIST News

The military junta's Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement on August 15 stating that, following verification of a list of over 800,000 Bengali refugees sent by Bangladesh, evidence of prior residence in Myanmar was found for only over 300,000 individuals.  

According to the statement, Bangladesh provided a list of 828,824 displaced persons. As of July 31, 2026, a total of 426,545 individuals had been verified. Among them, 308,797 were confirmed to have lived in Rakhine State, 4,241 were identified as having committed terrorist acts, and 113,507 had no evidence of residence in Rakhine State. Based on these figures, the military junta’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed concern over claims alleging that all residents in the Bangladeshi camps originated from Myanmar.  

The report further stated that during the 2016–2017 period, following attacks by the ARSA terrorist group on border guard police posts and police battalions of the military, area clearance operations were conducted. Consequently, over 540,000 Bengalis fled to Bangladesh, while more than 200,000 Bengalis remained in the region.  

The junta’s statement noted that based on these verification details, claims stating that over 1 million people were displaced from Rakhine State are clearly incorrect. 

To repatriate the displaced Bengalis who left Myanmar, three bilateral agreements were signed with Bangladesh within two months. Preparations to receive them in accordance with these agreements were made on three separate occasions on January 23, 2018; on November 15, 2018 under the Joint Working Group agreement; and on August 22, 2019 following notifications from China and Bangladesh yet no individuals returned during these times.  

Similarly, the statement firmly rejected claims identifying boat refugees and individuals in other countries who present under ethnicities not existing in Myanmar as originating from Myanmar. It highlighted that through immigration verification processes conducted in 1978, 1991, and 1992, Bengalis who had fled from Rakhine State to Bangladesh were successfully repatriated under bilateral agreements. Specifically, 186,968 displaced persons were repatriated during 1978–1979, and 236,495 were repatriated between 1992 and 2005.  

The military junta’s statement mentioned that Myanmar has genuinely made efforts to repatriate those who actually lived in Rakhine State. Under a Pilot Project, actions taken included hosting a "Come-and-See" visit to brief officials in Rakhine State, conducting two "Go-and-Talk" trips to Bangladesh, sending a Myanmar delegation on two physical verification visits to Bangladesh, and organizing two diplomatic tours to demonstrate preparations made for the Pilot Project.  

Furthermore, the junta stated it would cooperate with Bangladesh in a spirit of good neighborliness to ensure that verified displaced persons can return voluntarily, safely, and with dignity. It asserted that repatriation is a bilateral issue and expressed discomfort over it being incorrectly portrayed as an international issue. The statement added that Myanmar would constructively cooperate with friendly nations regarding repatriation and would coordinate the return of verified former residents of Rakhine State once the security situation in Rakhine State improves.  

Source@ONN