Dhaka: President of Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh AQM Badruddoza Chowdhury and Gano Forum President Dr Kamal Hossain on Wednesday urged the government to engage in talks with Myanmar to resolve the Rohingya crisis.

In a joint statement, they also said they will take initiatives to encourage countries like Russia, China, India and others that are respectful of human rights to come forward to resolve the Rohingya crisis.

The two veteran politicians asked the Myanmar government to stop forcing Rohingyas in Rakhine state to take shelter in Bangladesh by resorting to killing, torching and repression against women and children of the ethnic community.

They also urged the Myanmar government to put those involve in such crimes on trial and punish them.

The duo also said Myanmar must take back immediately its citizens who have taken shelter in Bangladesh, and the repatriation should follow the recommendations of the Kofi Annan Commission under UN supervision.

They called upon Bangladesh government to unite the country's people against the human rights violation of Rohingyas to create world opinion on it.

B Chowdhury and Dr Kamal called upon the Myanmar authorities to realise the intensity of the Rohingya problem created by it, and to be active in resolving it as Bangladesh is eager to keep intact its good ties with the close neighbour. "The two countries must come to negotiation table immediately."

Earlier at a meeting at the Institution of Engineers on September 21, the two senior leaders called for forming a national unity to face the Rohingya crisis and win global support to this end.