Myanmar ambassador summoned

The government yesterday summoned the Myanmar ambassador in Dhaka and lodged a protest over the BGP's firing on Bangladesh paramilitary force and abduction of a BGB man.

Additional Foreign Secretary Mizanur Rahman handed over a strongly worded note verbale to Ambassador Myo Myint Than and asked him to immediately send Nayek Abdur Razzak back.

The foreign ministry officials also said Wednesday's incident was most unfortunate and totally unwarranted. Such unprovoked firing by the BGP is not acceptable at all.

Myanmar Border Guard Police (BGP) opened fire on a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) patrol team near the Naf river of Cox's Bazar early Wednesday.

The BGP took Nayek Abdur Razzak along with his firearm and left sepoy Biplob Kumar with a bullet injury to his arm.

After summoning the ambassador, the foreign ministry officials expressed deep concern as the Myanmar authorities had not responded to the BGB's call for holding a flag meeting.

BGB offered to hold the meeting at Teknaf at 10:00am yesterday. But there has been no response from the Myanmar side so far, an official of the paramilitary force told The Daily Star on condition of anonymity. 

In his response, Myo Myint Than informed the additional foreign secretary that the Myanmar border guards were busy holding a ceremony and for that reason, the meeting might get delayed.

The ministry officials then asked the envoy to convey the message to the authorities concerned in Myanmar for holding the flag meeting immediately and returning the BGB man without any delay.

The officials also asked the ambassador not to link up the issue of flag meeting with that of the BGP's ceremony.

They also demanded the Myanmar authorities conduct a thorough investigation into Wednesday's incident.

On June 5, Myo Myint Than was summoned before the foreign ministry officials in connection with a Rakhine state minister's comment on Bangladesh illegal migration issue at a Naypyidaw diplomatic briefing.

Myanmar border guards on May 28, 2014, shot and killed BGB Nayek Md Mizanur Rahman at Naikkhangchhari on the Bangladesh Myanmar border without any provocation.