An Agenda for a Dignified and Sustainable Rohingya Refugee Response in Bangladesh new phenomenon. In 2015, hundreds of refugees and migrants from Bangladesh and Myanmar perished in the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea after being denied lifesaving assistance.42 Despite continued trends of such maritime movements over the years, there exists no clear regional framework for allowing safe disembarkation and reception for refugees rescued at sea. Regional governments have consistently failed to uphold their responsibility-sharing commitments to allow safe disembarkation and provide humanitarian assistance to distressed persons at sea. The Bali Process (2002)43 aimed at addressing issues such as smuggling and trafficking through a collective regional response, developed emergency response mechanisms following the 2015 crisis ‘to standardise various national approaches, develop early warning capabilities and coordinate action’.44 Some other significant international and regional developments aimed at addressing mass forced displacement, including movements at sea, were the Global Compacts on Refugees and Migrants, Asia Dialogue on Forced Migration (ADFM) and the signing of the ASEAN Convention Against Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (ACTIP).45 However, these initiatives did not culminate in coordinated action at the regional level when boat movements increased in early 2020. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic was used as a justification by regional governments to deny refugees’ access to territory and safe asylum.46 At the recently concluded ASEAN conference in April 2020, leaders agreed on a five- point consensus calling for an end to violence, a constructive dialogue among all parties, facilitation of a dialogue by a special ASEAN envoy, provision of humanitarian assistance by the ASEAN Coordinating Centre for Humanitarian Assistance on Disaster Management (AHA Centre) and visit of the ASEAN envoy to Myanmar to meet with concerned parties.47 Governments in the region and globally should make efforts to undertake a comprehensive regional refugee response and agree on collective solutions and better responsibility sharing arrangements.48 In addition to exploring the option of refugee resettlement for Rohingya, complementary pathways such as humanitarian visas, family reunification, community sponsorship of refugees, education programmes or labour mobility schemes among others, may also be considered as a positive step towards global responsibility-sharing. 49 As the protracted nature of this crisis is becoming evident four years since the Rohingya influx of 2017, a more practical regional and international solidarity approach 42 Inaction has been fatal, says UNHCR, as dozens of Rohingya refugees perish at sea, UN News, 7 September 2020, available at https://news.un.org/en/story/2020/09/1071812. See also, Deepmala Mahla and Hassan Noor, Rohingya are being left to die at sea: Who cares?, 17 September 2020, available at https://www.savethechildren.net/blog/rohingya-are-being-left-diesea-who-cares 43 For details, see, The Bali Process, available at https://www.baliprocess.net/ 44 Bali Declaration on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons, and Related Transnational Crime, 23 March 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5799ef3c4.html 45 Caitlin McCaffrie, Andaman Sea Crisis: Is the region really better off in 2020?, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law, UNSW, 6 August 2020, available at https://www.kaldorcentre.unsw.edu.au/publication/andaman-sea-crisis-region-reallybetter-2020 46 Amnesty International, COVID-19 no excuse to sacrifice Rohingya lives at sea, 17 April 2020, available at https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2020/04/covid-no-excuse-sacrifice-lives-more-rohingya-seek-safety-boat/ 47 ASEAN Secretariat, Chairman’s Statement on the ASEAN Leaders’ Meeting, 24 April 2021, available at https://asean.org/storage/Chairmans-Statement-on-ALM-Five-Point-Consensus-24-April-2021-FINAL-a-1.pdf 48 APPRN, supra n. 23. 49 Brian Gorlick, Rethinking solutions to the Rohingya refugee crisis, 19 December 2019, available at https://www.openglobalrights.org/rethinking-solutions-to-the-rohingya-refugee-crisis/ 16 Act for Peace / May 2021