Two Years On: A Rohingya Refugee Shares Her Story

Somudah and her family have been living as refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, since September 2017 after fleeing violence in Myanmar. The family is among the thousands in Cox’s Bazar and is served by CPI’s Community Health Volunteer program and other services. To mark the second anniversary of the Rohingya Refugee Crisis, we spoke to Somudah about the difficulties she and her family have faced over the past two years and her hopes for the future.

​When the violence came, Somudah and her husband lived in a village in Buthidaung Township, Northern Rakhine State, Myanmar, earning their living through farming. In late August 2017, Somudah’s village was attacked, and houses were set on fire. Somudah and her husband gathered their four-year-old daughter and seven-year-old son and fled to a nearby forest, where they spent the night. They began the difficult and dangerous journey to the Myanmar-Bangladesh border the next day.

The family walked for 12 days to reach the border. They traveled as part of a group that had gathered in the forest the previous night. They tried to keep off the roads as much as possible for safety. Their children were terrified and cried constantly. On the second day, they crossed mountainous terrain. It was a tough climb. Somudah and her husband carried their children and the food and belongings they had grabbed as they fled their home.

At one point later in the journey, they were stopped and questioned by soldiers. Some members of the group were assaulted, and items, including money, jewelry, and solar lights, were taken from them.

In early September 2017, they reached the Naf River on the Myanmar-Bangladesh border but could not cross due to border restrictions. They waited on the banks of the river for ten days. When they could finally cross and reach the Bangladesh side of the river, they were overcome with relief. But Somudah and her husband soon had to worry about what they would do next.

They spent their first night in Bangladesh on the river bank and then traveled to Camp 3 of the Kutupalong Expansion Site in Cox’s Bazar. This site was rapidly becoming the world’s largest refugee camp as hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees like Somudah and her family poured across the border from Myanmar.
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They found their way to an aid agency’s distribution point, where they received essential items, including rice, mats, and clothes for the children.

On arrival in the camp, Somudah and her family lived without shelter for three days. Aid agencies were overwhelmed trying to cope with the massive influx of refugees. It was the monsoon season, and their children, exhausted from the journey from Myanmar, got sick. Eventually, they found a place to build a shelter, bought bamboo poles and tarpaulins with the bit of money they had, and built it themselves. In the first few weeks, accessing clean drinking water took a lot of work as there were so few distribution points.

Two years on, the family’s situation has improved, but they still face many challenges. Over time, they have received support from aid agencies to improve their living conditions. They now have a stove, a gas cylinder to cook with, and a ‘rice card’ that gives them access to basic food rations.

The lack of access to employment means they have very little money to buy supplementary food or other items they need. They try to earn a little extra money where they can. Somudah’s husband goes out looking for day labor, but jobs are scarce and wages low. Somudah makes fans and sells them in the market, but this only brings her minimal money.

Sometimes, Somudah has to sell a portion of the rations they receive, often just rice and “dal,” to buy other foods to improve their diet. During the recent Eid festival, her children asked for treats, but she had no money to buy them anything. She worries because she cannot afford to buy fruit to help keep them healthy.

During the monsoon season (June to October), Somudah and her family fear landslides and flooding. Overcrowding and deforestation make the camps particularly vulnerable. The family’s shelter has been destroyed three times by landslides. On each occasion, they had to rebuild the shelter without any support, costing them around 2,000 taka (around USD 24 at the time of writing) per time.

Somudah also worries about the threat of kidnapping and human trafficking. She hears rumors in the community; sometimes, there are reports of missing children on the neighborhood loudspeaker.

Access to water, sanitation, and hygiene are also challenging in Somudah’s neighborhood. It is a half-hour walk from their shelter to the nearest drinking water distribution station, and there are usually very long queues. Securing enough water for the family can take up much of the day. The latrines and washing facilities that the family use are not gender segregated. Somudah says that women often do not feel comfortable visiting them, particularly at night, if many men are waiting to use the facilities.

Accessing health care can also be problematic. Somudah recalled an incident when her husband had a severe fever. They went to a community clinic, where he was given paracetamol. They returned to the clinic the next day as his condition had not improved. However, the line was very long, and the clinic closed before they could see a health worker. So they went to a local doctor and paid for treatment, though they couldn’t afford it. Somudah worries about what she will do if her children get sick and she doesn’t have money to pay for treatment.

Since January 2019, Rajuma, a CPI-supported Community Health Volunteer, has regularly visited Somudah and her family as part of her monthly rounds in the neighborhood. CPI supports a network of 80 Rohingya Community Health Volunteers that provide their communities with the first line of health care. Somudah says Rajuma has given the family helpful information on different diseases and health problems and advised them where to receive treatment. She has provided education on family planning, prenatal and postnatal care, and good general health and hygiene practices. She has also given the family information on gender-based violence, including prevention methods, which Somudah says are particularly beneficial for the community.

Somudah is still determining the future. She is still determining what the family will do if they have to stay in Bangladesh for a long time. She hopes they can return to their home in Myanmar, but they will only return if guaranteed equal rights and citizenship. Otherwise, she says, it’s not safe for them. She hopes that governments can work together to help achieve this.

Community Partners International (CPI) has worked with Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, since September 2017, supporting them to meet their essential needs. CPI’s activities encompass community-based health services, access to clean water, sanitation, hygiene, gender-based violence prevention, and energy solutions such as improved cookstoves and solar lights.