Myanmar

## Myanmar: Rohingya Genocide, 950,000 Refugees in Bangladesh, and the Strongest BD-Specific Editorial in This Series

### What You Need to Know First

For Bangladeshi readers, Myanmar is not a distant foreign country. Cox's Bazar district in southeastern Bangladesh hosts approximately 950,000 Rohingya refugees who fled Myanmar's 2017 military operations in Rakhine State — the largest forced displacement into Bangladesh in modern history. The Naf River separates Bangladesh's southeast from Myanmar's Rakhine State by as little as 28 km at the narrowest crossing. The United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar concluded in September 2018 that military operations against the Rohingya were carried out with 'genocidal intent' — explicit terminology in the UN report. The military regime (Tatmadaw, organized as the State Administration Council since the February 1, 2021 coup) that conducted those 2017 Clearance Operations remains in power. Multiple bilateral repatriation agreements between Bangladesh and Myanmar (November 2017, January 2018, August 2019) have failed. The International Court of Justice issued provisional measures in January 2020 requiring Myanmar to prevent acts of genocide. The International Criminal Court Pre-Trial Chamber authorized investigation into Myanmar in November 2019. For Bangladesh, hosting the Rohingya at significant economic cost ($1.2 billion+ annually per World Bank estimates), social strain, and environmental impact in Cox's Bazar district is direct national reality, not abstract foreign affairs. A Bangladeshi traveler considering Myanmar is considering a country whose military has caused the largest forced displacement into Bangladesh in modern history.

Myanmar rates US Level 4 'Do Not Travel.' Active armed conflict continues across Rakhine, Sagaing, Chin, Shan, Kayah, and Karen states. The military has lost significant territorial control to ethnic armed organizations and People's Defence Force units affiliated with the National Unity Government (the parallel government formed by deposed elected officials). Airstrikes on civilian areas have been documented by international monitors. Internet shutdowns affect entire regions. Most of the country outside Yangon and Mandalay carries severe security risks. The TIP Report 2025 places Myanmar at Tier 3 — the worst tier — citing government complicity in forced labor by Tatmadaw soldiers, including against ethnic minority civilians.

### Rakhine State Access Restriction

The eVisa permits 28-day tourist stays via designated entry points (Yangon International Airport, Mandalay International Airport, Nay Pyi Taw). The eVisa does NOT grant access to Rakhine State, where Rohingya communities lived before the 2017 displacement and where access remains restricted by the military government. Bangladeshi journalists, researchers, refugees, or family members seeking to investigate or visit Rakhine State cannot use the eVisa for this purpose. Separate permits are required for Rakhine State and are consistently denied to most foreign nationals, including journalists, researchers, humanitarian workers, and members of affected communities.

There is no Bangladeshi labor migration pipeline to Myanmar. There is no documented Bangladeshi diaspora in Myanmar in any meaningful form. Tourism is the only legal pathway available via the eVisa. Bangladesh's bilateral relationship with Myanmar is dominated by the Rohingya situation, not by economic exchange or labor migration.

The Myanmar economy has contracted significantly since the February 2021 coup. GDP is estimated at ~$60 billion (2024) but contracted. The Myanmar Kyat (MMK) has collapsed — the black market rate is approximately 3,500 MMK to 1 USD versus the official rate of ~2,100 MMK. International sanctions target military-linked entities.

**Tourism / Hospitality**: Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, Inle Lake. Wages: MMK 300,000-600,000/month ($86-171 at black market rate). Tourism sector severely affected by political crisis and COVID — operating at fraction of pre-coup capacity.

**Natural Gas / Energy**: Offshore and pipeline operations. International operators (TotalEnergies withdrew 2022). Wages: MMK 1,000,000-3,500,000/month ($286-1,000 USD at black market rate). Technical roles. Sanctions-complicated.

**Jade / Gemstone Mining**: Hpakant region (Kachin State). Extremely dangerous. Active conflict zone. Not accessible to foreign workers or tourists.

**Agriculture**: 70% of population. Subsistence level. Wages: MMK 200,000-400,000/month ($57-114 at black market rate). Local labor.

Myanmar's official currency is the Myanmar Kyat (MMK). The official exchange rate is approximately 2,100 MMK to 1 USD. However, the black market rate has reached approximately 3,500 MMK to 1 USD — a difference of ~67%. Most foreign visitors and businesses operate at the black market rate, which is widely used in cities. Bangladeshi visitors should be aware of this dual-rate reality and budget accordingly.

Minimum wage: MMK 4,800/day (~$1.37 USD at black market rate), translating to approximately $37 USD/month. Well below Bangladesh's garment minimum.

Yangon: Basic accommodation MMK 500,000-1,500,000/month ($143-429 USD at black market rate). Food: MMK 300,000-600,000/month ($86-171 USD). Monthly basic budget: ~$300-700 USD. Significantly cheaper than pre-coup due to kyat collapse but purchasing power for locals has also collapsed. Mandalay is cheaper. Outside major cities, costs are very low but security risks are very high.

Bangladesh maintains an embassy in Yangon, Myanmar — the only country in Batch 9 (the final eVisa enrichment batch) where Bangladesh maintains in-country diplomatic presence. The embassy operates specifically for bilateral relations, with the Rohingya refugee and repatriation file dominating its work. For Bangladeshi travelers, this means consular support exists in-country — distinct from the other final-batch countries (Tajikistan, Papua New Guinea, Afghanistan) where no Bangladesh diplomatic presence exists locally.

There is no documented Bangladeshi expatriate community in Myanmar. However, the Bangladesh-Myanmar relationship is not characterized by diaspora or labor migration — it is characterized by the Rohingya crisis. The approximately 950,000 Rohingya refugees in Cox's Bazar are not Bangladeshis and not a diaspora — they are displaced Myanmar nationals whose situation dominates the bilateral relationship. A Bangladeshi in Myanmar would not find a 'Bangladeshi community' in the traditional sense. They would find themselves in a country whose military actions have directly impacted Bangladesh's southeastern districts.

Myanmar's post-coup economy is sanctions-constrained and conflict-affected. International businesses have withdrawn (TotalEnergies, Telenor, others). The military's Myanmar Economic Holdings Limited (MEHL) and Myanmar Economic Corporation (MEC) are sanctioned by the US and EU. Any business engagement risks sanctions compliance issues. The garment sector (Myanmar's largest export after natural gas) continues but under scrutiny for forced labor. For Bangladeshi entrepreneurs: the risk-reward calculus is extreme. Sanctions compliance, military governance instability, dual exchange rates, and ongoing civil war make Myanmar commercially non-viable for individual BD business ventures.

Myanmar's eVisa serves a narrow tourism purpose — primarily Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, and Inle Lake. For Bangladeshi travelers, this page exists to provide factual context: the eVisa works (BD is #6 on the eligible list, $50, 28 days), but the country it admits you to is one whose military has caused direct, documented, ongoing harm to Bangladesh and its people.