DHAKA – A group of more than 1,700 Rohingya Muslim refugees are leaving for a remote island in the Bay of Bengal with more readiness to leave on Saturday, a Bangladeshi naval official said, despite concerns about the risk of storms and floods hitting the site.
It is the latest addition to the approximately 3,500 Rohingya refugees from neighboring Myanmar who have been sending Bangladesh to the island of Bhasan Char since early December, from border camps where a million live in gangster huts.
“Today we expect more than 1,700 people to arrive here,” Commodore Abdullah Al Mamun Chowdhury, the island’s officer in charge, told Reuters by telephone on Friday.
Another Rohingya who voluntarily moved to the island is being relocated from the camps to the nearest port city of Chittagong.
“Tomorrow they will be relocated to Bhasan Char. In total, we expect more than 3,000 people,” Chowdhury said.
The island, which came out of the sea just two decades ago, is a few hours’ journey from the southern harbor.
The Rohingya, a minority group fleeing violence in the Buddhist majority Myanmar, are not allowed to leave the island without government permission.
Bangladesh says resettlement is voluntary, but some of the first group, sent in December, spoke of coercion.
The government also says overcrowding in camps in Cox’s Bazar district is fueling crime as efforts to return it to Myanmar return.
“What options do we have? How long can we live in the busy camps under sails?” asks Mohammed Ibrahim, 25, on his way to the island to which some of his family members have already moved.
“It’s not going anywhere, as the international community is dealing with our crisis,” he told Reuters by telephone.
Bangladesh also dismissed the island’s flood concerns, citing the construction of a 12 km (7.5 miles) long embankment 2 meters (6.5 feet) high, in addition to housing for 100,000 people, hospitals and cyclone centers.
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It has criticized the reluctance to consult with aid organizations, including the UN refugee agency, over the transfers.
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees says the agency has not been allowed to evaluate the safety and sustainability of life on the island.
“We look forward to continuing a constructive dialogue with the government on its Bhasan Char project, including the proposed UN technical and protection assessments,” reads an email.