Warning: The magic method Vc_Manager::__wakeup() must have public visibility in /customers/d/b/2/rohingyapost.com/httpd.www/wp-content/plugins/js_composer/include/classes/core/class-vc-manager.php on line 203 Deprecated: Required parameter $width follows optional parameter $attach_id in /customers/d/b/2/rohingyapost.com/httpd.www/wp-content/plugins/js_composer/include/helpers/helpers.php on line 366 Deprecated: Required parameter $height follows optional parameter $attach_id in /customers/d/b/2/rohingyapost.com/httpd.www/wp-content/plugins/js_composer/include/helpers/helpers.php on line 366 {"id":24145,"date":"2019-09-06T17:21:08","date_gmt":"2019-09-06T16:21:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rohingyapost.com\/?p=24145"},"modified":"2019-09-10T16:55:54","modified_gmt":"2019-09-10T15:55:54","slug":"from-victims-to-villains-the-changing-discourse-on-rohingyas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rohingyapost.com\/from-victims-to-villains-the-changing-discourse-on-rohingyas\/","title":{"rendered":"From victims to villains: The changing discourse on Rohingyas"},"content":{"rendered":"
By Nazmul Ahasan<\/a>, The Daily Star<\/a><\/p>\n Yet another attempt to send Rohingyas back to Myanmar ended up in an embarrassing debacle last week: Not a single Rohingya showed up for the arranged repatriation. Humiliated by their brazen act of defiance, an angry foreign minister vowed to rein in their apparent \u201ccomfort\u201d in Bangladesh.<\/p>\n Coincidence or not, since then, a series of blatantly disparaging and incendiary articles, \u201creports\u201d and opinion pieces about Rohingyas have appeared in mainstream media outlets\u2014so much so that it could almost be called a coordinated campaign.<\/p>\n For instance, a front-page story of a well-circulated Bengali newspaper read: \u201cThe Rohingya showdown: conspiracy to destabilise the country.\u201d The article dealt with a massive rally Rohingyas held on August 25 to commemorate \u201cRohingya Genocide Day.\u201d Rohingyas around the world observed the day previous year, too. But this year, on the heels of the failed repatriation bid, the rally has suddenly become a subject of controversy.<\/p>\n Luckily, a journalist friend sent me a video clip of the rally. Far from engaging in a \u201cconspiracy\u201d against Bangladesh, the speakers expressed their gratitude towards the government for hosting them, as they lamented their tragedy and demanded justice for atrocities perpetrated against them.<\/p>\n Mohib Ullah, a prominent Rohingya leader, was also targeted by some in the media for his principal role in organising the rally. Ullah is among the few Rohingya leaders preaching a non-violent political solution to the crisis, and has mainstream public appeal. Since the rally, he has been accused of receiving funds from Pakistan, but no reliable evidence has yet been cited to support these allegations. Even the now-forgotten White House meeting on religious persecution, which had become controversial for the Priya Saha episode, resurfaced with a new twist. Since Ullah attended the meeting as a Rohingya representative, he is now being branded as anti-Bangladesh, although he made one single appeal to President Donald Trump: help us get back our home.<\/p>\n The role of NGOs in the aftermath of the crisis has clearly not been perfect. But their contributions to educating the Rohingya children, ensuring that refugees receive sufficient food and health aids and creating awareness worldwide have been critical. But in the local media, NGOs have been subjected to crude vilification, accused of working to sustain the crisis for self-interest.<\/p>\n Some even saw a conspiracy by NGOs and humanitarian organisations to convince the Rohingyas to not go back, when they protested using English posters and placards. Such an assertion is not only unfair but also offensive. The same goes for the notion that Rohingyas are refusing to go back because they are living comfortably in refugee camps. No refugee camp\u2014certainly not the camps in Cox\u2019s Bazar\u2014can be a substitute for home. Why should one expect the Rohingyas to go back to the place where they endured and witnessed unimaginable horror and destruction\u2014simply on a promise by their oppressors?<\/p>\n Not a single organisation, be it intergovernmental in nature or a credible human rights body, is convinced that the situation in Rakhine is conducive to proper repatriation. The verification criteria set by Myanmar will not make even a fairly large group of Rohingyas eligible for return.<\/p>\n The government in Rakhine has only built (or is planning to build) several hundred congregated housing units, which are not only insufficient but also mean Rohingyas would not get back their lost land.<\/p>\n More importantly, Myanmar has failed to ensure whether returned Rohingyas would be granted full rights as citizens, nor has it been able to credibly assure that Rohingyas would not be subjected to similar treatment which led to their expulsion in the first place. The demands to investigate countless claims of gross human rights abuses against military and security personnel are still rejected outright by the Myanmar government.<\/p>\n Therefore, if one blames Rohingyas for refusing to go back under current circumstances, they would be blaming the victims, and inadvertently or willingly, doing Myanmar\u2019s bids.<\/p>\n The fact that the Rohingya crisis has put enormous pressure on a resource-strapped country like ours is undisputable. And it is understandable that, as citizens, we are concerned about it. But unsubstantiated and exaggerated figures are invented to exacerbate anger.<\/p>\n Last week, for example, a leading news portal cited unknown officials to claim that the government spent Tk 72,000 crores for Rohingyas in two years, excluding the substantial amount of foreign assistance. In reality, the government in the 2018-19 budget allocated only Tk 400 crores for the Rohingya.<\/p>\n