DHAKA: Sexual harassment remains the most pressing concern for Rohingya women and adolescents living in squalid refugee camps in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar, according to a study released Sunday.
Cox’s Bazar is home to around a million largely Muslim Rohingya minority, fleeing a brutal military crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine state.
ActionAid – one of the largest non-profits operating in the camps since the influx in 2017 – conducted 66 in-depth interviews, revealing dire challenges faced by women and adolescents.
“Sexual harassment is the biggest concern,” said Tamazer Ahmed, policy, research and advocacy manager at ActionAid.
“Early marriage and polygamy have become normalized, and 93 percent of interviewees remained outside the scope of legal assistance.”
The participants said the violence was meted out not only by men known to their families but also members of the Armed Police Battalion (APBN) – a security force deployed by the Bangladesh government.
Ahmed said women in the camps described a shift in the nature of threats over the years, from lack of basic amenities in the early days to more systemic abuses now.
“Now, Rohingya women and adolescents often fall victim to molestation, rape, trafficking, poverty, educational exclusion, and even death,” Ahmed said.
Girls aged between 6 and 15 were particularly vulnerable, with most incidents of sexual harassment occurring near latrines and bathing points.
They were also vulnerable at distribution centers, hospitals, schools and madrassas, border zones and even within relatives’ homes.
“Patriarchy runs deep in the Rohingya community,” said Farah Kabir, executive director at ActionAid.
“But the views of the Rohingya women, mostly aged 16 to 30 years, were central to the research.”
The women surveyed urged authorities to improve lighting in public areas, replace APBN officers with army personnel, engage men in prevention efforts, and expand access to education and livelihoods.
Trust in law enforcement and religious leaders remained low, with many women saying they had almost nowhere to turn when facing abuse.
Kausar Sikdar, commanding officer of APBN, however said they were not aware of any such allegations against the force.
Bangladesh has recorded a surge of refugees from Myanmar since early 2024, with 150,000 more Rohingya arriving.
Sexual harassment rampant in Rohingya camps: study
https://arab.news/mzhgk
Sexual harassment rampant in Rohingya camps: study
- Cox’s Bazar is home to around a million Rohingyas, fleeing a brutal military crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine state
Lithuania to declare ‘emergency situation’ over Belarus balloons: PM
- “We are currently preparing the legal basis and documents,” Ruginiene told reporters
- “We do not rule out going further,” Ruginiene added. Declaring a state of emergency is a possible stronger step
VILNIUS: Lithuania’s Prime Minister announced on Friday that the country will declare a national “emergency situation” over the influx of smuggler’s balloons launched from Belarus.
“We are currently preparing the legal basis and documents,” Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene told reporters, calling the emergency declaration “the best course of action at this time.”
The ‘emergency situation’ enables the government and local authorities to dedicate extra resources to combatting the balloons.
“We do not rule out going further,” Ruginiene added. Declaring a state of emergency is a possible stronger step.
As a result of balloon incursions, Lithuania’s two largest airports, in Vilnius and Kaunas, have on several occasions been forced to halt operations.
Lithuanian officials claim that the balloons, which fly up to 10 kilometers (six miles) high, are deliberately being launched into the airport’s flight paths, and constitute an attack on its civil aviation.
Though the balloons, which contain cigarettes, have long been used by smugglers, they have only in the last few months prompted airport closures.
The Baltic state, a member of NATO and the European Union, has long accused Belarus, a close ally of Putin’s Russia, of organizing “hybrid warfare.”
The activity, which amplified in October, caused Lithuania to close its two border crossings with Belarus at the end of the month.
Belarus then prevented Lithuanian trucks from driving on its roads and barred them from leaving the country without first paying a fee, which Vilnius decried as “being held hostage” by Belarus.
Thousands of Lithuanian lorries remain stuck in Belarus, with Minsk calling for consultations with the Lithuanian foreign ministry.
Lithuania has instead called for harsher sanctions on Belarus.
