Latest news with #refugees
Al Jazeera
4 hours ago
- Health
- Al Jazeera
Foreign aid cuts hurt the most vulnerable in world's largest refugee camp
Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh – The sound of children at play echoes through the verdant lanes of one of the dozens of refugee camps on the outskirts of Cox's Bazar, a densely populated coastal town in southeast Bangladesh. Just for a moment, the sounds manage to soften the harsh living conditions faced by the more than one million people who live here in the world's largest refugee camp. Described as the most persecuted people on the planet, the Rohingya Muslim refugees in Bangladesh may now be one of the most forgotten populations in the world, eight years after being ethnically cleansed from their homes in neighbouring Myanmar by a predominantely Buddhist military regime. 'Cox's Bazar is ground zero for the impact of budget cuts on people in desperate need,' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said during a visit to the sprawling camps in May. The UN chief's visit followed United States President Donald Trump's gutting of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), which has stalled several key projects in the camps, and the United Kingdom announcing cuts to foreign aid in order to increase defence spending. Healthcare in the camps has suffered as the severe blows to foreign aid bite. 'They call me 'langhra' (lame)' Seated outside his makeshift bamboo hut, Jahid Alam told Al Jazeera how, before being forced to become a refugee, he had worked as a farmer and also fished for a living in the Napura region of his native Myanmar. It was back then, in 2016, that he first noticed his leg swell up for no apparent reason. 'I was farming and suddenly felt this intense urge to itch my left leg,' Alam said. 'My leg soon turned red and began swelling up. I rushed home and tried to put some ice on it. But it didn't help.' A local doctor prescribed an ointment, but the itch continued, and so did the swelling. He soon found it difficult to stand or walk and could no longer work, becoming dependent on his family members. A year later, when Myanmar's military began burning Rohingya homes in his village and torturing the women, he decided to send his family to Bangladesh. Alam stayed behind to look after the cows on his land. But the military soon threatened him into leaving too and joining his family in neighbouring Bangladesh. The 53-year-old has been treated by Doctors Without Borders, known by its French initials MSF, in the Kutupalong region of Cox's Bazar since arriving, but amputation of his leg seems likely. While some doctors have said he has Elephantiasis – an infection that causes enlargement and swelling of limbs – a final diagnosis is yet to be made. Along with the disease, Alam has to also deal with stigma due to his disability. 'They call me 'langhra'(lame) when they see I can't walk properly,' he said. But, he adds: 'If God has given me this disease and disability, he also gave me the opportunity to come to this camp and try to recover. In the near future I know I can start a new and better life.' 'The word 'Amma' gives me hope' Seated in a dimly lit room in a small hut about a 10-minute walk from Alam's shelter, Jahena Begum hopes aid organisations will continue supporting the camps and particularly people with disabilities. Her daughter Sumaiya Akter, 23, and sons, Harez, 19, and Ayas, 21, are blind and have a cognitive disability that prevents them from speaking clearly. They are largely unaware of their surroundings. 'Their vision slowly began fading as they became teenagers,' Begum says. 'It was very difficult to watch, and healthcare facilities in Myanmar could not help,' said the 50-year-old mother as she patted her daughter's leg. The young girl giggled, unaware of what was going on around her. Begum's family arrived in Cox's Bazar about nine months ago after the military in Myanmar burned their house down. 'We made it to the camps with the help of relatives. But life has been very hard for me,' said Begum, telling how she had single-handedly brought up her children since her husband's death eight years ago. Doctors from MSF have given her children spectacles and have begun running scans to understand the root cause of their disability. 'Right now, they express everything by making sounds. But the one word they speak, which is 'Amma', meaning mother, shows me that they at least recognise me,' Begum said. 'The word 'Amma' gives me hope and strength to continue trying to treat them. I want a better future for my children.' 'The pain isn't just physical – it's emotional' Clad in a blue and pink striped collared shirt and a striped brown longyi – the cloth woven around the waist and worn by men and women in Myanmar – Anowar Shah told of fleeing Myanmar to save his life, on top of losing a limb to a mine blast. Shah said he was collecting firewood in his hometown Labada Prian Chey in Myanmar when his leg was blown off by the landmine last year. Myanmar is among the world's deadliest countries for landmine and unexploded ordnance casualties, according to a 2024 UN report, with more than 1,000 victims recorded in 2023 alone – a number that surpassed all other nations. 'Those were the longest, most painful days of my life,' said the 25-year-old Shah, who now needs crutches to get around. 'Losing my leg shattered everything. I went from being someone who provided and protected, to someone who depends on others just to get through the day. I can't move freely, can't work, can't even perform simple tasks alone,' he said. 'I feel like I've become a burden to the people I love. The pain isn't just physical – it's emotional, it's deep. I keep asking myself, 'Why did this happen to me?'' More than 30 refugees in the camps in Bangladesh have lost limbs in landmine explosions, leaving them disabled and dependent on others. All parties to the armed conflict in Myanmar have used landmines in some capacity, said John Quinley, director of rights organisation Fortify Rights, in Myanmar. 'We know the Myanmar junta has used landmines over many years to bolster their bases. They also lay them in civilian areas around villages and towns that they have occupied and fled,' he told Al Jazeera. Abdul Hashim, 25, who resides in Camp 21 in Cox's Bazar, described how stepping on a landmine in February 2024 'drastically altered his life'. 'I have become dependent on others for even the simplest daily tasks. Once an active contributor to my family, I now feel like a burden,' he said. Since arriving in the camp, Hashim has been in a rehabilitation programme at the Turkish Field Hospital where he receives medication and physical rehabilitation that involves balance exercises, stump care, and hygiene education. He has also been assessed for a prosthetic limb which currently costs about 50,000 Bangladeshi Taka ($412). The cost for such limbs is borne by Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 'Despite the trauma and hardship, I hold onto some hope. I dream of receiving a prosthetic leg soon, which would allow me to regain some independence and find work to support my family,' Hashim said. So far, a total of 14 prosthetic limbs have been distributed and fitted for camp inhabitants by the aid group Humanity & Inclusion, who have expertise in producing the limbs in orthotic workshops outside the refugee camps. Both Hashim and Shah are a part of the organisation's rehabilitation programme, which has been providing gait training to help them adapt to the future, regular use of prosthetic limbs. Tough decisions for aid workers Seeking to ensure refugees in the camps are well supported and can live better lives after fleeing persecution, aid workers are currently having to make tough decisions due to foreign aid cuts. 'We are having to decide between feeding people and providing education and healthcare due to aid cuts,' a Bangladeshi healthcare worker who requested anonymity, for fear his comment could jeopardise future aid from the US, told Al Jazeera. Quinley of Fortify Rights pointed out that while there are huge funding gaps because of the aid cuts, the Rohingya refugee response should not fall on any one government and should be a collective regional responsibility. 'There needs to be a regional response, particularly for countries in Southeast Asia, to give funding,' he said. 'Countries connected to the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) in the Middle East could also give a lot more meaningful support,' he said. He also recommended working with local humanitarian partners, 'whether it's Bangladeshi nationals or whether it's Rohingya refugee groups themselves' since they know how to help their communities the best. 'Their ability to access people that need support is at the forefront, and they should be supported from governments worldwide,' he said. For the estimated one million refugees in Cox's Bazar, urgent support is needed at this time, when funds grow ever scarce. According to a Joint Response Plan drawn up for the Rohingya, in 2024, just 30 percent of funding was received of a total $852.4m that was needed by the refugees. As of May 2025, against an overall appeal for $934.5m for the refugees, just 15 percent received funding. Cutting the aid budgets for the camps is a 'short-sighted policy', said Blandine Bouniol, deputy director of advocacy at Humanity & Inclusion humanitarian group. It will, Bouniol said, 'have a devastating impact on people'.
SBS Australia
5 hours ago
- Politics
- SBS Australia
‘I didn't sleep at all': One mother's terrifying wait for news from a war zone
Nayran Tabiei keeps busy in the kitchen making traditional Syrian dishes for her catering business in Melbourne. But this week, her thoughts were far away, worrying about her three sons in Iran's capital Tehran. "The mobile is cut, the line they cut - no news at all. My heart started to beat. I didn't sleep at all. I tried every night, every day I'm trying to message and you see 100 message in my mobile but no answer." As bombs rained down on the city, Ms Tabiei could only hope her boys - aged in their 20s – had survived. "I'm boiling from inside because the thing - when nothing in your hand and nothing you can do. You just, y'know you want to help. My heart start like where we go, what do we do? And I cannot give them any money. I cannot give them any support, even call." Ms Tabiei is married to an Iranian man and the couple fled Syria in 2012 with their young daughter, leaving three young sons with their grandmother in Tehran. "I make bad decision. I felt so bad. I cannot believe 14 years gone I didn't see them and it's hard for a mum to see them grown up without them beside me." Arriving in Australia as an asylum seeker, Ms Tabiei later opened a small café called Flavours of Syria, offering work and training to many, like herself, who were forcibly displaced. "Hundreds and hundreds of asylum seekers, I help them open their business and start up. It makes me proud. I'm so happy in Australia and sharing my food and culture." Finally, just days ago, Ms Tabiei had the phonecall she hoped for – from her sons who are alive and well, having fled Tehran. "My boy called me, my heart beating - yeah good! They stay in the mountain. They took a room with their friend and when they called I am like 'Oh thank God, they are alive!'" Ms Tabiei wants to reunite her family but says every effort to bring her sons here has so far failed. "From the day I heard that crisis in Iran I sent all the parliament that I need help. My hearts shaken and I need my children beside me. In this moment we need help. And 14 year I didn't see them." In a further loss, rising costs have also forced her to close her Syrian café in Melbourne's St Kilda. "It's hard to pay the rent and the cost so high. Before we had plenty of girls in the kitchen, but now I cannot afford to hire." Recent data from credit reporting agency CreditorWatch shows that 10 per cent of all Australian hospitality businesses closed down over the past year. CEO Patrick Coghlan explains: "They are being hit from all sides. Obviously, consumer discretionary spend is down, cost of labour, cost of goods, et cetera, all increasing." From next week, a raft of new costs will add to the pressures, according to Luke Achterstraat, CEO of the Council of Small Business Organisations, or COSBOA. "As of one July, the award rate goes up three and a half percent. The super guarantee increases by 0.5 per cent. So that's 4 per cent already on the wage stack. And don't forget, on top of that you have payroll tax." Mr Achterstraat says more help is needed. "It's the toughest operating environment in recent memory. For a small business with revenue of up to $20 million per year, we are calling for the corporate tax rate to be slashed from 25 per cent to 20 per cent." The most recent Consumer Price Index ,or CPI, shows inflation sitting at 2.1 per cent in the 12 months to May. Creditorwatch CEO Patrick Coghlan says the new figure offers fresh hope. "We've seen two rate cuts already. They're the biggest drivers of economic activity, of GDP, of spending both from consumer and commercial. And we're expecting a couple of more of those this year as well. So, the trend is certainly heading in the right direction." Any interest rate relief is too late for Ms Tabiei, who shut her café to focus on a lower-cost catering business. Keeping busy is a labour of love, she says, and cooking distracts from other worries. "Really I make it with my heart, my love. And when you taste it, you will see that the love in it. And it is all about giving the culture and sharing the love."
Irish Times
11 hours ago
- General
- Irish Times
People with right to remain in Ireland stuck in direct provision centres due to lack of housing, Hiqa finds
More than 20 per cent of people living in seven direct provision centres could not move out despite having permission to stay in Ireland due to a shortage of housing , according to reports from the Health Information and Quality Authority (Hiqa). The reports covered International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) centres in counties Cork, Kerry, Louth, Galway and Waterford. In addition to noting how many residents are in each centre, they record how many have been granted refugee status or subsidiary protection allowing them to move out and to look for their own housing. In two centres – Birchwood House in Co Waterford and Millstreet Accommodation Centre in Co Cork – 42 per cent of residents were stuck there, having been granted international protection but unable to leave. READ MORE Regarding Birchwood House, Hiqa said: 'While the primary function of the centre was to provide accommodation to people seeking international protection, the inspectors found that 54 (42 per cent) of the residents had received refugee, subsidiary protection or leave to remain status. 'Due to the lack of alternative accommodation, they were unable to avail of more appropriate accommodation arrangements in the community.' In Millstreet, where 109 of the 260 residents had refugee status or another right to remain, the report said 42 per cent of residents 'had received notice to seek private accommodation' outside of the centre. 'Due to the lack of alternative accommodation available this was not always possible.' At Carroll Village IPAS centre in Co Louth, 26 of the 88 residents (29.5 per cent) had the right to remain at the time of the inspection, March 19th and 20th last, but could not find housing. [ One in four single people seeking emergency accommodation are from direct provision, say homeless agencies Opens in new window ] At Park Lodge in Co Kerry, nine of the 51 residents (17 per cent) had permission to remain. This fell to 4.4 per cent at Linden House, Co Kerry, 4.7 per cent at Great Western House in Co Galway and 5.4 per cent at Ashbourne House in Glounthaune, Co Cork. The Department of Justice is seeking to source additional IPAS accommodation due to continued pressure for beds in the system. The most recent data from the department, published on June 20th, shows there were 2,577 male adult asylum seekers 'awaiting offers of accommodation'. Figures released last week show the department has received 131 offers from property owners of buildings to be used as IPAS centres. These were being 'worked through and assessed', meaning it was not possible to state how many of the 131 had been offered for sale rather than lease, a department spokeswoman said. The seven Hiqa reports published on Friday showed high levels of compliance with national standards. However, two centres had areas of noncompliance. At Park Lodge in Co Kerry, where 51 single women are living, inspectors who visited on February 18th and 19th noted that 'residents spoke positively' about the centre. However, it said 'improvements were required ... related to strengthening safeguarding practices', as well as the recruitment of a reception officer, development of supporting guidance documents for the reception officer, and the need for enhanced governance to ensure adequate oversight, accountability and monitoring. Carroll Village in Co Louth, home to 88 people in families, was inspected on March 19th and 20th. 'The inspectors were told by residents that they felt safe living in the centre. Life ... felt 'normal' [and] some residents said they 'don't feel different here'.' However, the report said: 'The overall governance and oversight systems in place were not fully effective.' It added: 'Systems to review the implementation of, and compliance with relevant standards, legislation and policies were not fully effective' and, 'the service provider had not ensured that all of the required notifications were submitted to Hiqa in line with the requirements.'
Arab News
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Arab News
Community schools offer hope for Rohingya refugee children as US aid cuts hit education
DHAKA: As US aid cuts have forced the UN's children agency UNICEF to suspend thousands of learning centers for Rohingya refugee children sheltering in camps in Bangladesh, a small number of community-led schools have now become their only source of education. The Rohingya, a mostly Muslim ethnic minority, have fled from Myanmar's Rakhine State to neighboring Bangladesh for decades to escape persecution, with more than 700,000 arriving in 2017 following a military crackdown that the UN said was a textbook case of ethnic cleansing by Myanmar. Today, more than 1.3 million Rohingya on Bangladesh's southeast coast are cramped inside 33 camps in Cox's Bazar — the world's largest refugee settlement. The refugees, who are almost completely reliant on humanitarian aid, recently faced another blow, after the US suspended aid funding worldwide in January. Washington has been the largest donor, having contributed $300 million in 2024, or 55 percent of all foreign aid for the Rohingya. Those and other foreign aid cuts 'have worsened the already existing education crisis for 437,000 school-age children in Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh,' Human Rights Watch said in a report published this week. It is only in schools established by the Rohingya community that some children are able to get their education now, the group said, after UNICEF-run learning centers were forced to shut due to a lack of funding. These schools offer a small glimmer of hope for many young children in the refugee camps. 'School is important for me because it gives me knowledge, enhances my life skills, makes me think for my community, makes me a better person and makes me hopeful for a better future. As a refugee, I don't have many opportunities, but education can open doors for me and help me build a better life,' Mohammed Shofik, a 15-year-old Rohingya boy enrolled at a community school in Cox's Bazar, told Arab News on Friday. His dream is to become a scientist or doctor. At school, he is learning how to experiment and use tools, as well as how to listen and observe carefully, which he thinks are helpful to achieve his goals. 'Education is the only way to reach my dream and help my community,' he said. But only a small number of Rohingya children are able to enroll in the community-led schools, as they do not receive any charitable support, Arif Salam, a teacher in one such school in the camps, told Arab News. 'Community schools are not funded by any donors and NGOs. Our only funding source is the tuition fees received from the parents of our students. But we can't provide services to all the children,' he said. 'Only a few students in the camps can afford the learning in the community schools. Most of the students are enrolled with the UNICEF-run learning centers. The children who are enrolled with UNICEF learning centers are now sitting idle as they have nothing to do. It will create an irreparable loss for their education.' There are about 150 community schools across the Rohingya camps in Cox's Bazar. Each of the schools have about 10 to 15 teachers, who provide education for 150 to 400 students. Without government support or private donor funding, the schools charge parents monthly tuition fees ranging from around $0.50 for class one up to $6.50 for class 12, a fee that many cannot afford, as the Rohingya are not allowed to work. 'The closure of learning centers brought huge educational losses,' Salam said. 'For our Rohingya children, it's a hopeless situation.' While the Bangladeshi government has not encouraged any informal system of education, such initiatives should be considered to address the education crisis, said Asif Munir, a renowned Bangladeshi expert on migration and refugees. 'Some kind of education is required for them because otherwise there is a possibility that the younger children, as they grow up, not just uneducated, they might be getting involved in informal work or even sort of risky work as well,' Munir warned. 'With education they can still hope for some kind of proper work where they can use their education in their life. So, in that sense, at least, the government can consider this as a good sort of coping strategy.' HRW had also urged the Bangladeshi government to 'recognize and fund community-led schools to increase their capacity,' and highlighted that recognition could help encourage donor support. For the young Rohingya whose lives have been plagued with increasing uncertainties, going to school helps them chart a path for the future. 'My dream is to become a motivational speaker. In school, our teachers teach us good listening, delivering strong messages, storytelling, using body language, confidence-building techniques and leadership skills,' 10th-grader Rohul Amin told Arab News. 'I think with all these knowledge and skills, I can achieve my dream one day.' For Amin, school also helps him learn about his identity as a Rohingya. 'I especially focus on the history subject because history makes me understand our identity. As a Rohingya, I have no identity. I mostly try to remember our land and our identity.'
Bloomberg
15 hours ago
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Miami Chafes at Trump's ICE Raids and ‘Alligator Alcatraz'
For months, unease over President Donald Trump's immigration dragnet had been building in Miami, which has a larger share of foreign-born residents than any major city in America. First, Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pressed local police to help federal immigration agents make arrests. Then, Trump said he would cancel temporary and refugee visas for immigrants from countries including Cuba, Venezuela and Haiti, potentially affecting tens of thousands of Miami residents.
