By: Camp Correspondent
Maungdaw, July 14, 2025 — At least 17 Rohingya families, including young children and elderly members, are being held under dire conditions by the Arakan Army (AA) in Maungdaw town and subjected to forced labor, according to testimonies from affected families and community sources.
The detainees, a total of 72 individuals from Shwe Zar village tract, were arrested by AA forces on April 26 after returning from Bangladesh to their original villages in northern Rakhine State. Since their detention, they have been denied legal representation, communication with their families, and access to humanitarian aid.
Two children under the age of five have reportedly died in custody due to diarrhea, exacerbated by the absence of medical care and clean drinking water. Others remain in poor health, with no proper nutrition or treatment available inside the makeshift detention site.
A Rohingya father, speaking to Rohingya Khobor, said, “My daughter died crying for water and medicine. The guards did nothing. They let her suffer until she stopped breathing. What kind of justice is this?”
Sources confirmed that the families are prohibited from receiving food, water, or medicine from relatives. Their daily diet consists of only a plain starch-based meal, without any vegetables or protein. Detainees who managed to pass messages through relatives described the conditions as inhumane. “They make us clean the streets and drains like we are not people but animals,” one woman reportedly said.
Since early July, the detainees have been seen being escorted around Maungdaw under armed watch, forced to sweep roads, clean school grounds, and remove garbage from public areas.
A young man from Shwe Zar, whose mother and sisters are among the detainees, told Rohingya Khobor, “They told us we could return home safely, but now they treat us like criminals. My family is being punished just for coming back. We feel betrayed and humiliated.”
Information gathered by Rohingya Khobor indicates that approximately 310 Rohingya families have returned to Maungdaw from Bangladesh in recent months. Instead of being welcomed, many have faced threats and arbitrary detention. Local officials aligned with the Arakan Army have declared that returnees will be prosecuted under illegal border-crossing laws, with one reportedly stating that “all Muslims” who return will face legal consequences.
The Arakan Army, which now controls most of Maungdaw and surrounding areas, had previously promised a new era of governance in Rakhine State. However, Rohingya residents and human rights advocates report a growing pattern of discriminatory practices and abuses under its administration, including restrictions on movement, denial of aid, confiscation of homes, and now, forced labor.
Observers say the treatment of Rohingya returnees under AA control mirrors or even surpasses the repressive tactics once used by the Myanmar military. For many Rohingya, the changing flags on checkpoints have brought little change to their lived reality — only new uniforms enforcing the same cycles of dehumanization.
Families in the camps and communities watching from across the border in Bangladesh have expressed deep fear for those trapped in these conditions. Many are now reconsidering plans to return, despite the worsening situation in the camps, due to the risks of imprisonment, forced labor, and violence in their own homeland.
International human rights organizations have been urged to monitor the situation closely and demand accountability. With hundreds of Rohingya still attempting to return home amid conflict and displacement, urgent action is needed to ensure that repatriation is truly voluntary, safe, and dignified, not a return to chains under a different name.
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