Rohingyas
S Korea to provide $ 3.2 mn for Rohingyas, host communities in Bangladesh
The government of the Republic of Korea has announced its plan to provide US$ 3.2 million in 2022 to support humanitarian assistance for the Rohingyas and their host communities in Bangladesh.
This year’s humanitarian assistance will be provided through international organizations such as UNHCR, IOM, WFP, UNICEF and IFRC operating in Cox’s Bazar and Bhasan Char, said the South Korean embassy in Dhaka on Tuesday.
According to the Embassy, some portion of this year’s funding will be allocated to the refugees in Bhasan Char for the second year in a row.
South Korea has supported UN agencies’ operation in Bhasan Char since the inception of the relocation to the island in 2021.
In addition, highly recognizing the generosity of the Bangladesh government and its people for hosting the Rohingyas, the Embassy stressed that a fair portion of this year’s assistance has been allocated to support host communities in Cox’s Bazar which were directly impacted by the refugee influx five years ago.
Read:Army to join drive against terrorism, drugs in Rohingya camps: Home Minister
Since 2017, the government of the Republic of Korea has continued to provide US$ 4 to US$5 million annually to the Rohingyas and their host communities in Bangladesh in close cooperation with the Bangladesh government and international organizations.
Korea’s funding has been used up for various humanitarian activities over the five years including the provision of LPG and food, humanitarian activities in response to fire in the camps, and the provision of services to protect gender-based violence.
In addition to annual regular funding, Korea has also assisted humanitarian activities in Cox’s Bazar through KOICA, Korea’s development agency.
KOICA is implementing ‘Project for Improving Menstrual Health Management of Adolescent Girls and Women in Cox’s Bazar’ through UNFPA with a budget of US$ 2.95 million.
Also, ‘Psychosocial Support Project for Rohingya Women’ has been kicked off this year in cooperation with a Korea’s non-governmental organization.
The Embassy said the Republic of Korea supports dialogues between the government of Bangladesh and Myanmar for the repatriation of the refugees and believes that safe, voluntary, dignified and sustainable return of Rohingya refugees to their communities should be realized as soon as possible.
PM Hasina urges Myanmar to ensure dignified return of Rohingyas to their homeland
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday said Myanmar should let the international organizations to work in the Rakhine state to create a proper environment for the dignified return of the forcibly displaced Rohingya people.
“Myanmar should allow international organizations to work in Rakhine state,” she said when UN Special Envoy for Myanmar Noeleen Heyzer met her at her official residence Ganobhaban, according to a press briefing by PM’s press secretary Ihsanul Karim.
“We’re pursuing this with Myanmar and also discussed it with them. But no response has yet come. We want to solve it. How long can we host so many people?” the premier was quoted as saying.
She said some Rohingya people are involved in drug, human trafficking and other social problems.
In this regard, Hasina mentioned that Bangladesh had brought back the refugees of the Chittagong Hill Tracts area from India through signing the CHT peace accord in 1997.
Also read: Redouble efforts to hold perpetrators accountable, deliver justice to Rohingyas: UN expert
The UN special envoy said she visited Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar and spoke with the Rohingyas. Now it is essential to create an atmosphere conducive to their dignified return to Myanmar, she said.
She said all including the UN agencies and NGOs are working for Rohingyas in the camps.
Appreciating Bangladesh for its Rohingya management, the UN envoy said Dhaka needs a lot of support in dealing with the Rohingya issue.
Heyzer said she also visited Myanmar and told its military government to find out a solution to the Rohingya crisis.
Also read: UK announces new sanctions, legal action in support of Myanmar’s Rohingya community
She called for an ASEAN-Bangladesh initiative to resolve the Rohingya crisis.
She said the Rohingya issue should be an agenda in the ASEAN Foreign Ministers' forum.
PM’s ambassador-at-large Mohammad Ziauddin, PM’s Principal Secretary Ahmad Kaikaus and PM’s Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim were present at the meeting.
Bangladesh can’t & shouldn’t bear Rohingyas’ responsibility alone: IOM
Although Bangladesh has generously hosted Rohingya refugees for the last five years, one country cannot and should not bear this responsibility alone, said the International Organization for Migration (IOM) on Thursday.
The IOM has called on the international community to take urgent action to ensure long-term development and sustainable humanitarian assistance for Rohingya refugees and host communities
Nearly 1 million refugees remain in congested camps. More than half of them are children.
August 25 marks five years since the first of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya men, women, boys, and girls fled violence and persecution in Myanmar and sought refuge in what is now the world’s largest refugee settlement in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
International and local humanitarian actors must continue to support the response led by the government of Bangladesh to enable the Rohingya to live a dignified life while in displacement, IOM said.
The Rohingya themselves have played a central role in the humanitarian response. From volunteering to support fire and cyclone response to door-to-door outreach to raise awareness of COVID-19 prevention measures, the community has led efforts across the camps to support each other.
As the crisis has become protracted, they should be further empowered through expanded access to education, skills development and livelihoods, IOM said.
Read: Rohingya Crisis: UN envoy seeks renewed int'l attention, equitable burden-sharing by other countries
With limited access to earn a living, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh remain fully reliant on humanitarian assistance.
Groups or persons with specific needs, such as persons with disabilities, female-headed households, or people without access to livelihood opportunities, reported the most significant unmet needs, leaving them vulnerable to negative coping strategies, such as human smuggling and trafficking.
Criminal trafficking networks employ different tactics to lure refugees to work outside the camp and abroad using false pretenses, coercion and abduction. As the lead agency on counter-trafficking in Cox’s Bazar, IOM has identified and assisted more than 1,300 victims of trafficking.
With the current monsoon season already causing historic flooding in northeastern Bangladesh, heavy rainfall where the camps are located could pose further hazards to the Rohingya in their temporary homes made from tarpaulin sheets and bamboo.
In 2021, heavy monsoon rains in the camps caused immense flooding incidents that affected nearly 30,000 people; 19,000 were once again displaced and lost their homes.
The government of Bangladesh along with IOM and humanitarian partners delivers life-saving aid and basic services.
IOM continues to provide shelter, protection, mental health and psychosocial services, and water and hygiene support.
IOM also implements disaster risk reduction initiatives to mitigate the impacts of climate change in Bangladesh.
'Progress in ensuring justice for Rohingyas moves at snail's pace'
The progress in ensuring justice for the Rohingya is moving at a snail's pace, experts said Tuesday while reflecting on the fifth year of the Myanmar nationals' exodus to Bangladesh.
Creative solutions are yet to be found, they added.
The experts were speaking at the discussion "Rohingya Influx: Uncertainties at Hope" organised by ActionAid Bangladesh in partnership with, the Centre for Genocide Studies of the University of Dhaka, and the Centre for Peace and Justice of Brac University.
Despite some major decisions made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC) over the last couple of years, there has been little progress in furthering their cause for justice and accountability, Manzoor Hasan, chairperson of ActionAid International Bangladesh Society, said.
"The role of the UN bodies and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) could have been far more robust, to say the least. The coup and current situation in Myanmar have only furthered the impunity enjoyed by the military," he added.
Read: UN Human Rights Council adopts resolution to end Rohingya crisis
The UN has failed to pressure Myanmar to take back Rohingyas, say civil society leaders
A group of civil society leaders on Wednesday said that the international community, including the United Nations, has completely failed to exert effective pressure on Myanmar to take back the Rohingyas to their homeland.
This emerged during an online discussion meeting organized by Cox's Bazar CSO-NGO Forum (CCNF).
The discussants said Bangladesh is bearing the brunt of the Rohingya crisis even though the fault lies with Myanmar. The international community must pressure Myanmar to take back their nationals.
The meeting, organized by CCNF, a network of around 50 local and national organizations working in Cox's Bazar, was moderated by Rezaul Karim Chowdhury, Co-chair of the forum and Executive Director of COAST Foundation, and Abu Morshed Chowdhury, another Co-chair and Chief Executive of PHALS.
Shireen Haque of Naripokkho, Barrister Manzoor Hasan of BRAC University's Center for Peace and Justice , Disaster Forum's Gowher Nayeem Wahra, YPSA's Md. Arifur Rahman, Sheuli Sharma of Jago Nari Unnayan Sangtsha , Md. Mujibul Rahman of Sushilan, Sangeeta Ghosh of ACLAB and Co-Chair of CCNF and Chief Executive of Mukti Cox's Bazar Bimal Chandra Dey Sarkar and Member Secretary of the Network Md Jahangir Alam also spoke at the event.
Abu Murshed said, there are about 1.2 million Rohingya people living in Bangladesh. Except for a few UN resolutions, there has been no successful effort to return them to Myanmar thus far, which has left the Rohingya population as well as the locals unsure and frustrated. To secure repatriation, formal and informal diplomacy, known as track-2 diplomacy, should be prioritized, he said.
Read: UNHCR seeks more support from international community for Rohingyas
Bimal Chandra said, nearly half of the Rohingya population, are children and young adults. This sizable population must participate in a variety of camp activities and receive technical and life skills training. This will lessen their likelihood of going astray, and even if they return to Myanmar, they will be able to establish respectable jobs.
Md. Mujibur said, the construction of the camp caused harm to around 6,000 acres of mountainous terrain and 2,000 acres of forest. A little over 2500 families working in social forestry did not get compensation. The water level is going down. Use of plastic in camps should be banned since it is such a significant problem. An Environmental Pool Fund should be created for environmental restoration.
Sangeeta Ghosh said reproductive health services should be ensured for teenagers.
Md. Jahangir Alam said, the local government institutions should be involved in the planning and execution of the Rohingya program and the local organizations should take lead in carrying out operations on the ground to cut costs. At present, the participation of local organizations in the Rohingya program is insufficient.
Md. Arifur said, intelligence gathering should be intensified in the camps to prevent the formation of any new religious extremist organizations. If such groups emerge within the camp, the country will be in jeopardy.
General Secretary of Ukhiya Reporters Unity, Rafiq Uddin, said that although the Rohingya camp recently got help in repairing the Rohingya houses damaged by fire, the local 14 families there did not get any help. Special attention should also be given to all affected local families.
Gowher Nayeem said that repatriation should be kept at the centre of the Rohingya programme. A national strategy for resettlement should be developed and the implementation progress of the plan should be regularly reviewed. Also, the communication between the civil societies of the respective countries including Bangladesh and Myanmar should be increased.
Barrister Manzoor said that the international community, especially the United Nations, has failed in repatriation. ASEAN also failed in this regard. The Rohingya crisis has become a protracted crisis, requiring regional and international initiatives. There is no alternative to implementing a localization roadmap to deal with the crisis as funding is dwindling.
Shirin Haque said that until the repatriation, special programmes should be implemented for the women of the Rohingya camps. Tree plantation program should be implemented in camps.
Rezaul Karim said that the comprehensive development programme of the government is being implemented for Cox's Bazar. Up to 70 projects totalling roughly $3.3 billion are now being carried out. The development efforts in Cox's Bazar must be kept safe from all dangers in order to preserve the nation's wealth.
UNHCR seeks more support from international community for Rohingyas
UNHCR has appealed for further investment from the international community to ensure Rohingya refugees can benefit from skills development, including vocational training and other forms of capacity-building for adolescent and adult refugees.
This will allow refugees to support their communities and live with dignity in Bangladesh, and above all to prepare them for rebuilding their lives when they can voluntarily and safely return to Myanmar, said the UN agency on Tuesday.
The support from the international community has been and is crucial in delivering lifesaving protection and assistance services for Rohingya refugees but funding is well short of needs, UNHCR said.
Read: Nearly 1 mn still await life at world's largest displacement camp
The 2022 response plan seeks over US$881 million for more than 1.4 million people, including Rohingya refugees and more than half a million most affected host communities, and is so far funded at only 49 per cent, with US$426.2 million received.
Together, UNHCR said, the international community must do more to ensure that the Rohingya do not continue to languish in displacement and redouble efforts for increased political dialogue and diplomatic engagement to create conditions for voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return.
Bachelet assures UN’s continued efforts to ensure safe repatriation of Rohingyas
Acknowledging Bangladesh’s great difficulty in dealing with the Rohingya crisis, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Sunday assured the UN’s continued efforts to realise safe and voluntary return of the Rohingyas to Myanmar.
She made the assurance when Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said that protracted stay of the displaced Rohingyas in Bangladesh bears the risk of the spread of radicalism, transnational crimes and thus may hamper regional stability.
High Commissioner Bachelet, appreciating Bangladesh’s humanitarian gesture towards the Rohingyas, underscored the need for their education through fully operationalizing the learning centers in the camps.
Momen urged the High Commissioner to use her good office to effectively engage with Myanmar and repatriate the forcibly displaced Rohingyas to Myanmar.
Read: Momen once again clarifies the controversy over his “heaven” remark
He recalled that the Government took good care of the displaced Rohigyas during the pandemic by providing vaccines. He urged the UN system, including UNDP, to undertake projects in Rakhine to create a conducive environment for the return of the Rohingyas. He underscored that Bangladesh, as a developing country, strongly promotes the Right to Development.
She appreciated Bangladesh’s regular reporting to human rights treaty bodies, and suggested a mechanism for further streamlining this.
High Commissioner Bachelet also positively noted the possible upcoming visits of several Special Rapporteurs of the UN to Bangladesh, as well as Bangladesh’s efforts to implement the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) recommendations.
Bachelet, who is now on a four-day visit, had meetings with the Foreign Minister, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, Law Minister Anisul Huq and Education Minister Dr Dipu Moni on Sunday.
They discussed various dimensions of the human rights aspect of Bangladesh. During the meetings, Bangladesh Ministers highlighted the government’s “sincere efforts” to protect and promote human rights of the people.
Momen highlighted the government’s achievements in women empowerment, GDP growth despite the pandemic and political stability.
He also underscored the fact that, in Bangladesh the media is operating freely, with a large number of television channels and newspapers.
Law Minister Huq, during his meeting, briefed the High Commissioner on the progress made on the reviewing of the Digital Security Act (DSA), an area on which both sides are working together, underscoring that the DSA was enacted to combat cybercrimes.
Read: Bachelet didn’t express any concern over Bangladesh situation: Law Minister
Noting that Bangladesh is working towards establishing a social order where human rights are guaranteed, he underscored the need for further international support for human rights training.
Home Minister Asaduzzaman depicted how Bangladesh suffered from political violence and terrorism in past, and how the government has ensured safety and security combating all these challenges.
Both sides also appreciated the professional performances of Bangladeshi peacekeepers, including female peacekeepers.
The Home Minister, in response to the High Commissioner’s query, elaborated the government’s “sincere efforts” to fully implement the Chittagong Hill Tracts Peace Accord.
He also highlighted the prevailing religious harmony in the country, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Education Minister Dipu Moni briefed High Commissioner Bachelet on the measures undertaken by the government to ensure quality education, including introducing new curriculum, skill development initiatives, stipends for female students and access to education for disabled persons.
She also informed about the inclusive measures taken for the third gender people.
This is the first ever visit by any UN High Commissioner for Human Rights since the establishment of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights back in 1993.
Bangladesh seeks EU’s role for early repatriation of Rohingyas
Bangladesh has sought the European Union’s role to put pressure on Myanmar for early repatriation of the Rohingyas to their place of origin in Rakhine State.
Bangladesh mentioned that the countries like the UK, USA, Spain, Japan, Korea and France are investing and doing even more trading with Myanmar.
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen met High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission (HR/VP) Josep Borrell Fontelles on the sidelines of the ASEAN Regional Forum in Phnom Penh, Cambodia on Thursday.
During the meeting, he raised the Rohingya repatriation issue which has never seen any light for the past five years.
Momen strongly sought the EU’s support in putting pressure on Myanmar to take back their nationals, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Read: Rohingya Repatriation: Dhaka seeks proactive role from Indonesia, ASEAN
Home Minister visits coast guards & Rohingyas on Bhasanchar island
Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Thursday visited Bhasanchar to see the Rohingya camp and Bangladesh Coast Guard (BCG) station on the island in Noakhali district.
Media officer of the Coast Guard Headquarters here Lt. Commander Khandaker Munif Taqi said the home minister planted trees on the island and observed various activities of BCG.
Senior Secretary of Public Security division under the home Ministry Md. Akhtar Hossain, Secretary of Security Services Division Md. Abdullah Al Masood Chowdhury, BGB Director General Major General Sakil Ahmed and Bangladesh Coast Guard Director General Rear Admiral Ashraful Haque Chowdhury accompanied the minister.
Also read: Seven Rohingyas detained while trying to escape Bhasan Char
Senior officials of Bangladesh Coast Guard were also present, the officer said.
Bhasan Char, also known as Char Piya, is an island in Hatiya Upazila in Noakhali district. Until 2019 it was known as Thengar Char. It is located in the Bay of Bengal, about 6 kilometres from Sandwip island and 37 miles from the mainland.
In late 2020, the government began relocating Rohingya refugees from the Cox’s Bazar camps Bhasan Char. The Government had decided to relocate a total of 100,000 refugees in phases. As of April this year, 30,000, refugees have been taken to the island.
Also read: 18 Rohingyas fleeing from Bhasanchar arrested in Mirsarai
Bangladesh is currently hosting over 1.1 million Rohingyas in camps in Cox's Bazar and Bhasan Char. Most of them fled to this country since August 25, 2017, when the Myanmar military launched a brutal offensive targeting the Muslim ethnic minorities.
Seven Rohingyas detained while trying to escape Bhasan Char
Locals detained seven Rohingyas trying to escape from Bhasan Char Ashrayan Kendra in Subarna Char upazila of the district early Wednesday.
The detainees were identified as Mohammad Ismail, 19, Parveen Akter, 28, Morjina Akter, 18, Ayas, 10, Morjina Khatun, 8, Bechhana Parvez, 6 and Nur Begum, 39. All the detainees were residents of the shelter centre purpose-built for the Rohingya refugees on Bhasan Char island, in Hatiya upazila of Noakhali.
Read: 18 Rohingyas fleeing from Bhasanchar arrested in Mirsarai
Deb Priyo Dash, officer-in-charge of Char Jabbar Police Station under the Subarna Char upazila, said locals detained the Rohingyas following their suspicious movement from Eshak Munshirhat under the upazila area around 1:00am.
Later, the detainees were handed over to the police, he said, adding that legal action will be taken against them