Eid is no longer festive, it’s just another day of survival, says Rohingya educator living in a refugee camp in Bangladesh
Eid has just gone by and it felt like just another day, a far cry from what it used to be in our motherland says 25-year-old Ro Niyomat Ullah who fled Myanmar with his family when he was 17, and has been living in a refugee camp in Bangladesh ever since.
(Photo: Ro Niyamot Ullah)
“In the camp in Balukhali the food is basic and we rely on what we can source from the aid money and donations. Eid doesn’t feel like a festival anymore unlike what it was when we were in Myanmar. All of it seems like a distant dream, but there is hope to return one day,” said Ro in an exclusive interview.
Ro originally hails from Myint Hlut, in the Southern Rakhine state of Myanmar.
At present he works as a teacher, researcher, ensuring basic education for Rohingya children whilst researching on their rights and future opportunities.
“Eight years back when we were in Arakan, Eid would include a traditional spread of food with Guhnna Semai ( fried noodles), Luri Fidá (flour based flatbread) served with Gustor Salom (meat cooked soup). Sadly, Eid is just another day in the camps due to lack of resources and restrictions. We live in constant fear,” Ro added.
(Traditional food made during Eid by Rohingiyas)
The conditions in the camps are concerning as there are reports of trafficking, lack of hygiene and sanitation compounded with food shortages. Festivals are muted and refugees live in fear. The only hope that keeps them going are stories they hear about their houses left behind in Myanmar and the festivities surrounding them.
“Years back, when we were in Myanmar, I used to go out with my father to buy new shoes and at least a week before Eid. Rohingyas celebrate Eid for three days. My mother used to prepare Luri Fidá, a special flour based flatbread. Children would make Bachí (whistles) from coconut leaves. This was an important part of our culture. In the past, our ancestors made these whistles to celebrate the new moon rising,” said Ro adding that there are no photographs he has of those days but the memories are vivid.
(Rohingiya villages in Myanmar)
In contrast, this year on Eid, Ro went to the graveyard to pay respects to his departed grandmother. Walking back to the camp he recounted the new clothes, and the dab of perfume his mother would spray on him. Small swabs of cotton would be stuffed in the ears before they went for the congregation.
“During my last Eid in Myanmar on the second day we went out to visit Shittar Lokkon, a beautiful place in southern Maung Daw, Rakhine State of Myanmar, located in Shew Pandu village. On the third day of celebrations we would visit relatives,” said Ro adding that he considers himself lucky to have experienced this unlike those Rohingyas who are born in the camps.
There are more than one million Rohingya refugees living in camps around Bangladesh. Survival with basic food to eat is all they have for now.
(Rohingyas in a refugee camp in Bangladesh)
Only time will tell when they would be allowed to return. But until then, people like Ro Niyomat Ullah would recount the glorious days of the past with the hope of finding a way back home.