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Concerns grow for vulnerable Rohingya refugees amid Coronavirus crisis

SHAFAQNA- While the COVID-19 virus affects more and more countries around the world, a potential humanitarian catastrophe threatens Rohingya refugees at crowded camps in southeast Bangladesh.

Cox’s Bazar is the site of one of the world’s largest refugee camps, accommodating approximately 1.1 million Rohingya people who mostly fled Myanmar in the summer of 2017 following state-sanctioned and military-led attacks that killed people and destroyed communities.

There are several key reasons why the Cox’s Bazaar refugee camps are particularly vulnerable: housing without potable water and running water for toilets, lack of access to adequate healthcare and a potential shortage in medical supplies and testing capabilities, and lack of access to information.

Rohingya refugees have been banned from using the internet and mobile phones since 2019. During a pandemic, people without access to such communications channels lose out on vital information needed for informed decision-making.

Mohammed Arfaat, a Social activist and peacebuilder in Bangladesh’s Rohingya refugee camps, said that we have been denied internet and phone access for the past six months. What we mostly hear about the coronavirus are false rumours, passed from person to person across the camps: 100,000 people infected in one country; tens of thousands dead in another, The New Humanitarian told.

“This alone is creating a panicked and unstable situation in the camps. We are terrified of being abandoned at this time of extreme need and risk. A few youths like me find ways to access the internet. We have been doing our best to learn about the virus so that we can raise awareness in our community. But without the internet and mobile phones, it’s virtually impossible to spread the message at a large scale”, he added.

Fortify Rights has asked the government of Bangladesh to lift restrictions on internet and mobile communications during this precarious time.

In this same article, Matthew Smith of Fortify Rights states that “If coronavirus reaches the camps, enforcing congestion and preventing the free-flow of information will only accelerate the spread of the disease.” Access to information is critical in such quickly evolving scenarios , Relief web told.

“I’ve read that people around the world are trying to protect themselves using face masks and other items. But masks cost nearly $2 here, and gloves cost about $1. How can our people possibly buy these items? We are denied the right to work and most of us have no income to help us survive”, Mohammed Arfaat said.

Social distancing is “virtually impossible” in the camps, Bangladesh head of Doctors Without Borders Paul Brockman said.

“The scale of the challenge is immense. Vulnerable populations such as the Rohingya will likely be disproportionately affected by COVID-19,”, he told AFP.

“I am afraid to even think about what would happen if an outbreak happens here. It will be very difficult for us to protect ourselves from the virus because massive numbers of people live together in tiny, crowded shelters”, Mohammed Arfaat stressed.

We spend every waking and sleeping moment of our lives gathered with each other. Our shelters are too close to each other. Dozens of people share each toilet and water well,  Arfaat mentioned.

“We are extremely worried. If the virus reaches here, it will spread like wildfire,” said Rohingya community leader Mohammad Jubayer.

“A lot of aid and local community workers people enter the camps every day. Some diaspora Rohingya have also returned in recent days. They may be carrying the virus,” he said.

The United Nations, which has used volunteers and aid workers to launch hand-washing and hygiene campaigns in the camps, has urged the government to restore normal internet services.

“Life-saving health interventions require rapid and effective communication,” said Louise Donovan, UN spokesperson at the camps.

“Communication is key to the timely and effective management of this situation,” she told AFP.

The Bangladesh refugee commissioner’s office refused to say whether authorities would restore internet, bangkokpost reported.

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