Rohingya Refugee Crisis in Bangladesh
(Near Cox Bazar, Bangladesh)
Approximately 1 million Rohingya refugees fled persecution in Myanmar, many of them settling in overcrowded informal camps near Cox Bazaar in Bangladesh. It is estimated that there are over 580,000 children in the camps. The lucky ones are with family who can protect them. Many have been separated from their family and are essentially fending for themselves and their younger siblings on their own. As these children move through their daily activities in the camps with eyes too old and serious for their age, one can only imagine what horrors and atrocities they have witnessed and endure on their journey here. The camps are organized informally among the hills outside of Cox Bazaar. With over 60% of the refugees being women and children, and an estimated 80,000 new born this year, there is a disproportionately high population that are very vulnerable to health issues, violence and human trafficking. In the meantime, with all the media coverage, foreign aid has made the lives of these refugees just bearable in these beautiful rolling hills. Bangladesh, being one of the poorest country in the world, really has no means to help these people. The country itself have a high portion of their own local population living in dire poverty in which they are unable to help. Thus, with no long-term solution in sight and the inability to work legally in Bangladesh, the future looks pretty bleak for these people.