By Sha Hin Sha Mg (Shaban Uddin)*
Years have passed since the Rohingya crisis began, yet their suffering remains largely unseen. Despite repeated promises from global leaders, millions of Rohingya continue to struggle for food, shelter, and education inside overcrowded refugee camps.
The Rohingya are a Muslim minority from Myanmar’s Rakhine State, also known as Arakan State. For decades, they have faced systematic persecution by Myanmar governments and, more recently, by the Arakan Army. In 2017, widespread violence carried out by the Myanmar Junta forced hundreds of thousands of Rohingya to flee their ancestral homeland.
In 2024, after gaining control over much of Arakan, the Arakan Army launched another wave of violence, triggering renewed displacement and fear among Rohingya civilians.
“Since 1942, the Myanmar Junta and Rakhine armed groups have pursued policies aimed at eliminating the Rohingya from Arakan,” said Parves Mosharof, a Rohingya researcher. “Our basic rights, citizenship, and freedom were stripped away. Eventually, we were expelled from our ancestors’ land.”
— Parves Mosharof
Rohingya researcher
In Cox’s Bazar, more than one million Rohingya refugees live in fragile, makeshift shelters. Their survival depends almost entirely on humanitarian aid, which has been sharply reduced in recent months.
Families worry daily about whether food will last. With no stable income opportunities, most Rohingya households struggle to meet even their most basic needs. Securing food, healthcare, and essentials has become an increasing burden for families already living in extreme uncertainty.
Temporary shelters, repeatedly damaged by seasonal disasters such as landslides, heavy rain, and storms, remain unsafe for thousands of families. Support for repairing these shelters has been drastically reduced, leaving Rohingya refugees fearful for their lives in the world’s largest refugee camp.
In 2024, Rohingya who fled renewed violence by the Arakan Army continue to survive without adequate shelter, food, or medicine. After escaping brutal attacks, many now face new risks inside the camps, where limited assistance has made daily survival increasingly uncertain.
The future of Rohingya children is steadily narrowing due to the lack of access to higher education. Many still hold onto hope, but their paths forward remain uncertain.
Inside the camps, young people dream of becoming doctors, teachers, engineers, nurses, or lawyers, like their peers elsewhere in the world. Yet without opportunities for education, skills training, or lawful employment, those dreams continue to fade.
For some Rohingya youth, the absence of options has pushed them toward dangerous journeys by sea, risking their lives in search of education, work, and a future beyond the camps.
Inside the refugee camps, work is not a choice but a necessity. Many children are forced into labor to support families already shattered by violence and loss. Education slips out of reach, and exhaustion becomes part of everyday life.
Yet behind this quiet endurance lies a stark truth: no child should grow up carrying the burden of survival alone.
“Youths have lost their dreams since they lost their motherland, Arakan State,” said Anayat Rahaman, a Rohingya youth.
— Anayat Rahaman
Rohingya youth
Zia Raihan is a 16-year-old Rohingya youth from Camp 15. He dreams of becoming a politician who can speak for his voiceless community.
When he fled Myanmar at the age of eight, Zia had completed only Class Three. After taking refuge in the world’s largest refugee camp, he refused to abandon his education. He continued his basic studies at a community-based school inside the camp.
Zia’s dream now stands at a crossroads. The lack of access to higher education in the refugee camps has made his future uncertain. Still, he carries quiet determination, holding onto the hope that one day he can serve his people.
In 2024, Zia completed his matriculation. Nearly a year has passed since then. He remains at home, waiting for an opportunity to continue his studies. Each day, he revises what he has already learned, trying not to let his knowledge fade.
His question remains unanswered.
“People around the world move on to higher education after their basic studies,” Zia said. “Why am I the one who cannot?”
Employment opportunities inside the refugee camps remain extremely limited. Leaving the camps for work or daily labor outside is strictly restricted under government policies. As a result, families without any income source struggle to meet their most basic needs.
Most Rohingya households are forced to rely on humanitarian aid, even as assistance continues to shrink due to chronic funding shortages. For many families, daily survival has become increasingly uncertain.
Testimony of Abdul Amin
Abdul Amin is a 30-year-old Rohingya living in Camp 15, Block G-09, in the world’s largest refugee camp. He is the father of three daughters. Each day, he faces constant hardship as he tries to provide for his family without a stable income.
“I have no reliable source of work,” Abdul Amin said. “My three daughters depend entirely on me. Daily labor is my only hope, but most days I return empty-handed. I feel I am failing to fulfil my responsibility as a father.”
He dreams of raising his daughters the way children grow up elsewhere in the world, educated, safe, healthy, and living with dignity.
“Is it my weakness that I cannot bring smiles to my daughters’ faces,” he asked, “even though I have the strength and the will to work?”
— Abdul Amin
Rohingya refugee
The suffering of the Rohingya did not happen by accident. It is the result of decades of discrimination, targeted violence, and the continued failure of the international community to protect a population denied its most basic human rights.
Even today, in densely crowded camps, more than one million Rohingya live in fear, with diminishing humanitarian assistance and no clear path to safety or stability. Children grow up without access to proper livelihoods or quality education. Families survive with almost nothing, and many young people are losing hope for their future.
The Rohingya are not asking for a life of luxury. They seek what every human being deserves: recognition, access to education, and the chance to rebuild their lives in safety and dignity. This requires real commitment from the global community through restored funding, stronger protection for refugees, and sustained efforts toward a dignified and voluntary return to Myanmar, where safety and citizenship are guaranteed.
Ignoring the Rohingya crisis will only deepen the suffering of a population that has already lost so much. What is needed now is not sympathy, but firm action and long-term solutions grounded in justice and humanity.
*Rohingya Youth, Investigator, Journalist, Storyteller.
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