YOUR SAY |
NOT GOING (HOME)…
ANYTIME SOON By Lion’s Voice
While we hide in the comfort and security of our homes, walk confidently on the streets and arm ourselves with social distancing, we forget a group of people who will struggle daily just to see the next sunrise. And while we watch in horror as COVID-19 ravages all corners of the world, we seem to have forgotten that the situation is far more dire and serious for forcibly displaced persons and refugees who are the most vulnerable. We all know that the most effective interventions to protect against COVID-19 – frequent hand washing, adherence to social-distancing guidelines, and wearing a mask. The sad truth is these measures are hardly available, and considered and luxury to the less fortunate and displaced persons. Many of the world’s 79.5 million forcibly displaced individuals lack access to clean water or soap, let alone health care. Living in cramped tents in overcrowded camps, is not uncommon for an entire family to share a single mask. This puts refugees at heightened risk of contracting – and dying from – the virus. In one hotel in southern Greece, 148 asylum seekers tested positive for COVID-19. In Singapore, 93% of COVID-19 cases occurred in dorms housing migrant workers. But in my eyes, the most group of people affected the most, and who cries out for our attention and action, are the Rohingya refugees living at Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. Since 2017, more than 800,000 have fled from neighbouring Myanmar’s brutal military crackdown seeking refuge - creating a situation where the country’s government officials have described as “untenable.” And while some nations have seen a drop in COVID-19 numbers or have managed to keep numbers to a minimum, there are fears that an uncontained outbreak of COVID-19 in the refugee camps, such as the main camp in Cox’s Bazar– the largest and most overcrowded in the world – could be devastating. And while many obediently observe social distancing, it is simply not possible with several hundred thousand people living in an area of just 13 square kilometres. It's just a matter of time until the virus reaches the vulnerable population living in cramped conditions in the largest refugee settlement on earth. In addition to COVID-19, relentless rain and hazardous weather have added to the challenges. According to humanitarian reports, over 100,000 refugees have been affected due to the heavy monsoon rains this year, that destroyed shelters and washed away crops.
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INSiGHT | October 2020
