Amnesty International warns of a “devastating” reduction in Rohingya refugee assistance

Amnesty International called on the international community to intensify its efforts to provide the necessary support to avoid the “destructive influence” of the lives of the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, after the World Food Program announced sharp discounts in the assistance directed at them starting from the coming month.

The Organization of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees quoted the saying that 95% of the Rohingya families depend on humanitarian aid, and indicated that, the plans of the World Food Program to reduce food shares will be half, “a devastating effect on their lives at a time when resources were actually exhausted to the maximum.”

The World Food Program stated that the lack of financing is the result of a general decrease in financing.

Smarte Singh, the regional director of South Asia at Amnesty International, said that the lack of financing will lead to “the exacerbation of the severe shortage of supplies and basic services in the camps. The impact of this will exacerbate the most vulnerable to marginalization and distinction between refugees, especially children, pregnant women and the elderly.”

She added: “The Rohingya community in Cox Bazar has no choice but to rely on the World Food Program aid. The Bangladesh government strongly restricts their opportunities to obtain job opportunities, as they prevented their movement outside the camps.”

Amnesty International spoke to six Rohingya young refugees in Cox Bazar after the World Food Program.

“The expected food aid may not suffice for three meals per day,” said Mohamed Ace, a 18 -year -old student who arrived in Cox Bazar in 2017 after a violent suppression campaign launched by the Myanmar army that paid about one million Rohingya across the border to Bangladesh. He added, “Some of them will have to reduce meals.”

According to Muhammad Mirza, who is 23 years old, a volunteer in the camps, the amount of $ 6 per month – instead of 12 – in light of the current inflation rates, will suffice only a few quantities of basic foodstuffs, such as rice, lentils and salt, indicating the impossibility of providing other nutritional needs, such as milk, eggs, fruits and vegetables. He said: “This will affect us strongly.”