1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,210
JUDY WOODRUFF: The ongoing crisis
in Myanmar

2
00:00:02,260 --> 00:00:06,189
has had a devastating impact
on one particular ethnic group,

3
00:00:06,490 --> 00:00:11,320
Rohingya refugees forced 
to flee to cramped camps in Bangladesh,

4
00:00:11,840 --> 00:00:17,840
battling the coronavirus and now being 
asked to relocate to a flood-prone island.

5
00:00:17,840 --> 00:00:21,040
"NewsHour" special correspondent 
Tania Rashid reports.

6
00:00:22,955 --> 00:00:23,955
(Fire burning)

7
00:00:24,650 --> 00:00:28,720
TANIA RASHID: What were once homes, 
hospitals, and schools at the world's

8
00:00:28,720 --> 00:00:31,990
largest refugee camp burn to ash,

9
00:00:32,076 --> 00:00:35,526
as a massive fire rips
through these makeshift settlements.

10
00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:41,280
Fifteen people were killed, 400 missing, 
and tens of thousands displaced.

11
00:00:42,560 --> 00:00:46,880
Three years ago, the Rohingya, 
a Muslim minority group,

12
00:00:46,880 --> 00:00:49,227
fled a bloody military crackdown,

13
00:00:49,483 --> 00:00:53,063
launched by the Myanmar military
and police bordering Bangladesh.

14
00:00:53,520 --> 00:00:56,040
Mass killings, rapes, and arsons

15
00:00:56,100 --> 00:01:00,575
drove close to a million
into these sprawling camps in Cox's Bazar.

16
00:01:01,200 --> 00:01:03,630
In a report published in 2019,

17
00:01:03,799 --> 00:01:07,099
U.N. investigators warned
of genocidal intent.

18
00:01:07,490 --> 00:01:09,570
The Myanmar army denies that,

19
00:01:09,875 --> 00:01:13,958
and claims, it only acted against
insurgent groups who attacked the police.

20
00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:19,040
But now these fires have uprooted 
these Rohingyas' lives again.

21
00:01:19,760 --> 00:01:24,400
Bangladesh authorities and aid agencies 
have been providing emergency assistance

22
00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,440
to over 45,000 homeless refugees.

23
00:01:28,990 --> 00:01:31,650
Since December, the Bangladeshi government

24
00:01:31,763 --> 00:01:36,063
has started moving more than 13,000
refugees from the overcrowded camps

25
00:01:36,141 --> 00:01:39,761
to Bhasan Char, a remote island
in the Bay of Bengal.

26
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:42,450
According to our local sources,

27
00:01:42,505 --> 00:01:46,125
the Bangladesh government has
offered those affected by the fires

28
00:01:46,400 --> 00:01:48,583
help with relocating there now.

29
00:01:50,651 --> 00:01:54,021
We visited the low-lying plain
in early 2017,

30
00:01:54,400 --> 00:01:57,397
back when it was just
an undeveloped strip of land.

31
00:01:57,988 --> 00:02:01,468
Experts on climate change deemed
the land mass unlivable.

32
00:02:02,080 --> 00:02:05,440
But the government said, it would
be better than the overcrowded camps.

33
00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:07,740
(Local advertisement playing)

34
00:02:07,840 --> 00:02:09,550
In a promo video last year,

35
00:02:09,655 --> 00:02:12,535
the Bangladeshi government claimed
to have constructed dams,

36
00:02:12,590 --> 00:02:16,050
cyclone shelters, hospitals,
mosques, and schools

37
00:02:16,105 --> 00:02:19,065
to house 100,000 Rohingyas
under safe conditions.

38
00:02:19,820 --> 00:02:22,590
Sah-yed Noor said he would consider
moving to the island

39
00:02:22,640 --> 00:02:25,296
to escape the poor living 
conditions inside the camps.

40
00:02:25,740 --> 00:02:28,180
SAH-YED NOOR, Refugee
(through translator):

41
00:02:28,180 --> 00:02:30,660
I think that Bhasan Char can be
better from camp,

42
00:02:30,690 --> 00:02:32,775
because every apartment
is made with brick.

43
00:02:35,730 --> 00:02:38,120
TANIA RASHID: His 16-year-old
niece, Fowzia (ph),

44
00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:41,040
was sent to Bhasan Char last year
by the Bangladeshi navy,

45
00:02:41,130 --> 00:02:45,230
after being stranded at sea for months
when she tried to flee to Malaysia.

46
00:02:46,960 --> 00:02:49,680
After several attempts
to make contact with her,

47
00:02:49,680 --> 00:02:52,360
he gets her on the phone
to check on her situation.

48
00:02:52,750 --> 00:02:54,750
He's been concerned about her safety.

49
00:02:55,910 --> 00:02:57,450
She said she's not feeling well,

50
00:02:57,540 --> 00:02:58,850
and misses her family,

51
00:02:59,075 --> 00:03:00,345
and wants to go home.

52
00:03:01,280 --> 00:03:03,340
After hearing from Fowzia,

53
00:03:03,430 --> 00:03:05,000
Sah-yed said he would only agree,

54
00:03:05,100 --> 00:03:07,620
to relocate to Bhasan Char with his family,

55
00:03:07,940 --> 00:03:09,950
so they can be reunited together.

56
00:03:11,680 --> 00:03:12,720
These fires,

57
00:03:12,810 --> 00:03:14,820
aren't the first ones to happen here.

58
00:03:15,070 --> 00:03:16,070
There were two fires,

59
00:03:16,135 --> 00:03:17,405
in the month of January,

60
00:03:17,500 --> 00:03:18,990
according to news reports.

61
00:03:19,090 --> 00:03:22,110
It is unclear why the fires
keep happening.

62
00:03:22,945 --> 00:03:24,655
But, as the Bangladesh government,

63
00:03:24,700 --> 00:03:26,380
continues its investigations,

64
00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:27,943
into the cause of the fires,

65
00:03:28,121 --> 00:03:30,451
the Rohingya continue to live,

66
00:03:30,520 --> 00:03:33,260
in crammed, unsanitary living conditions,

67
00:03:33,899 --> 00:03:35,802
making them some of the most vulnerable,

68
00:03:35,822 --> 00:03:37,171
to COVID-19.

69
00:03:38,130 --> 00:03:39,490
Bangladesh has administered,

70
00:03:39,530 --> 00:03:41,120
over three million doses,

71
00:03:41,239 --> 00:03:43,049
of the first vaccine to its citizens,

72
00:03:43,660 --> 00:03:44,990
and has initiated plans,

73
00:03:45,050 --> 00:03:46,280
to include the Rohingyas,

74
00:03:46,340 --> 00:03:48,310
in its national vaccination drive.

75
00:03:48,745 --> 00:03:49,745
But so far,

76
00:03:49,900 --> 00:03:51,350
none have been vaccinated.

77
00:03:52,080 --> 00:03:53,770
For now, the strict lockdown...

78
00:03:53,790 --> 00:03:57,000
imposed by the government
last year continues,

79
00:03:57,180 --> 00:03:59,160
with an 80 percent decrease...

80
00:03:59,180 --> 00:04:01,410
of humanitarian aid staff on the ground.

81
00:04:02,220 --> 00:04:03,290
Essential services,

82
00:04:03,358 --> 00:04:05,128
including food and medical supplies,

83
00:04:05,313 --> 00:04:06,891
have been allowed into the camps,

84
00:04:07,040 --> 00:04:08,780
through specially arranged checkpoints,

85
00:04:08,870 --> 00:04:10,730
organized by the Bangladesh army.

86
00:04:11,590 --> 00:04:13,150
The UN Refugee Agency...

87
00:04:13,210 --> 00:04:15,420
has teamed up with
the Bangladesh government

88
00:04:15,480 --> 00:04:18,070
to train 1,500 community health workers...

89
00:04:18,360 --> 00:04:19,440
inside the camps,

90
00:04:19,490 --> 00:04:21,170
to raise awareness about the virus.

91
00:04:22,030 --> 00:04:23,360
Dr. Fahadin Aktar...

92
00:04:23,400 --> 00:04:25,100
works in early responsive care,

93
00:04:25,155 --> 00:04:26,155
at the camp.

94
00:04:27,300 --> 00:04:29,410
DR. FAHADIN AKTAR
(through translator): Here,

95
00:04:29,430 --> 00:04:31,006
first we check their temperature.

96
00:04:31,046 --> 00:04:34,708
We set up compulsory handwashing points
and all people must wash their hands

97
00:04:34,782 --> 00:04:36,602
and maintain proper social distancing.

98
00:04:36,680 --> 00:04:38,250
Before, five people sat together,

99
00:04:38,293 --> 00:04:40,485
but now, in one seat,
two people sit together,

100
00:04:40,590 --> 00:04:42,410
with a barrier for social distancing.

101
00:04:42,445 --> 00:04:44,355
And we make sure
all patients wear masks.

102
00:04:44,870 --> 00:04:47,216
TANIA RASHID: Despite the efforts,
Dr. Aktar says,

103
00:04:47,390 --> 00:04:50,314
he's seen a sharp decline
in the numbers of Rohingya patients.

104
00:04:50,340 --> 00:04:52,640
Many are scared to go to the hospital.

105
00:04:53,320 --> 00:04:56,230
DR. AKTAR (through translator): 
Those with suspected symptoms

106
00:04:56,250 --> 00:04:57,540
are tested and quarantined.

107
00:04:57,560 --> 00:04:59,510
This has sparked fear among the Rohingya,

108
00:04:59,530 --> 00:05:01,820
concerned that they could be
sent somewhere else,

109
00:05:01,840 --> 00:05:04,650
separate from their families,
if they share their symptoms.

110
00:05:04,670 --> 00:05:06,530
TANIA RASHID: The official numbers say,

111
00:05:06,550 --> 00:05:09,180
there have been only
400 confirmed COVID-19 cases

112
00:05:09,540 --> 00:05:11,500
and 10 related deaths at the camp.

113
00:05:12,470 --> 00:05:14,160
Bangladesh authorities insists,

114
00:05:14,580 --> 00:05:17,532
cases at the camps are increasing
at a much slower rate

115
00:05:17,660 --> 00:05:20,070
than global trends
due to the enforced lockdown.

116
00:05:21,040 --> 00:05:24,880
But the longing to go back home 
remains for many of these refugees,

117
00:05:25,260 --> 00:05:27,990
despite the ongoing military coup
back in Myanmar.

118
00:05:28,725 --> 00:05:29,725
(Protesters shouting)

119
00:05:30,180 --> 00:05:33,180
For weeks, tens of thousands
of peaceful protesters

120
00:05:33,490 --> 00:05:35,826
have taken to the streets of major cities,

121
00:05:36,283 --> 00:05:38,303
protesting the military's seized power.

122
00:05:38,771 --> 00:05:39,771
(Distant gunshot)

123
00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:43,780
In response, the police
are cracking down violently,

124
00:05:44,340 --> 00:05:46,666
with the bloodiest days this past weekend.

125
00:05:47,913 --> 00:05:50,173
Many Rohingya activists we spoke with

126
00:05:50,200 --> 00:05:52,931
are hoping their support
for the movement in Myanmar

127
00:05:53,320 --> 00:05:56,140
will be a turning point
in their on-going fight for justice,

128
00:05:56,960 --> 00:06:00,400
despite the lack of support
from ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi,

129
00:06:01,150 --> 00:06:04,550
who defended the military
against accusations of genocide

130
00:06:04,585 --> 00:06:05,635
in The Hague in 2019,

131
00:06:07,086 --> 00:06:08,086
(Woman crying)

132
00:06:08,758 --> 00:06:13,768
But the aftermath of the recent fires 
have taken their lives for a drastic turn,

133
00:06:14,820 --> 00:06:19,520
as the place they sought refuge 
has put them in limbo yet again.

134
00:06:20,110 --> 00:06:22,590
For the "PBS NewsHour," I'm Tania Rashid.

135
00:06:24,387 --> 00:06:26,007
(Pensive music)

136
00:06:26,196 --> 00:06:29,916
[Almost 60% of Bangladesh's Rohingya
refugee population is under the age of 18]