Bangladesh relocating Rohingya camps from Cox’s Bazaar to a shoal at Hatia in Noakhali

With Rohingya refugees getting increasingly involved in crimes, Bangladesh government is relocating the ethnic Myanmar people from the camps in Cox’s Bazaar to the island Upazila of Hatia in Noakhali.

The plan has been made public amidst recent reports on thousands of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants stranded on boats between the Andaman Sea and the Straits of Malacca.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had ordered officials to shift the camps to a ‘suitable’ place six months ago.

She had also spoken about the problem of housing the refugees in such small places.

Government officials say Hatia has been chosen as the ‘suitable’ place.

“The government wanted to know if big, suitable spaces were available. We proposed a 500-acre shoal area at Hatia,” Noakhali Deputy Commissioner Badre Munir Firdaous told bdnews24.com on Wednesday.

DC Firdaous, however, did not say how and when the plan will be implemented.                   

Cox’s Bazaar Deputy Commissioner Ali Hossain said, “I am new here. I am yet to take a look at the matter. As far as I know, they’ll be shifted to some place at Hatia in Noakhali.”

He also said the Noakhali DC was overseeing the issue of acquiring land needed for the relocation.

The refugee camps in Cox’s Bazaar are at Khutuppalang and Nayaparha. They have 34,000 registered Rohingyas but the government says Bangladesh has over 500,000 Rohingyas.

The Rohingya refugees, collecting Bangladeshi passports illegally, are allegedly involved in crimes.

Intelligence agencies say they have been being used in drug and people smuggling from Myanmar.

Moreover, many consider the camps in the prime resort town of Bangladesh as a threat to tourism.

Hatia Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Abu Hasnat Md Moyeen Uddin said Noakhali district administration selected a shoal on the east of the island.

The shoal with no population is called Thengarchar, he said.

DC Firdaous said he visited the place far from Hatia Sadar.

The Forest Department has 12,000 acres of land there. Noakhali administration has informed the land ministry that 500 acres will be needed for the relocation.

The UNO said the survey of the land would take time.

Facing persecution in Myanmar, Rohingya Muslims started crossing into Bangladesh two decades ago. 

The government has long been urging Myanmar to take back the Rohingyas staying in Bangladesh with refugee status.

But Myanmar has been denying global pressure to recognise the Rohingyas as its citizens.

After a riot in 2012, the flow of Rohingya Muslims to Bangladesh increased but the government decided not to let any more of them in.