Rohingyas stage protest to highlight poor living conditions on Bangladesh island

As many as four thousand Rohingya refugees, on May 31, staged “unruly” protests to highlight the poor living conditions on an island in Bangladesh where they were relocated from vast camps on the mainland. As many as 18,000 refugees have been, since December, shifted to Bhashan Char, a cyclone-prone silt island located 60 kilometres from the country’s coast. Battered by a constant influx, authorities aim to relocate a total of 100,00 from clamped Cox Bazar region under their Ashrayan 3 project.

According to local police, the protest coincided with an inspection visit by the United Nation High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). As many as 4,000 stateless protesters threw bricks and chanted calls to be shifted elsewhere. While Dhaka has asserted that Bhashan Char is safe and better than Cox Bazar, refugees have reportedly claimed that they were tortured and beaten to relocate against their will. 

In 2017, a military crackdown led to over 7,30,000 ethnic Rohingya people crossing the border to enter Bangladesh, Later, investigations by United Nations discovered that the crackdown was made with “genocidal intent”. Since then, refugees in the camps are increasing, creating border troubles for Myanmar, Bangladesh and India. 

'Least wanted minorities' 

The Rohingya people have been described as "one of the world's least wanted minorities" and "some of the world's most persecuted people" in the world. In February 1992, Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated in a press release, "In actual fact, although there are (135) national races living in Myanmar today, the so-called Rohingya people is not one of them. As per the UNHCR, over 742,000 refugees have fled to Bangladesh since 25 August 2017.''

"The Rohingya are a stateless Muslim minority in Myanmar. The latest exodus began on 25 August 2017, when violence broke out in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, driving more than 742,000 to seek refuge in Bangladesh. Most arrived in the first three months of the crisis. An estimated 12,000 reached Bangladesh during the first half of 2018. The vast majority reaching Bangladesh are women and children, and more than 40 per cent are under age 12. Many others are elderly people requiring additional aid and protection", UNHCR described the crisis in a statement. 

Image: AP