President of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Volkan Bozkir has said the basic rights, including to citizenship, and the creation of conditions conducive to the voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return of all Rohingyas must be respected.

“The safety and security of the Rohingya and other minorities must be secured,” he said while delivering his keynote speech at the Sixth Lecture of the Bangabandhu Lecture Series at Foreign Service Academy on Tuesday.

Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen also spoke at the programme titled “Bangabandhu, Bangladesh and the United Nations.”

State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam and Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen, among others, were present.

Bozkir said he firmly believes they cannot speak on these issues from afar. “The United Nations must continue to reach out to the people we serve.”

Turning to the issue of human rights and humanitarian action, he commended Bangladesh for offering shelter and protection to the Rohingya fleeing persecution and unspeakable crimes in Rakhine State.

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Bozkir mentioned that Bangladesh stepped up at a moment of crisis to uphold the principles of the United Nations when most vulnerable neighbours endured their darkest hour.

“Please allow me, on behalf of the United Nations General Assembly, to thank you. History will define your actions as heroic,” he said.

Bozkir said he remains “deeply concerned” about the humanitarian implications of the military’s recent actions in Myanmar. “I join calls for an immediate end to the violence.”

A year ago, he said, the International Court of Justice ordered Myanmar to do everything possible to prevent a genocide against the Rohingya.

“This order retains its urgency and should not be forgotten as we face new challenges relating to the coup and its violent aftermath,” Bozkir said.

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Earlier at the joint media briefing, the UNGA President said most probably they will have a meeting on Myanmar where they will try to find a consensus. 

Personally, he said, he is completely against any military coup in the world.