UNHCR: 1,700 Rohingya relocated to new site in Kutupalong

The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has relocated some 1,700 new Rohingya refugees from the refugee camp in Kutupalong to a new, government-allocated site in the same area as the number of refugees keep growing in the existing camp. UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch, during a press briefing on Friday at the Palais des Nations, the home of the UN office in Geneva, Switzerland, said the relocation started on Tuesday in an effort to alleviate the pressure on the existing facilities in Kutupalong, as well as to provide stability to the refugees who have been on the move for days before arriving at the camp, said a press note. Baloch said most of these refugees were among the thousands of Rohingyas who trekked for about a week to cross the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, fleeing the violent military crackdown in their home state of Rakhine, only to be stranded in a border village for four days before being allowed to proceed inland last week. The UNHCR opened up a transit centre and some refugee schools in Kutupalong refugee camp to temporarily accommodate the most vulnerable refugees caught in the latest episode of Rohnigya exodus. The relocation was done to decongest the schools in Kutupalong and resume classes, and to free up the transit centre for further arrivals, Baloch said. A total of 5,000 refugees will be moved to the newly opened site, which is part of a larger 3,000-acre piece of land known as Kutupalong Extension designated by the Bangladesh government to host the new arrivals. The UNHCR has also developed a plan for the hilly area and started building latrines and digging tube wells. Space has also been demarcated for partners to build facilities like community centres, health posts, schools and child-friendly spaces. The UN refugee agency is partially funding the construction of a road near the site to improve access to refugees and speed up the delivery of assistance. Since Tuesday, volunteers have been helping vulnerable refugees to carry their belongings to the new site. Among the humanitarian organisations on the ground, the UNHCR is distributing household items and shelter kits containing plastic sheets, bamboo poles and rope, Save the Children is hiring workers to help with shelter construction for the most vulnerable refugees, and local NGO Gonoshasthaya Kendra is conducting medical screenings while Action Against Hunger is offering food and water until the refugees can cook for themselves. The UNHCR estimates that around 605,000 Rohingya have arrived in Bangladesh since violence broke out in Myanmar’s northern Rakhine state in August.