Rohingya Continue to Suffer Under A Ruthless Regime in Myanmar, And in Refugee Camps in Bangladesh
By
Maha Akeel
July 10,
2020
While the
world has been in lockdown as a result of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19),
and the media focused on the economic and social effects of the pandemic, the
Rohingya continue to suffer under a ruthless regime in their homeland, Myanmar,
and in cramped refugee camps in Bangladesh.
Rohingya refugee workers carrying bags of salt
in a processing yard in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. (Reuters)
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The coronavirus
simply added to their existing misery. Even the risky prospect of attempting to
escape on treacherous rough seas in search of a better life is no longer an
option.
In a
statement to the 44th session of the Human Rights Council last week, UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) Michelle Bachelet said: “The Rohingya
refugee crisis has effectively become protracted, with no solution in sight.”
Rohingya
refugees’ shelter from the rain in a camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (Cathal
McNaughton/Reuters)
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The human
rights situation the Rohingya are facing in Rakhine State, Myanmar, has not
improved, and the conditions required for their safe, dignified and sustainable
return home from Bangladesh are not in place, she added. In addition,
restrictions placed on humanitarian access and freedom of movement as a result
of the pandemic have exacerbated the situation.
Hundreds of
people have attempted to escape to other nations in rickety boats, only to be
turned away by authorities in destination countries out of fear that the
refugees might spread the coronavirus, leaving them stranded at sea for months.
Rohingya
refugees wait for aid packages during rain in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
Humanitarian groups are concerned about access refugees have to food, water and
shelter. (Mohammad Ponir Hossain/Reuters)
------
In the
squalid refugee camps at Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, meanwhile, the threat posed
by the virus is increased by the unsanitary and overcrowded living conditions.
Social distancing is almost impossible. Families live at close quarters in
flimsy bamboo shacks. They have to use communal toilets and water facilities
that are not always clean or available. Even the most basic items, such as
soap, are scarce.
In other
words, the Rohingya are doomed wherever they go.
While the
UN High Commissioner for Refugees is working in the camps to protect people
from COVID-19 and treat the infected, an internet ban imposed by the
Bangladeshi government “for security reasons” has added to the distress of
refugees. It has left them cut off from the outside world with no access to
news or reliable information about the pandemic. As a result, rumors spread
quickly.
The rising
number of confirmed cases is putting growing pressure on the UN refugee
agency’s ability to provide enough equipment and isolation facilities,
medication, food and water, and to conduct medical tests. It is running out of
funding and human resources.
Meanwhile,
Bangladeshi authorities intercepted a boat carrying hundreds of refugees and
escorted it to a remote island, apparently in an effort to reduce the risk of
them spreading the virus in Cox’s Bazar.
Bangladesh
is doing what it can, with limited resources, to help the refugees. However it
is struggling to cope with high numbers of coronavirus cases across the country
and the loss of many healthcare workers.
In Rakhine
State, where the majority of Rohingya live, they continue to bear the brunt of
an intensifying armed conflict between the military, called the Tatmadaw, and
the Arakan Army, an insurgent group that supports efforts by Rakhine Buddhists
to seek greater self-governance and wider development. The government considers
it a terrorist group.
During a
so-called “clearance operation” launched by the Tatmadaw, residents were told
to leave their homes and that “anybody left behind would be considered Arakan
Army.” Tens of thousands fled as a result of the heavy fighting.
According
to the UNHCHR, a pattern has emerged of serious violations of human rights and
international humanitarian law, including airstrikes on and shelling of
civilian areas, and the destruction and burning of villages.
Last month,
the Tatmadaw reportedly burned large areas of Buthidaung township. About
700,000 Rohingya were forced to flee from the area to Bangladesh in 2017
following a brutal crackdown by the military, which the UN said was carried out
with “genocidal intent.” Eyewitness accounts and satellite images suggest
dozens of Rohingya villages were burned to the ground.
The
importance of this lies not only in the fact that these villages contained
homes to which Rohingya refugees hoped they might one day return. They also
contained evidence of what transpired in 2017. Five months before they were
burned down, in fact, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) issued an order
prohibiting the destruction of evidence supporting allegations of genocide.
In 2019,
The Gambia took up the Rohingya case on behalf of the Organization of Islamic
Cooperation (OIC). The African nation brought the genocide allegations to the
ICJ and sought provisional measures to end the killings, protect and preserve
evidence, and punish those responsible.
On Jan. 23
this year the ICJ announced a landmark decision on those provisional measures.
Unanimously endorsed by all 17 judges, the binding ruling ordered Myanmar to:
take prompt action to prevent further abuses and violations of the human rights
of the Rohingya people; prevent the destruction of or damage to evidence
related to the case; and report regularly to the ICJ on the action being taken to
ensure these orders are followed.
Myanmar
continues to strongly deny any genocidal intent, while refusing to cooperate
with UN special rapporteur on Myanmar or comply with the ICJ orders.
The root
causes of the violations and abuses endured by the Rohingya in Myanmar have not
gone away. These include the discrimination and exclusion enshrined in the laws
and policies of the government, such as the revocation of citizenship rights in
1982, which rendered them stateless and restricted their access to basic human
rights, services and free movement.
A 2017
resolution by the UN’s Human Rights Council called for a comprehensive solution
to the Rohingya crisis within three years. Two and a half years later, their
situation is as bad as it was, if not worse.
There must
be a way for the international community to help resolve this crisis, and other
cases involving blatant violations of international law and human rights,
otherwise the credibility and standards of international organizations are in
doubt.
But then, we
are already all-too familiar with other protracted crises, such as the
Palestinian issue and the Kashmir issue, in which the will of an individual
country continues to override that of the international community.
Maha
Akeel is a Saudi writer based in Jeddah.
Original
Headline: No end in sight to the suffering of the Rohingya
Source: The Arab News
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-politics/rohingya-continue-suffer-under-ruthless/d/122342
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