UN officials reach Bangladesh to take stock of Rohingya refugee camps

The UN officials, Gillian Triggs and Raouf Mazou, will hold meetings with officials in Bangladesh, and visit Rohingya camps- Bhasan Char and Cox Bazaar- from Monday, Dhaka Tribune said.

Bhasan Char, an isolated island,  is a new facility by the Bangladesh government to shift around 100,000 refugees-- 20,000 among them have already been shifted-- to decongest Cox Bazar
camps.

Earlier, various rights groups raised concerns over Bangladesh’s Rohingya relocation plan to Bashan Char, citing its vulnerability to cyclone and storm. However, the Bangladesh government has been saying that the new site is better equipped and much better than the crowded camps of Cox Bazaar.

Authorities also took steps to reduce the effects of cyclones on the island-- a claim vindicated by the recent Cyclone Yass where the island remained safe and suffered almost no damage.

Bangladesh officials said the successful handling of Cyclone Yass will further boost the confidence of people to move to the island and will remove any apprehension that the island isn’t safe.

Volkan Bozkir, the president of the United Nations General Assembly, has hailed the country’s efforts, calling it “another example to the world on how to deal with the pandemic.” UN officials, who had visited the island months back, also expressed their satisfaction with the facilities there. 

In the next months, Bangladesh officials expect that UN agencies would start their operations on the island.