By: Nick Licavoli The Rohingya are fleeing into Bangladesh by the hundreds of thousands, as informal refugee camps become sprawling cities of desperation. " Global crises waiver on a thin thread of individuals' attentions that can be cut anytime when the next global epidemic hits the main-stream media. According to the Microsoft Corporation, “The average attention span of the notoriously ill-focused goldfish is nine seconds, but according to a new study from Microsoft Corp., people now generally lose concentration after eight seconds, highlighting the effects of an increasingly digitalized lifestyle on the brain.” While we focus on the next issue in the news, the “past” events are still ongoing. Such is the case with the current refugee crisis in Myanmar and Bangladesh. You don’t hear too much about it, even though it is only a Google search away that the country is being ravaged by ethnic cleansing carried out by the military of Myanmar. The Rohingya, a Muslim ethnic minority primarily in Myanmar’s western Rakhine State, are fleeing into Bangladesh by the hundreds of thousands, turning informal refugee camps there into sprawling cities of desperation. The Search for SafetyUnsure whether or not their young children will make it to Bangladesh safely, a family waits, frightened, in Myanmar’s Northern Rakhine State, where, for two months, extreme violence has more or less confined the family to their rural home. Families sit waiting for large groups of people from their neighborhoods to leave with before embarking on the journey, thinking that there might be safety in numbers. After several days of walking, the family finally makes it to the border, while an even longer wait is pending before they can leave the border area and walk towards the refugee settlements of Cox’s Bazar of Bangladesh. When they cross the border, the IOM, UNHCR, UNICEF, and MSF provide water and emergency medical help and identify unaccompanied children in need of protection. They also guide the refugees to Balukhali — which is another full day of walking. Many others seeking to escape Myanmar see the dangers of trying to flee to Bangladesh, due to the country’s economic instability and its own violence against minorities. This has in turn forced people to jump in small boats and guide their families through the sea to Indonesia or Malaysia. Families are often unable to leave out of fear of the military taking their lives in the Rahkine State, or because they are too poor to make the journey across borders. Since the Rohingya are not allowed to sell land or their animals due to the government’s oppressive laws, many have to sell the few crops they have from the diminished lands they were able to harvest from. This money does not last long, as many need to pay others to assist their family members, carry any belongings they were able to bring, and to pay for medical assistance once across the border. New refugee arrivals are given essential items including tarpaulins, ropes, cooking pots and soap, before being shown to a part of the settlement where they can set up camp. What Now? What will it take to address the crisis? How is the international community responding? How are the Rohingya faring — and what is it like covering such a sudden human exodus? Not much help is coming from the United Nations or neighboring countries opening their doors to “humans,” not just refugees. People who are no less than you and I, deserve no less of a home than you and I. We do not have to give our lives for one another, but at the very least we should raise concern and awareness for the continuing crises around the world. We are all humans, regardless of the distance between us.
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