Al Jazeera: Rohingya Refugees Made Permanent, a Cycle Repeated

As the United Nations invests in improved infrastructure and living conditions for refugees, risk emerges that temporary homes become permanent and discourage a return home. Camps housing 1 million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, are overwhelming, writes Linah Alsaafin, and she compares the experiences with those of Palestinian refugees. The Rohingya camps confront challenges including unstable clay ground and poor weather, not to mention that Bangladesh is a poor nation. Health clinics, classrooms, roads, drainage systems and mud huts replacing shelters make the camps slightly more livable. “The camps are here to stay,” Alsaafin writes. “It's something I inherently knew, as a third-generation Palestinian refugee, when I first set eyes on the thousands upon thousands of coloured tarps. I knew they would evolve into lasting structures, transforming the camp area into a shanty-town or ghetto.” Refugees from different villages and traditions focus on family, shared losses and an uncertain future. More than half the refugees are children. For many, the camps will be the only life they know. The international community must provide support while also developing mechanisms to punish those behind massive refugee crises. Otherwise, some nations will act with impunity against marginalized groups and trigger new crises. – YaleGlobal