No One Knows International Law’s Failures Better Than the Rohingya

Staying here in the camps carries its own risks. Children have had no access to formal education, creating what UNICEF has called a “lost generation,” while human traffickers prey on young girls and boys. Then there are the acts of God—the storm surge during the monsoon often triggers landslides, and the mud, water, and sewage from makeshift toilets in the camps combine to form a deadly cocktail of infectious and waterborne diseases. The Rohingya even have to deal with displaced elephants that rampage through parts of the camps, which occupy land that was, until recently, a corridor for the animals. Yet somehow, when faced with repatriation to Rakhine or relocation to Bhasan Char, the squalid camps appear the safest option.

These limited and problematic options mask a grim truth, however: The situation is likely to get worse.

Read: The misunderstood roots of Burma’s Rohingya crisis

For one thing, donor support is in doubt. Bangladesh, itself a poor nation, is struggling to cope with the economic and environmental impact of hosting so many refugees. The UN requested $920.5 million in February, but has received only a third of that sum from donors. At the same time, the conditions in the camps are worsening. Bangladesh directed local telecom operators at the beginning of September to shut down networks in the camps, a decision that it said was made for “security reasons” following a series of violent crimes in the camps in recent weeks. Last week, the government took the clampdown a step further, announcing that refugees were now expected to stop using Bangladeshi cellphone SIM cards or face potential fines and jail time. Rohingya families rely on internet connectivity to stay in touch with loved ones still in Rakhine, to get remittances from the diaspora, and to relay news to the international community. One camp resident I spoke with, who asked not to be identified to avoid retribution, said the decision to restrict internet access smacked of collective punishment. (To compound this belief, two Bangladeshi officials who gave permission for a special prayer meeting to be held to mark two years since the beginning of the 2017 crackdown were transferred to new posts, a move that was interpreted as retribution for allowing a mass gathering of Rohingya.)

The Bangladeshi government has pushed for other restrictions, too. On September 7, a parliamentary committee on defense recommended that a barbed-wire fence be built around the camps, restricting the free movement that refugees are afforded under international law. The decision has essentially created an open-air prison. And aid workers I spoke with, who asked not to be named, told me that Bangladeshi officials have begun putting together a list of 200 names from each of the 34 camps in the area for relocation to Bhasan Char.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees said it was aware of reports that relocation lists were being compiled and was “seeking clarification” from Dhaka, which has previously said any such moves would be voluntary. The agency did not, however, directly respond to my questions about the communications blockade, saying only that the Bangladesh government had “overall responsibility for ensuring the security and safety of Rohingya” in the camps. Bangladesh’s refugee-relief and repatriation commissioner, the country’s top official responsible for the Rohingya issue, did not respond to multiple requests for comment on this story.