Remembering a Genocide: The View From the Rohingya Camps

Every year on August 25, the Rohingya community around the world gather to commemorate Rohingya Genocide Remembrance Day. It is a day of mourning, expression, reflection, and hope. On this day, Rohingya people living abroad and in refugee camps hold banners, join together for mass prayers, recite poems, share their history, organize refugee exhibitions, and participate in social activities. All of these activities aim to remember their homeland and memories, and to honor their loved ones who were killed by the Myanmar authorities on August 25, 2017. For the Rohingya, August 25 is not just a black day. It is a day that has buried countless innocent Rohingya, that has mixed the tears of the Rohingya with blood, and that has forced more than a million Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh. On this day, the Myanmar military put into motion its plan to wipe out the Rohingya community from Myanmar’s Rakhine State under the pretext of responding to an attack on a police station. According to international human rights groups and Rohingya civil society organizations, more than 300 Rohingya villages were partially or completely destroyed following the Myanmar military’s attacks beginning on August 25, 2017. Rohingya women and girls were raped in front of their parents, husbands, and brothers. Children were thrown into fires, and people were burned to death inside their homes. Many were arrested and sent to jail; many family members still don’t know the whereabouts of their jailed family members. Property was looted, and mosques were destroyed. Many died after their trawlers were capsized or broken in the Naf River while fleeing to Bangladesh. Doctors Without Borders concluded that “[a]t least 9,000 members of the ethnic Rohingya minority died – most of them from violence – in Rakhine State, Myanmar” in the month after the violence began on August 25, 2017. “I witnessed the brutal massacre of my Rohingya community by the Myanmar military in 2017. The bullets that flew over my head were like raindrops,” Rohingya teacher Wai Yan recounted during a Rohingya Genocide Remembrance Day event. “All I saw were dead bodies with no one to bury them.” This year, August 25 marked the ninth anniversary of the violence, but the pain has not yet subsided. The Rohingya who fled are still trapped in overcrowded camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, waiting for justice from the world, while the remaining Rohingya in Myanmar continue to suffer from an ongoing genocide by the Arakan Army. The suffering never ended for the Rohingya. The Arakan Army is fighting Myanmar’s military for control of Rakhine State, and both groups have been attacking Rohingya villages – killing, looting, and burning. Many Rohingya have been killed, women have been raped, homes looted and burned to the ground, often with the occupants inside. After the military genocide against the Rohingya earlier, they are now facing similar treatment from the Arakan Army. According to a report by Human Rights Watch, the Arakan Army has targeted Rohingya civilians through killings, unlawful detention, forced recruitment of Rohingya youths, and other abuses that may amount to war crimes. Many Rohingya believe that the brutality carried out by the Arakan Army is aimed at driving the Rohingya out of the country, just like the Myanmar military’s campaign in 2017. Nine years have passed since the Rohingya were driven from their homeland, but the possibility for return remains fragile; not a single Rohingya has returned through the repatriation process since 2017. Bangladesh – a small and densely populated country – continues to shoulder the responsibility of hosting refugees. Bangladesh had previously tried to repatriate Rohingya, but their efforts failed. The refugees will not return as long as their safety, rights, and dignity are uncertain. Humanitarian assistance has helped the Rohingya endure their displacement, but the root causes of the crisis can only be addressed through political action. Myanmar must recognize the Rohingya as native people of Myanmar and create the conditions for their safe, voluntary, and dignified return with citizenship and rights. August 25 is not only about remembering what happened to the Rohingya in 2017. It is also about recognizing the challenges that continue today. Rohingya families remain trapped in the refugee camps, uncertain about their future. Children are growing up in the camps far from their homeland, learning about their homeland through the memories of their parents and grandparents. “If we don’t preserve our stories, others will forget what happened to us,” said Abdo Rohim, a highly experienced Rohingya teacher, writer, and humanitarian worker. “It is our responsibility to observe this important day, not only to remember our lost loved ones, but also to remind the world of what happened to us.” Despite years of endless suffering in exile, the Rohingya refugees remain hopeful. They continue to fight for justice for the genocide committed against them, for recognition of their rights, and for a future where they can live in peace in their homeland like everyone else. Each year, as the Rohingya mark Rohingya Genocide Remembrance Day, they remember those who were lost, honor those who survived, and support those who continue to struggle for a better future. The history of the Rohingya must not be erased, and their voices must not be silenced. The Rohingya story is one of immense suffering, but it is also a story of courage, resilience, and hope. Every year, on August 25, the community comes together to ensure that the victims are remembered, the survivors are heard, and the world is reminded that justice remains unfinished. Sirajul Islam, a Rohingya poet, writer, and human rights activist, said, “Every year, we commemorate this day with the only hope to return home before the next anniversary comes. Today, we are marking the ninth anniversary but this time with both desolation and hope and with the searing question: Will our hope ever come true?” Rohingya leaders say that remembering is not only about the past. It is about protecting the truth, preserving memories, and strengthening the community that one day they will return home with freedom, safety, citizenship, dignity, and rights. The United Nations and human rights organizations are calling for an end to the killings, persecution, and impunity, and for justice, accountability, and the restoration of the Rohingya’s rights and citizenship. But despite years of warnings and appeals, their calls seem to be ignored, and the suffering of the Rohingya continues to increase.