Bangladesh on Wednesday stuck by plans to begin repatriating some of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya minority who fled Myanmar last year, despite UN warnings and trepidation among the refugees themselves.

"All necessary arrangements and preparation have been taken," Bangladesh's refugee commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam told reporters, adding: "Our primary target for tomorrow (Thursday) is 150 (Rohingya refugees) from 30 families."

He said the process would involve Bangladesh handing the refugees, the first among a preliminary 2,260 currently in vast camps in southeastern Bangladesh, over to Myanmar at a transit point on the border between the two countries.

"There will be some verification process which is a very regular custom. That will happen there," Abul said.

More than 720,000 mostly Muslim Rohingya sought refuge from a Myanmar military crackdown launched from August last year that UN investigators say amounted to ethnic cleansing, joining some 300,000 already in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh says only those who volunteer will be returned, but UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said Tuesday that many refugees are panicking at the prospect of being sent back against their will.

"With an almost complete lack of accountability –- indeed with ongoing violations -– returning Rohingya refugees to Myanmar at this point effectively means throwing them back into the cycle of human rights violations that this community has been suffering for decades," Bachelet said.

She said in a statement that the violations against the Rohingya "amount to the worst atrocities, including crimes against humanity and possibly even genocide."

Bangladesh on Wednesday stuck by plans to begin repatriating some of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya minority who fled Myanmar last year, despite UN warnings and trepidation among the refugees themselves.

Bangladesh on Wednesday stuck by plans to begin repatriating some of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya minority who fled Myanmar last year, despite UN warnings and trepidation among the refugees themselves. "All necessary arrangements and preparation have been taken," Bangladesh's refugee commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam told reporters, adding: "Our primary target for tomorrow (Thursday) is 150 (Rohingya refugees) from 30 families." He said the process would involve Bangladesh handing the refugees, the first among a preliminary 2,260 currently in vast camps in southeastern Bangladesh, over to Myanmar at a transit point on the border between the two countries. "There will be some verification process which is a very regular custom. That will happen there," Abul said. More than 720,000 mostly Muslim Rohingya sought refuge from a Myanmar military crackdown launched from August last year that UN investigators say amounted to ethnic cleansing, joining some 300,000 already in Bangladesh. Bangladesh says only those who volunteer will be returned, but UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said Tuesday that many refugees are panicking at the prospect of being sent back against their will. "With an almost complete lack of accountability –- indeed with ongoing violations -– returning Rohingya refugees to Myanmar at this point effectively means throwing them back into the cycle of human rights violations that this community has been suffering for decades," Bachelet said. She said in a statement that the violations against the Rohingya "amount to the worst atrocities, including crimes against humanity and possibly even genocide."

Bangladesh confident Rohingyas will be returned

Canadian legislators, in a symbolic move, on Thursday voted unanimously to strip Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary citizenship in response to crimes committed against the Rohingya minority.

The move by the House of Commons lower chamber has no immediate effect because honorary citizenship is conferred by a joint resolution of both the House and the upper Senate chamber and officials say it must be removed the same way. Suu Kyi received hers in 2007.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Wednesday that he was open to looking at stripping Suu Kyi of the honour but said doing so would not end the crisis in Myanmar, where more than 700,000 Rohingya have fled a government crackdown.

The motion on removing the honorary citizenship was proposed by Gabriel Ste Marie, a member of the opposition Bloc Quebecois party, who told reporters after the vote that "I think it`s a great symbol".

The House of Commons last week unanimously voted to call the killings of Rohingya a genocide, a move that Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said at the time was significant.

"Our government supported this motion in response to her (Suu Kyi`s) continued failure to speak out against the genocide of the Rohingya, a crime being committed by the military with which she shares power," said Freeland spokesman Adam Austen.

Legislator Andrew Leslie, who serves as Freeland`s parliamentary secretary, told reporters "that the machinery of government will chew over the details of what specifically is required to implement" the motion.

The Myanmar government was not immediately available for comment.&nbsp; 
Freeland is among many western politicians who condemned the decision by a Myanmar judge earlier this month to find two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who had been probing the killing by the security forces of Rohingya villagers, were jailed for seven years. They had pleaded not guilty.

Canadian legislators, in a symbolic move, on Thursday voted unanimously to strip Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary citizenship in response to crimes committed against the Rohingya minority.

Canadian legislators, in a symbolic move, on Thursday voted unanimously to strip Myanmar's civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi of her honorary citizenship in response to crimes committed against the Rohingya minority. The move by the House of Commons lower chamber has no immediate effect because honorary citizenship is conferred by a joint resolution of both the House and the upper Senate chamber and officials say it must be removed the same way. Suu Kyi received hers in 2007. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told reporters on Wednesday that he was open to looking at stripping Suu Kyi of the honour but said doing so would not end the crisis in Myanmar, where more than 700,000 Rohingya have fled a government crackdown. The motion on removing the honorary citizenship was proposed by Gabriel Ste Marie, a member of the opposition Bloc Quebecois party, who told reporters after the vote that "I think it`s a great symbol". The House of Commons last week unanimously voted to call the killings of Rohingya a genocide, a move that Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland said at the time was significant. "Our government supported this motion in response to her (Suu Kyi`s) continued failure to speak out against the genocide of the Rohingya, a crime being committed by the military with which she shares power," said Freeland spokesman Adam Austen. Legislator Andrew Leslie, who serves as Freeland`s parliamentary secretary, told reporters "that the machinery of government will chew over the details of what specifically is required to implement" the motion. The Myanmar government was not immediately available for comment. Freeland is among many western politicians who condemned the decision by a Myanmar judge earlier this month to find two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who had been probing the killing by the security forces of Rohingya villagers, were jailed for seven years. They had pleaded not guilty.

Myanmar's leader Suu Kyi stripped off Canadian citizenship by legislators

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Myanmar&#39;s top military general in Beijing on Friday and discussed China&#39;s support amid international criticism over its treatment of the Rohingya minority, according to a statement from the general.

China has offered diplomatic backing to its southern neighbour throughout the crisis, despite growing pressure from Western countries for the Myanmar military to be accountable for alleged atrocities.

More than 600,000 members of the Rohingya Muslim group have fled from Buddhist-majority Myanmar&rsquo;s Rakhine State to Bangladesh in three months since insurgent attacks on security posts sparked a brutal counter-insurgency campaign.

China helped to block a resolution on the crisis at the UN&nbsp;Security Council, while the United States this week called the response by the military and local vigilantes &quot;ethnic cleansing&quot;, echoing earlier statements by senior United Nations officials.

According to a statement on the Facebook page of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, he and the Chinese leader on Friday discussed the &quot;promotion of cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries, the situation of China standing on Myanmar&#39;s side at the forefront of the international community regarding the Rakhine issue,&quot; and other issues.

Min Aung Hlaing arrived in China on Tuesday and has largely met Chinese military officers during his visit.

The statement also said they discussed ongoing talks between Myanmar&#39;s government and myriad ethnic insurgent groups, some of whom are based along Myanmar&#39;s shared border with China.

According to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, Xi said China was closely watching the peace process and was &quot;willing to play a constructive role... for security and stability in their border areas.&quot;

The Xinhua account did not mention Rakhine, but cited Xi saying that China &quot;always respects Myanmar&#39;s sovereignty and territorial integrity&quot;.

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Myanmar's top military general in Beijing on Friday and discussed China's support amid international criticism over its treatment of the Rohingya minority, according to a statement from the general

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Myanmar's top military general in Beijing on Friday and discussed China's support amid international criticism over its treatment of the Rohingya minority, according to a statement from the general. China has offered diplomatic backing to its southern neighbour throughout the crisis, despite growing pressure from Western countries for the Myanmar military to be accountable for alleged atrocities. More than 600,000 members of the Rohingya Muslim group have fled from Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s Rakhine State to Bangladesh in three months since insurgent attacks on security posts sparked a brutal counter-insurgency campaign. China helped to block a resolution on the crisis at the UN Security Council, while the United States this week called the response by the military and local vigilantes "ethnic cleansing", echoing earlier statements by senior United Nations officials. According to a statement on the Facebook page of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, he and the Chinese leader on Friday discussed the "promotion of cooperation between the armed forces of the two countries, the situation of China standing on Myanmar's side at the forefront of the international community regarding the Rakhine issue," and other issues. Min Aung Hlaing arrived in China on Tuesday and has largely met Chinese military officers during his visit. The statement also said they discussed ongoing talks between Myanmar's government and myriad ethnic insurgent groups, some of whom are based along Myanmar's shared border with China. According to Chinese state news agency Xinhua, Xi said China was closely watching the peace process and was "willing to play a constructive role... for security and stability in their border areas." The Xinhua account did not mention Rakhine, but cited Xi saying that China "always respects Myanmar's sovereignty and territorial integrity".

China's Xi discusses Rohingya crisis with Myanmar army chief