News Desk
ISLAMABAD/UNITED NATIONS: United Nations independent experts have warned of catastrophic consequences for Myanmar Rohingya refugees living in camps in Bangladesh, if the life-saving food aid was cut.
The Human Rights Council-appointed experts called for donors worldwide to contribute generously to the UN World Food Programme (WFP)’s Rohingya Refugee Response fund.
“The planned rations cuts are the devastating consequence of the international community’s failure to provide funding for initiatives that address the fundamental needs of Rohingya refugees”, two Special Rapporteurs, Tom Andrews and Michael Fakhri, said in a statement.
“Rations will be cut for Rohingya refugees starting in a few weeks, just before Ramazan. This is unconscionable,” they added.
Rations to be slashed next month
The call by UN experts comes as the WFP announced on Thursday that it will reduce rations for Rohingya refugees by 17 percent in March and warned of a new round of deeper cuts if no new funding commitments are made by April. The body has appealed for $125 million in funding.
“If these reductions are made, they will be imposed on vulnerable people who are already food insecure. Acute malnutrition levels remain high, and chronic malnutrition is pervasive among the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, with more than a third of children stunted and underweight,” the UN experts said.
“The repercussions of these reductions will be immediate and long-lasting, as refugees remain almost entirely dependent on this assistance for their nutritional needs,” they added.
“The most vulnerable, including children below five, adolescent girls, and pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, will be particularly exposed,” they said.
Over 700,000 Rohingya were forced to flee Myanmar in 2017
More than 700,000 Rohingya, mostly Muslims, were forced to leave their homes and flee Myanmar in 2017 to escape a severe military crackdown, which many – including the then human rights chief of UN – characterized as genocide.
As many as one million members of the ethnic minority live in crowded refugee camps in Bangladesh, the world’s largest concentration.
“The Rohingya, survivors of genocidal attacks by the Myanmar military, are now further victimised by the failure of the international community to ensure their basic right to food”, the independent experts lamented.
Concerns over infighting
There are also concerns that a reduction in vital food assistance could make refugees more desperate, consequently, fueling violence and unrest in the camps and leading to a myriad of human rights concerns, such as an increased risk of human trafficking, particularly of children and girls, and more refugees embarking perilous boat journeys.
