From Sex Trafficking To Slavery, 13 Reasons Why The World Needs To Care About Rohingya Children
There is a history of persecution of Muslims in Myanmar that continues even today and in much worse shape.
Sexual abuse, trafficking and exploitation of displaced people is a facet that is little acknowledged in the refugee crisis. A record increase in the number of refugee and children travelling alone has left many vulnerable to sexual abuse and exploitation at the hands of opportunists and traffickers.
1. Just last week, a report suggested that around 1,100 children Rohingya refugees arrived alone in Bangladesh to escape the conflict-hit region of Myanmar. A large number of Rohingya refugee children have disappeared in Bangladesh and are feared to be trafficking victims. There have been widespread reports of rape and murder as part of a military campaign against Rohingya civilians. However, the Myanmar government had denied these charges outright.
2. The complete picture of the crisis still remains hidden due to the fact that international community still doesn¡¯t have complete access inside Myanmar.
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3. Recent child disappearances among the newly arrived refugees have been confirmed. An NGO, 'Action Against Hunger' says it knows of 16 suspected kidnappings since January.
4. The lack of law and order has ensured that there is no check on human trafficking groups inside the disturbed country. Many watchdogs estimate that these groups are working around the clock in search children who have lost their families or very simply just lost.
5. There is enough evidence that all booms in migration are also followed by a huge surge in human trafficking numbers. A report by VOA News quotes Mohammed Idris, a teacher at a school in Bangladesh¡¯s border area, says they hear rumours and there are ransom demands. ¡°We¡¯re very sad about losing these children,¡± he says. ¡°We¡¯re even hearing that they are taking the kidneys from some of the children.¡±
Read more: Rohingya Women Tell The Horror Tales Of How The Army Raped And Murdered Them In Myanmar
6. There has been a very high prevalence of underage marriage amongst the Rohingyas for a good part of this decade. It has been common for Rohingya women escaping Myanmar to marry Rohingya men the country they fled to. To make matters worse, as a part of rituals, underage girls are also married off.
7. Girls, as young as a 12 year of age are sold off in neighbouring countries and forced to marry men more than a decade older than them. A growing number of girls are becoming victims of human traffickers who sell women and girls to Rohingya men as brides.
8. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees estimates that 25,000 people have been taken to boats from January to March in 2015 by human traffickers.
9. A UNICEF report pointed out, ¡°At least 300,000 unaccompanied and separated children were recorded in 80 countries in 2015-16, a rise of almost 500% on the 66,000 documented in 2010-2011.¡±
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10. Even before the current full-scale crisis kicked off, In 2015, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said in a report it had identified 120 Rohingya child brides in Malaysia.
11. A Reuters report, quotes a former trafficking agent, a Rohingya man, saying that there is growing demand for Rohingya brides. Smuggling syndicates can earn up to 7,000 ringgit (?1,249) for each girl¡¯s release to their family or sale to a man.
12. Smugglers and traffickers are exploiting the vulnerability of young children travelling alone in search of a safer place, for personal gain. They help children in crossing the borders only to sell them into slavery and prostitution. The towering number of migrants and refugees have left the authorities struggling to cope with the crisis, with most children slipping through the cracks.
13. According to a recent report by the UN, more than 4,00,000 Rohingya refugees have fled Myanmar to Bangladesh.
When Aung San Suu Kyi rose to power in 2015, hopes were high that the Noble Peace Prize winner could balance the country¡¯s ethnic divide. On the contrary, she has been accused of silently standing by while widespread violence is committed against the Rohingyas.
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On September 7, Aung San Suu Kyi defended her handling of the crisis. ¡°It is a little unreasonable to expect us to solve the issue in 18 months,¡± she told the IANS.
¡°The situation in Rakhine has been such for many decades. It goes back to pre-colonial times.
¡°Our resources are not as complete and adequate as we would like them to be but still, we try our best and we want to make sure that everyone is entitled to the protection of the law,¡± she said.
Read more: Rohingyas In India Have Links With Pak's ISI & ISIS, Govt Tells SC
With India also mulling to deport approximately 40,000 Rohingya Muslims to Myanmar, the fate of the ¡°boat people¡± or the ¡°floating people¡± hangs in the air.