Controversy surrounds the movement of Rohingya refugees to a remote island by Bangladesh authorities

The Bangladeshi government has recently started to move Rohingya refugees, in some cases against their consent, from the camp near the border with Myanmar to the remote island of BhashanChar.

The authorities’ decision to move 2500 refugee families to BhashanChar island in the Bay of Bengal, at 60 km from the mainland, has raised objections from humanitarian aid and human rights organizations that first want to assess if the location is appropriate for refugees and if they are able to operate there to provide assistance.

The Bangladeshi government neither waited for the green light from aid agencies nor for the consent of the displaced people before moving over 1000 refugees to the island. The main argument of the authorities was the better living conditions, compared to currently overcrowded camps in Cox’s Bazar where the majority of people live in the world’s biggest world refugee camp, Kutupalong, in bamboo shelters. The Rohingya refugees strongly opposed being moved to the remote island. At the same time, the camps located on mainland Bangladesh are full after 700,000 new refugees arrived three years ago following their flight from Myanmar as a result of ethnic cleansing.

After the government built a new camp on BhashanChar island, it has been moving people there since April 2020, arguing that they would have “much better” living conditions and facilities compared to those in the existing camps. Some voices have raised concerns that BhashanChar is a flood-prone island although the authorities have ensured that flood defenses have been built. The media also reported about refugees claiming about jail-like conditions, with up to five people per 50-square ft room and dirty water to drink, which was often filled with insects.

Another controversy connected to the new camp has arisen after allegations had been made concerning guards sexually assaulting young women living in the new camp on the island. Bangladeshi authorities deny the allegations.

Human rights organizations reacted immediately when the Bangladeshi government started to move people without their consent with some refugees admitting that they were trying to keep close to their homes and hide in order to not be relocated. One of the reasons why they are opposed to being moved is that Bangladesh is not where they plan to remain for long as they would like to move to other country in the near future. According to them, this freedom of movement would suffer after being placed on a remote island.

Saad Hammadi, from Amnesty International’s South Asia campaigner, said: “It is crucial that the Bangladeshi authorities let the UN, rights groups and humanitarian agencies carry out independent assessments of BhashanChar’s habitability first before taking any steps to relocate people there. No relocation plan, either to BhashanChar or to another location can be undertaken without the full and informed consent of the individuals involved.”

Another problem connected to BhashanChar camp is the reluctance of international aid agencies to operate on the island until the conditions there have been fully investigated. Several agencies’ representatives have therefore called upon the authorities to halt the relocation and allow an initial assessment of the situation on the ground to be carried out. Rohingya refugees rely on humanitarian aid, but none of the UN aid agencies or other aid NGOs have yet decided to conduct operations on BhashanChar.