Refugees who fled military crackdown in Myanmar say conditions in camps are unbearable
08 June 2023 - 14:45
byRuma Paul
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A Rohingya refugee girl collects rain water at a makeshift camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. Picture: REUTERS
Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh protested on Thursday, demanding to be repatriated to Myanmar from the squalid camps they have lived in since fleeing a military crackdown in their homeland in 2017.
More than 1-million Rohingya have been crammed into the camps in southeastern Bangladesh, the world’s largest refugee settlement. Most fled the crackdown by Myanmar’s military almost six years ago, though some have been there for longer.
Surging crime, harsh living conditions and bleak prospects for returning to Myanmar are driving more Rohingya refugees to leave Bangladesh by boat for countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia, putting their lives at risk. UN data shows 348 Rohingya are thought to have died at sea last year.
Rohingya community leader Mohammad Jashim said he was keen to return to Myanmar but wanted his citizenship rights guaranteed.
“We are the citizens of Myanmar by birth. We want to go back home with all our rights, including citizenship, free movement, livelihood, safety, and security,” he told said, adding refugees hoped for UN help in this regard.
Myanmar’s military had until recently shown little inclination to take back any Rohingya, who have for years been regarded as foreign interlopers, denied citizenship and subjected to abuse.
Attempts to begin repatriation in 2018 and 2019 failed as the refugees, fearing prosecution, refused to go back.
A group of 20 Rohingya Muslims said they would not return to Myanmar to “be confined in camps” after visiting their homeland as part of a pilot scheme aimed at encouraging voluntary repatriation. A Bangladesh official said the pilot scheme envisaged about 1,100 refugees returning to Myanmar, but no date had been set.
Densely populated Bangladesh says refugees’ repatriation to Myanmar is the only solution to the crisis. Local communities have been increasingly hostile towards the Rohingya as international aid agencies’ funding for the refugees has dwindled.
The World Food Programme recently cut the monthly food allocation to $8 a person from $10.
“Our situation is only deteriorating. What future do we have here?” said Mohammed Taher. “In the name of verification and scrutiny, they [the Myanmar authorities] are only killing time.”
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
Rohingya in Bangladesh demand repatriation
Refugees who fled military crackdown in Myanmar say conditions in camps are unbearable
Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh protested on Thursday, demanding to be repatriated to Myanmar from the squalid camps they have lived in since fleeing a military crackdown in their homeland in 2017.
More than 1-million Rohingya have been crammed into the camps in southeastern Bangladesh, the world’s largest refugee settlement. Most fled the crackdown by Myanmar’s military almost six years ago, though some have been there for longer.
Surging crime, harsh living conditions and bleak prospects for returning to Myanmar are driving more Rohingya refugees to leave Bangladesh by boat for countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia, putting their lives at risk. UN data shows 348 Rohingya are thought to have died at sea last year.
Rohingya community leader Mohammad Jashim said he was keen to return to Myanmar but wanted his citizenship rights guaranteed.
“We are the citizens of Myanmar by birth. We want to go back home with all our rights, including citizenship, free movement, livelihood, safety, and security,” he told said, adding refugees hoped for UN help in this regard.
Myanmar’s military had until recently shown little inclination to take back any Rohingya, who have for years been regarded as foreign interlopers, denied citizenship and subjected to abuse.
Attempts to begin repatriation in 2018 and 2019 failed as the refugees, fearing prosecution, refused to go back.
A group of 20 Rohingya Muslims said they would not return to Myanmar to “be confined in camps” after visiting their homeland as part of a pilot scheme aimed at encouraging voluntary repatriation. A Bangladesh official said the pilot scheme envisaged about 1,100 refugees returning to Myanmar, but no date had been set.
Densely populated Bangladesh says refugees’ repatriation to Myanmar is the only solution to the crisis. Local communities have been increasingly hostile towards the Rohingya as international aid agencies’ funding for the refugees has dwindled.
The World Food Programme recently cut the monthly food allocation to $8 a person from $10.
“Our situation is only deteriorating. What future do we have here?” said Mohammed Taher. “In the name of verification and scrutiny, they [the Myanmar authorities] are only killing time.”
Reuters
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