Rohingya refugees demand justice, dignity at Cox’s Bazar protest

The United Council of Rohingya refugee group says it organised the protest to highlight ‘ongoing humanitarian crisis’.

Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees have rallied to protest against conditions at overcrowded camps in Bangladesh, demanding more international assistance to improve conditions.

The United Council of Rohingya refugee group said it organised the protest on Tuesday to “remember the atrocities committed” and highlight the “ongoing humanitarian crisis” on the ninth anniversary of the exodus from Myanmar.

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More than 1.2 million Rohingya people, many of whom fled the 2017 military crackdown in their home country, live in about 30 camps in the world’s largest refugee settlement in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar.

Conditions in the camps have deteriorated amid a funding reduction, limited rations and cuts in services, aid groups say.

The aid organisation Oxfam warned that reduced humanitarian resources could undo any progress made in Cox’s Bazar, saying essential services are already under great pressure.

Reporting from Cox’s Bazar, Al Jazeera’s Tanvir Chowdhury said protesters wanted the world to pay attention to their demands.

“They want justice, they want dignity, and a safe return home,” he said.

One in three Rohingya refugees is expected to face “crisis” hunger levels or worse between September and December, according to the rights group Save the Children.

Bangladeshi authorities say they are already overstretched and have called for the dignified return of the Rohingya to their homeland.

The 2017 Myanmar crackdown, which saw Rohingya villages burned and civilians killed, is the subject of a genocide case at the United Nations’ top court in The Hague.

A joint statement issued by 16 diplomatic missions in Bangladesh, including those of the European Union, the United Kingdom and Canada, said conditions in Myanmar did not allow for the safe repatriation of refugees.

“Rohingya refugees have a right to return to their homes in Myanmar,” it said.

“Regrettably, conflict is escalating across Rakhine and humanitarian need is rising. Deepening insecurity, airstrikes on civilian infrastructure and the Myanmar authorities’ blockades on aid and trade are worsening the humanitarian crisis.”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for “renewed global attention and action” for the Rohingya.

“Rohingya people in Myanmar, Bangladesh and across the region face deepening insecurity, shrinking protection space and diminishing prospects for durable solutions, exacerbated by funding cuts impacting life-saving assistance,” the UN chief’s spokesman, Stephane Dujarric, said in a statement.