Aid Groups Raise Alarm Over Rohingya Relocation
PHNOM PENH, Bangladesh (Reuters) -- Bangladesh has failed to persuade aid agencies to sign up to its plan to move 100,000 Rohingya refugees to a remote island in June, internal documents show, amid fears they could be trapped there at the mercy of cyclones, floods and human traffickers.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees from neighbouring Myanmar are living in crowded camps in Cox's Bazar district where they are threatened by flooding, disease and landslides with the monsoon season expected to start in the coming weeks.
The government of Bangladesh has for months been developing Bhasan Char island as an alternative location. However it has not allowed aid agencies to view conditions, and officials failed during an April 4 briefing to convince them it was safe.
The Inter Sector Coordination Group (ISCG), which oversees the camps in Cox's Bazar under the leadership of the humanitarian agencies' Strategic Executive Group (SEG), expressed deep caution about the plan.
"Basic questions of the island's habitability remain unanswered," the ISCG said in an April 10 paper, which has not previously been made public.
"Given the incompleteness of information shared by the government, the SEG should avoid the appearance of premature endorsement of the island as a viable alternative," it said.
About 700,000 refugees have crossed into Bangladesh since Rohingya insurgents attacked state security forces on Aug. 25, sparking a military crackdown. Myanmar has repeatedly rejected evidence that its soldiers targeted civilians.
Aid agencies are struggling to accommodate the refugees, and a March assessment by the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR)said 203,000 people at risk of floods and landslides in the largest camp should be relocated.
However, in their April 4 briefing, Bangladesh officials said that "land is very scarce" and "no suitable land is available nearby" the existing camps.
Bhasan Char, which means Floating Island, emerged over the past two decades from sediment built up at the mouth of the Meghna River. The government has budgeted $280 million to turn it into a permanent landmass and a temporary home for refugees.
Slides from the government presentation, seen by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, noted that 120 cyclone shelters would be built, along with 13 km (8 miles) of embankments to protect the island from flooding and being washed away.
Hundreds of thousands of refugees from neighbouring Myanmar are living in crowded camps in Cox's Bazar district where they are threatened by flooding, disease and landslides with the monsoon season expected to start in the coming weeks.
The government of Bangladesh has for months been developing Bhasan Char island as an alternative location. However it has not allowed aid agencies to view conditions, and officials failed during an April 4 briefing to convince them it was safe.
The Inter Sector Coordination Group (ISCG), which oversees the camps in Cox's Bazar under the leadership of the humanitarian agencies' Strategic Executive Group (SEG), expressed deep caution about the plan.
"Basic questions of the island's habitability remain unanswered," the ISCG said in an April 10 paper, which has not previously been made public.
"Given the incompleteness of information shared by the government, the SEG should avoid the appearance of premature endorsement of the island as a viable alternative," it said.
About 700,000 refugees have crossed into Bangladesh since Rohingya insurgents attacked state security forces on Aug. 25, sparking a military crackdown. Myanmar has repeatedly rejected evidence that its soldiers targeted civilians.
Aid agencies are struggling to accommodate the refugees, and a March assessment by the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR)said 203,000 people at risk of floods and landslides in the largest camp should be relocated.
However, in their April 4 briefing, Bangladesh officials said that "land is very scarce" and "no suitable land is available nearby" the existing camps.
Bhasan Char, which means Floating Island, emerged over the past two decades from sediment built up at the mouth of the Meghna River. The government has budgeted $280 million to turn it into a permanent landmass and a temporary home for refugees.
Slides from the government presentation, seen by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, noted that 120 cyclone shelters would be built, along with 13 km (8 miles) of embankments to protect the island from flooding and being washed away.