Bangladesh: Turkish charity to build Rohingya orphanage

By Izzet Taskiran

ISTANBUL (AA) - A Turkish humanitarian aid organization on Wednesday said it began the construction of an orphanage for 100 refugees in Bangladesh's Cox's Bazaar.

According to a statement, the Sadakatasi Association continues its efforts to help Rohingya Muslims taking shelter in Bangladesh.

Sadakatasi launched its aid activities just after the Myanmar army and Buddhist nationalists initiated attacks, which led to the forced migration of some two million Rohingya from Myanmar's Rakhine state to neighboring Bangladesh.

The orphanage, consisting of a dormitory, classroom, library, dining hall and kitchen, will be home to 100 children who struggle to survive in ill-conditioned bamboo houses or outside of the refugee camps.

The emergency relief team of Sadakatasi has also opened eight wells in the camps to help eliminate health threats, mainly from the lack of hygiene and infectious diseases in the region.

The opening of 149 wells across Bangladesh in 2018 have also contributed significantly to the issue, the statement added.

In 2018, Sadakatasi opened Musab Bin Umayr School at the Moyganuga Refugee camp, where they delivered food to 500 people. They also delivered food packages to families living under harsh conditions in Cox's Bazaar.

Cevdet Hasbal, the deputy chair of Sadakatasi, told Anadolu Agency that they continued their relief efforts after some two million Rohingya were forced to flee following the massacres in Myanmar.

"While tens of thousands of orphans struggle to survive under difficult conditions, we broke the ground of an orphanage, where 100 orphans could have a comfortable life," he said.

- Persecuted community

The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.

Since Aug. 25, 2017, nearly 24,000 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by Myanmar’s state forces, according to a report by the Ontario International Development Agency (OIDA).

More than 34,000 Rohingya were also thrown into fires, while over 114,000 others were beaten, said the OIDA report, titled "Forced Migration of Rohingya: The Untold Experience."

Some 18,000 Rohingya women and girls were raped by Myanmar’s army and police and over 115,000 Rohingya homes were burned down and 113,000 others vandalized, it added.

The UN has also documented mass gang rapes, killings -- including of infants and young children -- brutal beatings and disappearances committed by Myanmar state forces.

In a report, UN investigators said such violations may have constituted crimes against humanity.