UK urges not to turn away from Rohingya’s suffering

Publish: 5:39 PM, October 22, 2020 | Update: 5:39 PM, October 22, 2020

DHAKA, – United Kingdom’s (UK’s) secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs Dominic Raab today urged world not to “turn away from Rohingya’s suffering” as the UK pledges to provide life-saving support.

“I urge the world not to turn away from the Rohingya’s suffering and to take the action necessary to allow them to safely return to the homes they
fled in terror,” he said.

The British secretary of state made the remark while announcing £47.5million new UK aid to support 860,000 displaced Rohingyas as well as help Bangladesh dealing with coronavirus and natural disasters, said a press release of British high commission here.

This extra support comes ahead of a pledging conference co-hosted by the UK, US, EU and UNCHR today and follows UK sanctions on perpetrators of
violence against the Rohingya people.

This new funding, announced by the Foreign Secretary, will provide hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people with food, healthcare, water and
sanitation, as well as care and counselling for those traumatised by the violence they have experienced, said the release.

It will also improve access to education for 50,000 young people, as well as create isolation and treatment centres for people suffering from
coronavirus. Alongside this, the release said the UK aid package will support communities in Bangladesh, as the country hosting the highest number of Rohingya refugees.

It will strengthen its health system to respond to COVID-19 and continue the UK’s support to help Bangladesh become more resilient to natural
disasters such as flooding.

“The people living in Cox’s Bazar face unimaginable hardship and many have been victims of violence. We have imposed sanctions on the perpetrators of this brutality, and this new funding will save lives in the camp and help Bangladesh become more resilient to disasters such as coronavirus,” Raab
said.

Today’s summit will bring countries together to show solidarity for the Rohingya people, express support for nations hosting them as refugees and
urge countries to pledge funds to the humanitarian crisis which this year is critically underfunded.

The UN has estimated it needs $1billion this year to help Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh but so far less than half of that has been raised.

At the conference, FCDO Minister for South Asia and the Commonwealth Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon will reiterate that steps must be taken to work towards the voluntary, safe and dignified return of the Rohingya to their homes in Myanmar.

In August 2017, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya left Myanmar and got refuse in Bangladesh to escape brutal and systematic violence.

Since then, the UK has sanctioned two generals in the Myanmar military, as recommended by a UN independent investigation, which found them responsible for atrocities which amount to ethnic cleansing.

Today’s announcement brings the total UK aid commitment to the Rohingya crisis in Bangladesh to close to £300 million. The fund includes £37.5
million to provide humanitarian assistance in Cox’s Bazar and £10 million in support for Bangladesh to help the country respond to coronavirus and natural disasters like flooding.

Funds raised at the conference will go to international organisations and non-governmental organisations working to alleviate the crisis on the ground
in Myanmar, throughout the region, and as specified by the UN-led Joint Response Plan (JRP) in Bangladesh.