A Correspondent :
Miyavi, a musician, actor and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, has hoped that a future solution to the Rohingya crisis can be found quickly. “We all know what needs to happen. We hope that the leadership can be found to courageously go forward in a way that brings hope for the future,” he said yesterday after visiting Rohingya camps for two days.
Miyavi met Rohingya children in Cox’s Bazar on Sunday and Monday. This is his second visit to the Rohingya camps after the first one that took place in February 2018. Since 25 August 2017, when violence broke out in Rakhine State, Myanmar, more than 800,000 Rohingya sought refuge in Bangladesh.
The vast majority of them are women and children, and more than 55 percent are under 18 years old.Together with Rohingyas who fled Myanmar in consecutive waves of displacement since the early 1990s, currently over 1.2 million Rohingyas are living in Cox’s Bazar.
Miyavi appreciated Bangladesh’s host communities in Cox’s Bazar which generously supported refugees since their arrival in August 2017.
“The second visit enabled me to understand not only the progress in place but how it is advancing. These progresses include upgrade of shelters and reinforcement of community facilities as part of monsoon preparedness, and the UNHCR-government of Bangladesh joint registration exercise that’s essential for effective delivery of humanitarian aid,” said the music star.
He also observed earth-moving work and development of infrastructures on the land additionally provided by the government as well as volunteer activities by young Rohingyas.
“Since my last visit, there’ve been many improvements in the camps. UNHCR and other agencies are supporting not only the refugees but also the host communities who were the first responders to the refugee crisis,” he said.
The host communities have been supporting Rohingyas by sharing their lands and resources, the actor said.
“Through such support given by the host communities, I believe refugee can regain their dignity and hopes for the future,” Miyavi said.
In Cox’s Bazar, Miavi met children at a primary school in Kutupalong established in the 1990s, as well as children at a Learning Center established after 2017. Currently education provided at Learning Centers by aid agencies is not accredited and offers basic subjects like English, mathematics, life skills and Myanmar.
The Goodwill Ambassador said, “After the immediate emergency phase had passed, refugees are now facing another challenge, how to rebuild their lives. Parents are concerned about education – what kind of education they can provide with their children.”
All the parents wish their children to have good education, no matter where they live in the world, he said adding, “Myanmar also needs these children to be educated, for when they go back after they feel safe doing so.”
The Goodwill Ambassador planned his trip back to Bangladesh because he felt it was important to see what progress was made since the emergency.
His first visit was in the middle of the emergency response when many services were basic or being established.
“I’m happy to come back and see the Rohingya people here again. I see that the conditions in the refugee camps have improved a lot since my last visit in early 2018, just after the crisis,” he said. The music star said this time, what he felt more was an anxiety about the future.
“People are worried about what next. They want to go home. They can see Myanmar’s mountains in the near distance, but they do not yet feel safe to go back,” said Miyavi.
Miyavi, a musician, actor and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, has hoped that a future solution to the Rohingya crisis can be found quickly. “We all know what needs to happen. We hope that the leadership can be found to courageously go forward in a way that brings hope for the future,” he said yesterday after visiting Rohingya camps for two days.
Miyavi met Rohingya children in Cox’s Bazar on Sunday and Monday. This is his second visit to the Rohingya camps after the first one that took place in February 2018. Since 25 August 2017, when violence broke out in Rakhine State, Myanmar, more than 800,000 Rohingya sought refuge in Bangladesh.
The vast majority of them are women and children, and more than 55 percent are under 18 years old.Together with Rohingyas who fled Myanmar in consecutive waves of displacement since the early 1990s, currently over 1.2 million Rohingyas are living in Cox’s Bazar.
Miyavi appreciated Bangladesh’s host communities in Cox’s Bazar which generously supported refugees since their arrival in August 2017.
“The second visit enabled me to understand not only the progress in place but how it is advancing. These progresses include upgrade of shelters and reinforcement of community facilities as part of monsoon preparedness, and the UNHCR-government of Bangladesh joint registration exercise that’s essential for effective delivery of humanitarian aid,” said the music star.
He also observed earth-moving work and development of infrastructures on the land additionally provided by the government as well as volunteer activities by young Rohingyas.
“Since my last visit, there’ve been many improvements in the camps. UNHCR and other agencies are supporting not only the refugees but also the host communities who were the first responders to the refugee crisis,” he said.
The host communities have been supporting Rohingyas by sharing their lands and resources, the actor said.
“Through such support given by the host communities, I believe refugee can regain their dignity and hopes for the future,” Miyavi said.
In Cox’s Bazar, Miavi met children at a primary school in Kutupalong established in the 1990s, as well as children at a Learning Center established after 2017. Currently education provided at Learning Centers by aid agencies is not accredited and offers basic subjects like English, mathematics, life skills and Myanmar.
The Goodwill Ambassador said, “After the immediate emergency phase had passed, refugees are now facing another challenge, how to rebuild their lives. Parents are concerned about education – what kind of education they can provide with their children.”
All the parents wish their children to have good education, no matter where they live in the world, he said adding, “Myanmar also needs these children to be educated, for when they go back after they feel safe doing so.”
The Goodwill Ambassador planned his trip back to Bangladesh because he felt it was important to see what progress was made since the emergency.
His first visit was in the middle of the emergency response when many services were basic or being established.
“I’m happy to come back and see the Rohingya people here again. I see that the conditions in the refugee camps have improved a lot since my last visit in early 2018, just after the crisis,” he said. The music star said this time, what he felt more was an anxiety about the future.
“People are worried about what next. They want to go home. They can see Myanmar’s mountains in the near distance, but they do not yet feel safe to go back,” said Miyavi.
