Andrew Western MP for Stretford and Urmston
I recently visited Bangladesh, as part of a cross-party parliamentary delegation. It was an incredible experience: based in Dhaka we had a meeting with the Prime Minister, visited Sylhet which has such strong links to British Bangladeshis, went to the site of the monument to the Father of the Nation, and looked around a new mental health charity that will be providing multi-lingual mental health support to people here in the UK – for whom English is not their first language.
By far and away the most meaningful part of the visit for me was the day spent at the Rohingya refugee camp.
I wanted to share different aspect of camp life with you – it’s so important that we remember the desperate position the Rohingya people are in and what they have endured over so many years.
Camp life part 1 – food
There are around 1 million people living in the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh. They haven’t been given refugee status by the Bangladeshi Government, because of the numbers involved and the lack of international support to absorb so many people, but nor can they return to Myanmar where they have been victims of the most appalling human rights abuses and the Government has made clear they are not welcome.
Funding to support camp residents is extremely limited and people receive just $10 a month for food. A shortage of funding last year saw this pitiful amount reduced to $8 for several months, but this has just been returned to $10.
Fairly obviously, this doesn’t buy much at all. Below you’ll see a picture of what month of food for €10 looks like. Next to it is an image of what $8 per month provided last year. There’s some flexibility to change what you buy, but as you can see this doesn’t go very far at all.
Camp life part 2 – medical support
There are approximately 1 million in Rohingya, living in the camps, and maintaining cleanliness and general health is a challenge.
We were fortunate enough to visit the Turkish Field Hospital, based at the camp, to hear about the work they do to look after people. It’s a very difficult environment with conditions such as scabies commonplace.
The hospital facilities were so incredibly impressive, with emergency, maternity and specialist service areas all in place. One key area of support is maternity services, with around 30-40000 babies born in the camps each year. Field Hospital services are good and pregnant women/new mothers also receive visits, but in addition, there is an agreement with the nearest major hospital to provide further specialist support if required.
The doctors on site were genuinely amazing, working everyday to keep vulnerable people safe and well – I thanked them on behalf of all my constituents for all the work they are doing.
Camp life part 3 – jobs and skills
Jobs are very difficult to come by in the camp, but for the small number who are able to work, it’s a vital source of income to top up the pitiful basic rations. We met women making shopping bags and other items, who used the cash to provide extra for their family, but there isn’t enough work to go around.
The Bangladeshi Government takes quite a restrictive approach to work, both in and out of the camp, linked to the Rohingya’s status as displaced people, rather than refugees. They do, however, allow sessions promoting the exchange of skills and we met a cookery class who were learning to make sweet foods, using as little sugar as possible.
All of the camp inhabitants I met were desperate to find work and as a delegation we pressed Bangladeshi ministers to widen access to job and income opportunities.
Camp life part 4 – education
It has taken some time to establish learning centres in all of the camps, and for some parents to encourage children to attend. In particular setting up schooling for girls had proven challenging, so I was pleased to meet both the girls and boys classes at camp.
Lessons are segregated and starts when children are aged seven. The Burmese curriculum is taught so that should families be able to be repatriated in future the children will theoretically be up to speed. I suspect another reason is so the children know that Myanmar, rather than Bangladesh, is their homeland.
The kids were bright, engaging, forthright and full of character. They are a reminder of why we must never forget the plight of the Rohingya living in the camps.