Features : World TB Day 2006 : Medecins Sans Frontieres Australia

20 June 2008

MSF SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THE VIOLENT CONDITIONS FACED BY THOUSANDS OF SOMALIS AND ETHIOPIANS CROSSING THE GULF OF ADEN

On the occasion of the presentation of its report “No Choice”, Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) calls for an increase in assistance to refugees and migrants fleeing from war and hunger.

Thousands of Somali and Ethiopian risk their lives every year to cross the Gulf of Aden to escape from conflict and extreme poverty. The trip is fraught with danger, as people are exposed to violence from the smugglers and receive little assistance upon their arrival in Yemen. In its report “No Choice” MSF documents the conditions of the perilous journey and calls for increased assistance for the thousands of refugees, asylum seekers and migrants fleeing their home countries.

SPECIAL REPORT: "No Choice"

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MSF staff provide medical care on the beach.

A MSF team provides assistance to the survivors on the shore of Yemen. © MSF

ROHINGYA REFUGEES IN BANGLADESH

The Rohingyas are a Muslim minority from the border region between Bangladesh and Rakhine State in western Myanmar (formerly Burma). Their accounts of life in Myanmar include severe human rights abuses: restrictions on movement and on marriage; forced labour; land and assets confiscation; violence and arbitrary arrest.

Ten thousand unregistered Rohingya men, women and children have sought refuge in Tal makeshift camp, near Teknaf, south east Bangladesh. Most people in Tal were originally formally recognised refugees living in an official UNHCR-administered camp. They were then forcefully repatriated to Myanmar, but were later forced to flee the ongoing persecution in the country again.

Tal is made up of two-metre by three-metre shelters constructed from wood and small pieces of plastic which often house up to twelve people. They are built on a base of mud that needs to be continually replaced to prevent them collapsing into the water. It is a squalid and overcrowded stretch of land where food and drinking water are scarce.

TESTIMONIES FROM TAL - photo gallery

These conditions have led to a need for humanitarian and medical assistance. MSF has been running a therapeutic feeding centre, a mental health program and an outpatient clinic near Tal.
The Government of Bangladesh is planning to move the people from Tal camp onto another piece of land. But as for most of the Rohingyas in Bangladesh, their status and their future remain uncertain.

MSF has been working with Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh since 1992.

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