Our work in Bangladesh focuses on the rights of the Rohingya – a community which has been subjected to one of the most serious and sustained campaigns of ethno-religious discrimination and persecution anywhere in the world. Up to 250,000 Rohingya who have fled persecution, violence and discrimination in their native Myanmar live in Bangladesh, the vast majority outside official refugee camps, and thus without protection and humanitarian support.

 

In 2012, following a wave of violence in Myanmar, thousands of Rohingya tried to escape to Bangladesh. The Equal Rights Trust interviewed some of those who made it to Bangladesh, publishing a Situation Report which exposed the scale of the Myanmar authorities’ involvement in the violence, and the failure of Bangladesh to provide refuge and its violations of numerous human rights.

 

We are continuing to document the situation of the Rohingya in Bangladesh as part of our regional work to raise awareness of the community’s plight and the need for reforms to laws, policies and practices.