Two months after Cyclone Mocha barreled ashore in Rakhine State, one ethnic group is feeling the brunt of the Myanmar junta’s indifference – Muslim Rohingya.
A vast swathe of Rakhine State was hit by high winds and heavy rains that wrecked a large area, ripping off building roofs, knocking down trees and power lines, and proving particularly destructive to the shelters used by internally displaced people (IDPs).
An increasing number of reports indicate that the Military Council has not approved the permission to renovate damaged Rohingya IDP camps.
“The military has not ratified the restoration of the damaged camps. Thus, the IDPs are staying under the tarpaulins and other possible places. It’s because almost all houses in the camp do not have roofs anymore. Since the restoration has not been granted, they are staying just like that,” an aid worker attempting to help Rohingya IDPs in Sittwe told Mizzima.
The permission for the resettlement, renovation, and relocation of the damaged IDP camps has to seek permission from the state government. However, it was reported that the Rakhine State government running under the military regime has not allowed the renovation until now, two months after Cyclone Mocha.
Aid delivery to those in need has been sporadic at best, but those at the wrong end of the stick are the Rohingya.
So far, the Rohingya IDPs have not received any support from the regime and the aid materials provided for the Rohingya refugee camps were said to have been confiscated by the administrative officials running under the Military Council.
“The government does not support rice or anything. In some places, tarpaulins are provided. Those tarpaulins were not given to the IDPs but kept by the administration. That incident happened at Kaung Oakkar Camp. To say an overall situation of the Rakhine State, it is certain that the IDPs do not receive as much as given by the military to others. Those given by them are very rare too,” said an aid worker, preferring not to give his name.
There are 14 IDP camps in Sittwe including Kaung Oakkar refugee camp, and all camps are reported to have not received permission for renovation yet.
Although international organizations including the United Nations asked consent from the Military Council to help the Rohingya IDPs even before the cyclone, they have not received permission to provide aid. Also, even after the cyclone, the Military Council restricted the international organizations’ access to travel and help.
The restriction of the military regime to the international organizations regarding their access to travel is an act of indifference to the Rohingya refugees, the aid worker added.
“Mainly speaking, it is an act of treating IDPs disrespectfully and neglecting them. It’s because they know that the IDPs are relying on NGOs and INGOs. The fact that NGOs and INGOs are restricted means that they are stopping the aid reaching the IDPs. Some of the IDPs are struggling badly,” he noted.
Despite the World Food Programme (WFP) providing 27,000 Kyats a month per person to Rohingya IDPs, the unemployed Rohingya are facing difficulties in living due to rising commodity prices.
On 13 May, a day before Cyclone Mocha hit, military troops came warning the Rohingya IDP camps close to the sea to evacuate to a safe place. However, the military failed to provide enough accommodation for hundreds of thousands of Rohingya.
About 98 Rohingya refugees died in Sittwe Town due to Cyclone Mocha, according to a person collecting the list in the Rohingya refugee camps after the storm hit.
About 153,000 Rohingya are living in relief camps in Rakhine State while about 1 million are taking refuge in Bangladesh refugee camps, the UN Myanmar stated in September 2022.
Ongoing conflict and natural disasters are continuing to exacerbate humanitarian needs across Myanmar.
Six months into 2023, the combined $886.7 million Humanitarian Response Plan and Cyclone Mocha Flash Appeals, remain critically underfunded, with only 17 per cent of the required funding received, as of 14 July.
Bottom of the priority list, if there is such a list, are the blocked outcasts, the Rohingya.
