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Turjoy Chowdhury

BORN REFUGEE

A Rohingya Story

Pointing with finger, a Rohingya survivor shows smoke on Myanmar's side of border as Myanmar military sets fire on his village. Teknaf, Bangladesh.

The Rohingya are Muslim ethnic minority from Rakhine State of Myanmar and considered to be world’s one of the most persecuted communities. Since the 1970s the Myanmar military started a systematic ethnic cleansing campaign against them by killing, rape, arson. The recent military crackdown in 2017 has pushed nearly a million Rohingyas to cross the border of Myanmar in search for a safe refuge in Bangladesh and it has become “world’s fastest growing refugee crisis” according to UN.

A Rohingya mother cries, holding her child on the shore of Bangladesh after crossing Myanmar-Bangladesh border by boat through the Bay of Bengal.
A Rohingya mother cries, holding her child on the shore of Bangladesh after crossing Myanmar-Bangladesh border by boat through the Bay of Bengal.
A Rohingya man, carrying his old mother on his back, proceed to the makeshift camps.
A Rohingya man, carrying his old mother on his back, proceed to the makeshift camps.
Rohingya survivors proceed to the makeshift camps after crossing the border from Myanmar into Bangladesh.
Rohingya survivors proceed to the makeshift camps after crossing the border from Myanmar into Bangladesh.
Rohingya refugees desperate for aid crowd as food is distributed by a local NGO.
A kid carries relief aid and walks covered with plastic in the heavy rainfall. Balukhali Refugee Camp.
A kid carries relief aid and walks covered with plastic in the heavy rainfall. Balukhali Refugee Camp.
After collecting relief aid Rohingya refugees return to the make shift camp through the muddy camp road. Thyangkhali Refugee Camp, Cox’s Bazar.
After collecting relief aid Rohingya refugees return to the make shift camp through the muddy camp road. Thyangkhali Refugee Camp, Cox’s Bazar.
A Rohingya man washes his body with collected water inside the Thyangkhali camp.
A Rohingya man washes his body with collected water inside the Thyangkhali camp.

The majority of the Rohingyas who have arrived in Bangladesh are women and children. Tens of thousands of these women were pregnant and they gave birth in the refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar. The following series of photographs depict portraits of babies who were in the womb of Rohingya mothers when crossing the Myanmar-Bangladesh border, and born at refugee camps inside Bangladesh. The future of these babies are called into doubt in the context of them being stateless. Both Myanmar and Bangladesh do not consider the new-born as their citizens.

Mamunur, 25 days old.

Unnamed, 15 days old.

Unnamed, 18 days old.

Unnamed, 26 days old.

Riaj, 25 days old.

Yunus, 1 month old.

Yasir, 1 month old.

Unnamed, 15 days old.

Nur Kayas, 1 month old.

Shohida, 2.5 months old.

Rubina, 22 days old.

Unnamed, 1 day old.

According to the Bangladesh citizenship Act 1951, a child born in Bangladesh to alien parents cannot be a citizen of Bangladesh by birth or by descent. That means the children born to two Rohingya parents will never be considered citizens of Bangladesh. On the other hand, the Myanmar citizenship law of 1982 will not treat the new-borns as Myanmar citizens as they will be considered to have been migrated to Bangladesh. Moreover, according to this law Rohingyas are not considered a national race of the country except for those who settled in Myanmar before 1823. ­­­ So, all children being born to Rohingya mothers at no mans land and Bangladesh territory, including the refugee camps in Coxs Bazar, are likely to be termed “Stateless”.

Rohingya mother Dilnuaz Begum from Borgojibil, Myanmar is holding her 18 days old newborn. She gave birth in Balukhali refugee camp in Cox's Bazar.
Rohingya mother Torojimaji from Keripryang, Myanmar with her 22 day old girl Rubina. She gave birth in the Kutupalong Rohingya refugee camp, Cox's Bazar.
Rohingya mother Jaheda bibi from Nasapur, Myanmar with her 1 month old girl. She gave birth in the Kutupalong Rohingya refugee camp, Cox's Bazar.
Rohingya mother Fatema from Jambuinna, Myanmar is holding her 7 days old newborn boy named Shahed. She gave birth in Kutupalong refugee camp, Cox's Bazar.

According to UN, at least 60 Rohingya babies are born every day in the refugee camps as stateless.

The story “Born Refugee” appears in August 2019 issue of National Geographic Magazine.

Dildar Begum, 30 is from Tulatuli, Maungdaw, Myanmar admitted to the Cox’s Bazar City hospital. The Mog (Arakanese Buddhists) burned their village, killed his husband in front of her and smashed her one and half months old son on the ground. Then they hit her head with gun and one of them cut her ear with a knife, snatched gold ear ring.
Dildar Begum, 30 is from Tulatuli, Maungdaw, Myanmar admitted to the Cox’s Bazar City hospital. The Mog (Arakanese Buddhists) burned their village, killed his husband in front of her and smashed her one and half months old son on the ground. Then they hit her head with gun and one of them cut her ear with a knife, snatched gold ear ring.
Gura Miya, 7 A wounded Rohingya boy admitted to the Cox’s Bazar City Hospital who got badly injured in his hand as Myanmar military shot him during fleeing Myanmar.
Gura Miya, 7 A wounded Rohingya boy admitted to the Cox’s Bazar City Hospital who got badly injured in his hand as Myanmar military shot him during fleeing Myanmar.
Sayad Amin, 20 is from Maungdaw, Myanmar; admitted to the Cox’s Bazar Sadar City Hospital. He witnessed the violence that the Mog (Arakan Buddhists) and Myanamr military did. After fleeing Myanmar when he came to the makeshift camp in Cox’s Bazar, he fell into a fight with old Rohingya refugees (who came in Bangladesh previously). One of the old Rohingya hit his head and he got injured.
Sayad Amin, 20 is from Maungdaw, Myanmar; admitted to the Cox’s Bazar Sadar City Hospital. He witnessed the violence that the Mog (Arakan Buddhists) and Myanamr military did. After fleeing Myanmar when he came to the makeshift camp in Cox’s Bazar, he fell into a fight with old Rohingya refugees (who came in Bangladesh previously). One of the old Rohingya hit his head and he got injured.
Rohingya refugees pray Namaz, where they plan to build a mosque in Balukhali Refugee camp.

Archive available on request.

© 2024 Turjoy Chowdhury  /  All rights reserved.