Media Release From Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK
Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK expressed alarm today at a Reuters report that the rations of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh will be slashed from $12.5 to just $6 dollars a month (around £4.60), or 15p a day.
“Rohingya refugees are already barely surviving, and these ration cuts are a slow death sentence”, said Tun Khin, President of Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK. “Will the international community, which refused to act to prevent genocide, now let starvation finish the genocide the Burmese military started?”
52% of more than 1 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are children. Already 40% of children in the camps are stunted. Previous ration cuts in 2023, which went down to $8 per month, led to 90% of the refugees unable to access a proper diet. The cuts were later reversed.
Rohingya refugees, most of whom fled genocidal attacks by the Burmese military in 2016 and 2017, are currently not allowed to work. Without being able to earn an income, they are completely dependent on aid.
The cuts in aid come after USAID, a major contributor to the refugee camps, was closed by President Trump, and 90% cuts in aid imposed. The USA has officially recognised that the Rohingya have been subject to genocide.
Rohingya remaining in Burma are facing ongoing genocide, ongoing attacks and repression by the Burmese military. They are also subject to abuses by the Arakan Army, which now occupies most of the areas of Rakhine State where Rohingya live, burning homes and causing tens of thousands to flee their homes, making mass arrests, and refusing to recognises Rohingya identity and rights.
“Rations were already too small, and refugees already suffer so much, living in terrible conditions, donors must step up and increase funding,” said Tun Khin. “Rohingya are facing a choice of genocide in Burma or starvation in Bangladesh. Both are a result of repeated failures by the international community to prevent genocide and to support genocide survivors.”
The report by Reuters is available here: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/un-slash-rations-rohingya-refugees-by-half-6-per-month-official-says-2025-03-05/
For more information contact Tun Khin on: +44 (0)7888 714 866